SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — The Slippery Rock University women's soccer team will commence its 2024 season with Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference crossover outings 4:30 p.m. Friday at Shepherd University and 1 p.m. Sunday at East Stroudsburg University.
 
WATCH LIVE
Shepherd Sports Information has provided a link with instructions to access Veo Live, an app that allows fans to stream Friday's game live for free. Additionally, fans can watch Sunday's game live for free via the links below provided by East Stroudsburg Athletic Communications.
 
GAME 1 of 17
Opponent: Shepherd
Date: Friday – 4:30 p.m.
Location: Shepherdstown, West Virginia
Venue: Shepherd Soccer Complex
Live Video: Veo Live
In-game Updates: X (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: N/A – First Meeting
 
GAME 2 of 17
Opponent: East Stroudsburg
Date: Sunday – 1 p.m.
Location: East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania
Venue: Eiler-Martin Stadium
Live Video: PSAC Sports Digital Network
Live Stats: East Stroudsburg Athletic Communications
In-game Updates: X (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: East Stroudsburg leads, 14-11-4
Current Streak: Slippery Rock W1
Last Played: Nov. 15, 2019 (W/OT, 1-0)
 

TEAM COMPARISON
The Rock	2023 Stats	Shepherd	ESU
12-4-3	Overall Record	7-5-6	10-5-4
11-2-3	Conference Record	5-5-6	8-4-4
2.3	Goals per Game	1.8	1.7
1.5	Opp. Goals per Game	1.3	0.8
+15	Season Goal Differential	+10	+17
17.9	Shots per Game	16.1	17.3
9.1	Opp. Shots per Game	11.9	9.5
8.9	SOG per Game	7.9	8.7
4.1	Opp. SOG per Game	5.7	3.9
1.9	Assists per Game	1.7	0.8
7.1	Corners per Game	4.9	4.0
7.6	Fouls per Game	9.4	8.7
2.6	Saves per Game	4.4	3.1

 
THE ROCK BY THE NUMBERS
2023 Overall Record: 12-4-3
2023 PSAC West Record: 11-2-3
2023 Home Record: 7-0-2
2023 Away Record: 5-4-1
2023 PSAC West Rank: 3^rd of 9
Head Coach: Jessica Giegucz | 10^th season at SRU (95-42-20, .669)
Roster: Link
Stats: Link
 
SERIES HISTORY
Shepherd will become the 52^nd different team that The Rock women's soccer team has played in program history. SRU has competed against all other active PSAC teams at least 12 times before.
 
Slippery Rock's last meeting with East Stroudsburg came in the 2019 PSAC Tournament Semifinals. A 92^nd minute goal from Madison Johnson lifted SRU to a 1-0 overtime victory en route to its fourth PSAC Tournament Championship two days later.
 
Sunday will mark the 30^th all-time meeting between SRU and ESU. The matchup has historically been dominated by the home team, as Slippery Rock will be seeking its first road win at East Stroudsburg since 2010 – a span of seven games. Overall, East Stroudsburg leads the series, 14-11-4.
 
Only six of the last 11 fixtures between The Rock and the Warriors have come in the regular season. East Stroudsburg holds a 3-2 edge over Slippery Rock in PSAC Tournament play. Sunday will be SRU's first regular season trip to ESU since 2017.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock's strong 2023 campaign came to an end in its 13^th straight PSAC Tournament appearance. The team's 12-4-3 overall record marked the program's 27^th consecutive winning record in which a full season was played.
 
In PSAC West play, Slippery Rock went 11-2-3, including a 2-1 upset win over No. 18 Mercyhurst University and a remarkable 3-3 comeback draw against Gannon University after trailing by three at the half.
 
Additionally, Slippery Rock carries over a 10-game undefeated streak at home, as SRU posted a 7-0-2 home showing last year.
 
STRONG RETENTION
SRU's 28-person roster includes 22 returners, 81.5 percent of last year's squad. The Rock will be looking to fill two major roles in the absence of Ashley Rea and Brooke Riefenstahl. While Rea – Slippery Rock's leading goalscorer in 2023 – will not be back on the field this year, the team will enjoy her presence on the sideline as a graduate assistant.
 
Slippery Rock brings a balanced roster to the new season featuring eight seniors, six juniors, eight sophomores and six freshmen. Of last year's 43 goals that The Rock put in the back of the net, 33 (76.7 percent) were scored by returners.
 
BACK AT THE HELM
Head coach Jessica Giegucz will enter her 10^th year at the helm of The Rock women's soccer program, five victories away from her 100^th win with SRU. Giegucz, who began her career at Division III Northland College, earned her 100^th overall career win last year.
 
Giegucz begins the season with an impressive 95-42-20 (.669) record while at The Rock and a career mark of 106-51-21 (.654).
 
Assistant coach Kohl Orner will once again join Giegucz on the sidelines, beginning his fifth year with Slippery Rock.
 
Orner, who plays a pivotal role in SRU's goalkeeping and defensive efforts, is coming off a season that featured a nine-game undefeated streak, the program's longest since 2009. The Rock also start off their 2024 campaign with a +25 goal differential over the past two years.
 
In her first year as Slippery Rock's graduate assistant, Rea will be able to jump straight in and share valuable experience after providing 42 points on 18 goals and six assists over the last four seasons. Through her playing career, the reigning All-PSAC West honoree appeared in 72 total games while averaging 56.3 minutes per game.
 
LEADING THE ROCK
Sydney Patrick returns to The Rock after tallying a team-best 23 points on six goals and 11 assists last year. A United Soccer Coaches All-Atlantic Region honoree in 2023, Patrick's 11 assists ranked second all-time in Slippery Rock's single-season record book.
 
Six more goals were produced by Morgan Sarver, who is back in the Green and White for her junior season. Sarver earned PSAC West Athlete of the Week honors twice last year, leading SRU with 67 total shots. In addition to her six goals last year, the Altoona, Pennsylvania forward also put together nine assists for a total of 21 points.
 
SRU's offensive efforts will also be grateful to see the returns of Maddie DeLucio, Skylar Munnikhuysen and Libby Zacharyasz – a trio that combined for 14 goals last year. Joining Zacharyasz in scoring goals from the defense was Faith Diffenbacher, who totaled five points on two goals and an assist.
 
2023 also featured goals being scored by the likes of Jaime Dermotta, Sophia Palermo, Lindsey Price, Briona Rice and Olivia Yoder – all returners to The Rock's 2024 roster.
 
A RENOWNED DEFENSE
Allowing just 28 goals last season, SRU ranked second in the PSAC West in scoring defense behind now-Division I Mercyhurst. Additionally, The Rock led the entire conference in limiting their opponents to just 2.2 corner kicks per game.
 
The Rock will happily welcome back defensive staples such as Nina King, Diffenbacher and Zacharyasz. Those three members of the defensive third started and played the entirety of all 19 games last season.
 
While Diffenbacher and King were both named second team All-PSAC West honorees last year, Zacharyasz became a two-time PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Week. A native of Strongsville, Ohio, Zacharyasz also led SRU with three game-winning goals.
 
BETWEEN THE PIPES
Leah Allman returns as Slippery Rock's starting goalkeeper after ranking second in the PSAC West with six shutouts in her freshman year. Allman started all 19 games last season, finishing up her rookie circuit with a 1.51 GAA and a .632 save percentage. Allie Burkholder and Brianna Matteson also join her again in the goalkeeping room.
 
NEW FACES ON THE FIELD
Slippery Rock's recruiting class will also feature six freshmen:
 
2024 Rock women's soccer freshmen (Hometown / High School)
#3 – D – Jordyn Constable (Rochester, N.Y. / Penfield)
#16 – F – Kate Lasker (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio / Woodridge)
#17 – MF – Chloe Flynn (Hackettstown, N.J. / Hackettstown)
#20 – MF – Libby Earley (Wexford, Pa. / North Allegheny)
#22 – F – Sam Braden (Wexford, Pa. / North Allegheny)
#24 – D – Kierstyn Maxey (Fairmont, W. Va. / East Fairmont)
 
THE ROCK HEADS EAST
Slippery Rock is 5-4-1 in its last 10 games against current PSAC East teams, despite not playing a team from the Eastern Division since 2019. SRU went 4-3-1 against current institutions in the PSAC East in 2018 and split between a PSAC Tournament win over ESU and an NCAA Tournament loss to West Chester University in 2019.  

The Rock have won three of their last five games when traveling to PSAC East members, losing only to Bloomsburg University twice in 2018.
 
STARTING ON THE RIGHT FOOT
A win over Shepherd would mark Slippery Rock's third consecutive season of winning its season opener. If Slippery Rock comes home with two wins on the weekend, it will be the first time since 2018 that SRU began the year at 2-0.

Additionally, SRU has not won three straight season openers since winning eight consecutive opening days from 2006-13.
 
Slippery Rock has outscored opponents in its last five season openers by a cumulative total of 11-5, a difference bolstered by a 6-1 victory over Davis & Elkins College to kick off the season a year ago.
 
COUNTRY ROADS
Slippery Rock's outing at Shepherd will mark the 18^th all-time recorded game that SRU has played in West Virginia. The Rock are 12-5 when playing in the Mountain State, winning 11 of their last 13 games across state lines.
 
PRESEASON PROJECTIONS
The Rock women's soccer team earned a first-place vote and landed third in the 2024 PSAC West preseason coaches' poll, the conference office announced Aug. 13.
 
2023 PSAC Tournament runner-up No. 5 Gannon sat atop the poll with six first-place votes with SRU being edged by Seton Hill University for second. The Griffins also saw one first-place vote cast in their favor.
 
Indiana University (Pa.) was predicted to finish the season in fourth followed by Edinboro, California (Pa.), Clarion and Pitt-Johnstown.
 
No. 11 West Chester will look to defend its PSAC Championship victory after being polled first in the PSAC East despite gaining just five of the eight possible first-place votes. No. 25 Kutztown University, which won the PSAC East regular season title a year ago, came in second with a trio of first-place votes.
 
East Stroudsburg and Bloomsburg rounded out the top four in the PSAC East. Shepherd picked up a first-place vote while polling fifth. The sixth through ninth-place spots belonged to Millersville University, Lock Haven University, Shippensburg University and Mansfield University, respectively.
 
RECORD WATCH
With 21 assists, Patrick begins the season seventh all-time in SRU's record book. One assist would put her in a three-way tie for fifth with Sarah Arsenault and Rachel Edge. Six assists would put her at 27, surpassing Ashley Paganie's program-best 26.
 
Patrick joins Sarver in the top 20 all-time in total shots attempted, as well. While Patrick has attempted 101 total career shots, good enough to rank 18^th all-time, Sarver enters the year slotted 14^th all-time with 112 shots. Arsenault holds down the final spot in the top 10 with 133 shots, while Meghan McGrath sits atop the record books with 277.
 
Allman, SRU's sophomore goalkeeper, already ranks 12^th all-time in goalie games played with 19. Playing just four more games would bump her into a four-way tie for ninth. Shelby Ward's 86 games played from 2009-12 leads the way for most in school history.
 
THE RAMS BY THE NUMBERS
2023 Overall Record: 7-5-6
2023 PSAC East Record: 5-5-6
2023 Home Record: 4-1-4
2023 Away Record: 3-4-2
2023 PSAC East Rank: 5^th of 9
Head Coach: Sam Odell | Fifth season at Shepherd (19-24-12, .455)
Roster: Link
Stats: Link
 
SHEPHERD SCOUTING REPORT
The Rams are coming off a 7-5-6 season that included a 5-5-6 mark in PSAC East play. Missing the PSAC Tournament by seven points, Shepherd was the highest-ranked team in the PSAC – East or West – to miss postseason play.
 
Shepherd's offense was led by Lydia Gable last year, a rising junior who totaled 26 points on 10 goals and six assists. Delaney Bittner is another key returner for the Rams, a midfielder from York, Pennsylvania who strung together 10 points on four goals and two assists last season.
 
There are several spots up for grabs on Shepherd's starting lineup this year, with multiple absences from last year's roster. That includes the goalkeeping position, which will be contested for between two sophomores in Morgan Highland and Hannah Wilt.
 
The Rams are led by fifth-year head coach Sam Odell. A native of Walton-on-Thames, England, Odell enters the season with a 19-24-12 (.455) career record.
 
THE WARRIORS BY THE NUMBERS
2023 Overall Record: 10-5-4
2023 PSAC East Record: 8-4-4
2023 Home Record: 5-1-2
2023 Away Record: 5-4-2
2023 PSAC East Rank: 3^rd of 9
Head Coach: Meagan DeWan | Second season at ESU (10-5-4, .632)
Roster: Link
Stats: Link
 
EAST STROUDSBURG SCOUTING REPORT
The Warriors had a similar season to Slippery Rock last year in that they ranked third in their division and saw their postseason run come to an end in the first round of the PSAC Tournament. East Stroudsburg earned the third seed in the PSAC East with an 8-4-4 conference record and lost to West Chester in the first round of the playoffs, 2-0.
 
Natalie Schooley returns to ESU after leading the Warriors with 21 points on nine goals and three assists last year. The rising senior from Cherry Hill, New Jersey also recorded a team-high 69 shots and 36 shots on goal.
 
Goalkeeper Emmy Clarkson also returns to the Warriors after playing all 1,710 minutes last year in net. The rising junior's nine shutouts ranked third in the PSAC East last season to go along with her stout 0.84 GAA and .784 save percentage.  
 
Head coach Meagan DeWan is going into her second year at the helm of the team but her 13th overall year on the coaching staff at ESU. DeWan was an assistant coach when East Stroudsburg and Slippery Rock last met on the pitch in 2019.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Slippery Rock will spring into PSAC West action 1 p.m. Sept. 11 when The Rock head to Richland High School to take on Pitt-Johnstown.





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