Roster   |   Schedule   |  2022 Statistics

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. –  The 2023 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference preseason coaches' poll had the Slippery Rock University women's soccer team ranked second in the PSAC Western Division, the conference office announced Tuesday.
 
Gannon University, last year's PSAC West champions, was picked to repeat as division champions after receiving eight first-place votes. Slippery Rock earned one first-place vote and was slotted second, one spot ahead of Mercyhurst University, who ended The Rock's season a year ago in the PSAC Tournament quarterfinals.
 
Rounding out the predicted order of finish in the PSAC West was Indiana University (Pa.) in fourth place followed by Seton Hill University, California (Pa.), Edinboro, Pitt-Johnstown and Clarion. 
 
Defending PSAC Tournament champion, and national runner-up, West Chester University was picked to win the Eastern Division followed by Bloomsburg University, Kutztown University, East Stroudsburg University, Millersville University, Shepherd University, Lock Haven University and Mansfield University.
 
Slippery Rock capped off the 2022 season with a 7-4-8 overall record, marking the 26th consecutive winning season, a nationally renowned streak. The Rock also kept consistent with qualifying for the PSAC Tournament for a 12th-straight season.
 
OFF THE HEELS
27 women will don the Slippery Rock jersey this season, 16 of whom are returners. One of the most critical spots to fill will be that of Kayla Swope, who graduated after leading the team in points last year, scoring three goals and adding four assists.
 
The second major starting spot to fill this season will be Slippery Rock's goalkeeper, after longtime netminder Emma Yoder graduated after an impressive five-year career.
 
Other than those two spots. The 59 percent of the roster that returns for at least their second season at The Rock are joined by nine incoming freshmen and two transfers, who will certainly benefit from the experience and leadership on and off the field.  
 
COACHING STAFF
Head Coach Jessica Giegucz returns for her ninth season at The Rock in 2023. Since taking over the program in 2015, Giegucz has compiled a record of 83-38-17 and is yet to have a losing season.
 
Giegucz, the second winningest women's soccer coach in SRU history, boasted six players on the 2022 roster that were honored on the CSC Academic All-District team and four All-PSAC West selections. In addition, Yoder was named to the CSC Academic All-America Team for the second time in her career.
 
Assistant Coach Kohl Orner returns for his third season as well. Focusing primarily on the defensive effort, Orner comes off an impressive year that was highlighted by ten shutouts, the third-best total in program history. That included a five-game stretch without allowing a goal and a seven-game undefeated streak where only two goals were netted against The Rock.
 
Former women's soccer graduate assistant Erica Ludwikowski is back on the sideline as well for her second year as a volunteer assistant coach.
 
SENIOR CLASS
Despite being the smallest class on the roster this year's senior class of Brandie Nauman, Sydney Patrick, Ashley Rea and Brooke Riefenstahl bring a wealth of experience to lead The Rock.
 
Rea, who graduated in May, is now in Slippery Rock's impressive Doctor of Occupational Therapy program. A four-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete, Rea continues to translate her academic success with that on the soccer pitch as well, leading the team with four goals while starting all 19 games last season. She also averaged 3.53 shots per game, third-highest in the PSAC.
 
Riefenstahl, one of the three captains on the team, will return to the helm of leading Slippery Rock's defense after playing all 90 minutes of every game last season. On top of her crucial role in the backfield, Riefenstahl comes off her best season from an offensive standpoint as well, providing two goals and one assist.
 
Patrick and Nauman round out the veteran class, both playing primarily in the attacking end of the field. Patrick, another team captain, returns to the team after a season where she placed 15 of her shots on target, coupled with the addition of four assists.
 
JUNIOR CLASS
The junior class is comprised of seven student-athletes this year: Maddie DeLucio, Jaime Dermotta, Faith Diffenbacher, Jessica Girard, Nina King, Skylar Munnikhuysen and Olivia Yoder.
 
DeLucio, who will be captaining for her first time in 2023, appeared in 10 games last season, netting three goals, two of which were game-winners. Dermotta, who joins DeLucio in the midfield, started 16 games last year, contributing two goals of her own.
 
The junior class also provides a solid presence defensively, with Diffenbacher, Girard and King. Diffenbacher, one of the six players to start every game last season, recorded two goals, one assist, and placed six of her 10 shots on target.
 
Munnikhuysen and Yoder appeared in 18 and 15 games last season respectively and look to continue to build on the cohesion of SRU's attacking midfield.  
 
SOPHOMORE CLASS
Along with seven juniors come seven sophomores, made up of Sydney Gray, Brianna Matteson, Briona Rice, Morgan Sarver, Sydney Smith, Leah Walter and Libby Zacharyasz.
 
New to The Rock, Sydney Gray joins the team as a forward after spending a season at Division I VMI, where she appeared in three games. A fellow Division I transfer, Brianna Matteson will bring her goalie gloves from Rider University.
 
High hopes surround Morgan Sarver, who made an immediate impact during her freshman season highlighted by three goals and three assists. The only other freshman last year to record at least one goal and one assist was Libby Zacharyasz, who will no doubt look to add to her career tally in 2023.
 
FRESHMEN CLASS
The largest class on this year's squad is the freshmen class, consisting of nine student-athletes. The Rock welcomes Leah Allman (Olmsted Township, Ohio), Ava Balazentis (Mars, Pennsylvania), Allie Burkholder (Lancaster, Pennsylvania), Allie Burns (Wexford, Pennsylvania), Ariana Daniels (Poland, Ohio), Irene Doleno (McMurray, Pennsylvania), Bailey McGee (Aurora, Ohio), Sophia Palermo (Wexford, Pennsylvania) and Lindsey Price (Zelienople, Pennsylvania).
 
The freshmen in this year's recruiting class bring an impressive high school soccer resume, earning a cumulative 28 letters. The rookies also won a combined two state championships and appeared in a dozen sectional championships during their prep careers.
 
2023 SCHEDULE
Slippery Rock will travel over 1,500 miles round-trip in their 2023 campaign. The season will kick off with a pair of opponents hailing from the Mountain East Conference. The women's soccer program will play the first home game of all sports teams at Slippery Rock on 7:30 p.m. Aug. 31 against Davis & Elkins College. After a road trip three days later to Fairmont State University (Sept. 3), The Rock will dive into their 16-game PSAC West slate:
 
Pitt-Johnstown (Sept. 6: Home / Oct. 11: Away)
Seton Hill (Sept. 9: Away / Oct. 7: Home)
Mercyhurst (Sept. 13: Away / Oct. 18: Home)
Indiana (Pa.) (Sept. 16: Home / Oct. 21: Away)
Edinboro (Sept. 20: Home / Oct. 25: Away)
Clarion (Sept. 23: Home / Oct. 14: Away)
Gannon (Sept. 27: Away / Oct. 31: Home)
California (Pa.) (Sept. 30: Away / Oct. 28: Home)
 
The top four teams in the division standings at the conclusion of the regular season qualifies for the PSAC Tournament which opens Nov. 6.
 
2023 PSAC Preseason Coaches' Poll
(First-Place votes)
WEST
1. Gannon (8)
2. Slippery Rock (1)
3. Mercyhurst
4. Indiana (Pa.)
5. Seton Hill
6. California (Pa.)
7. Edinboro
8. Pitt-Johnstown
9. Clarion
 
EAST
1. West Chester (8)
2. Bloomsburg (1)
3. Kutztown
4. East Stroudsburg
5. Millersville
6. Shepherd
7. Shippensburg
8. Lock Haven
9. Mansfield


 
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