Women's Soccer Hosts William & Mary Thursday Night, Visits Saint Joseph's Sunday

Thursday, September 6

Lewisburg, Pa.

7 p.m.

Bucknell University

William & Mary

Photo by: Marc Hagemeier

Women's Soccer Hosts William & Mary Thursday Night, Visits Saint Joseph's Sunday

9/4/2018 8:57:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Setting the Scene, Part 1
Who: William & Mary (2-3-0) at Bucknell (2-3-1)
When: Thursday, Sept. 6, 7 p.m.
Where: Emmitt Field, Lewisburg, Pa.
Live Webstream: Patriot League Network
Live Stats: BucknellBison.com

Setting the Scene, Part 2
Who: Bucknell (2-3-1) at Saint Joseph's (3-1-1)
When: Sunday, Sept. 9, 1 p.m.
Where: Sweeney Field, Philadelphia, Pa.
Live Webstream: ESPN+
Live Stats: SJUHawks.com

About the Bison

Bucknell has found goal-scoring hard to come by early in the season against a very challenging schedule, but the Bison have been in every single match thanks to some stellar defense. Through six contests, the Bison have scored five goals and conceded only four. They rank second in the Patriot League and 60th among 335 Division I teams in scoring defense.
Last weekend, Bucknell defeated Towson 1-0 at home and played Saint Francis (Pa.) to a scoreless draw in Loretto, Pa. After posting 200 scoreless minutes in those two games, junior Theresa Adu-Attobrah was named Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Week, and freshman center back Claire Mensi was picked as the Patriot League Rookie of the Week.
The Bison have yet to allow more than one goal in a game this season. The three losses are all by 1-0 margins to Hofstra, Monmouth and No. 7 Virginia, all NCAA Tournament teams last season. Saint Francis was also an NCAA team a year ago, and a fifth such opponent will come up on Oct. 2 when the Bison travel to Princeton.
The game at No. 7 Virginia was a heartbreaker. The Bison defended valiantly all day against the high-powered Cavaliers and were just 29 seconds away from forcing overtime, but Virginia cashed in on a corner kick to take all three points.
Jenna Marek provided the game-winning goal in the 80th minute against Towson on Friday, and she now leads the team with two goals this season. Marek stole a pass in the Towson back line and scored from just inside the 18.
Bailey Hurst was one of four goal-scorers in a 4-1 win over Niagara, joining Marek, Mensi and Emilene Parham. Hurst piled up a career high 11 shots at Saint Francis on Sunday, and she leads the team with 17 attempts on the season.
Adu-Attobrah has started all six games in goal. She tallied a career-high 10 saves at Monmouth, and then she surpassed that mark with 11 saves against Virginia less than 48 hours later. For the season, Adu-Attobrah has 39 saves with just four goals against, good for a Patriot League-best .907 save percentage. That figure ranks 25th nationally, and her 6.5 saves per game rank 22nd.
Bucknell has yet to be shown a yellow card through six games, nor have any opposing players. Last season, the Bison accumulated only four cautions in 21 games.

About William & Mary/Series History

The Tribe comes to Emmitt Field with a 2-3 record, including back-to-back wins over Coastal Carolina (2-0) and Liberty (2-1). They scored twice in the final five minutes to steal a win from Liberty last time out. William & Mary opened the season with losses to Maryland (2-1), Dayton (2-1 OT) and Virginia (3-0).
Sarah Segan leads the team with two goals, along with an assist. Colleen Norton, Renee Kohler, Courtney Miles and Alex Kuhnle also have goals for the Tribe, who have been outscored 8-6 on the season.
Katelyn Bruguglio has started four of the team's five games in goal and has 14 saves with seven goals against. Sara Vigen got the start against Liberty and made two saves in the 2-1 win.
Julie Shackford is in her first season as William & Mary's head coach. A former standout player for the Tribe, Shackford is the former head coach at Carnegie Mellon and Princeton, and she was selected as the national coach of the year in 2004 after taking Princeton the national semifinals.
William & Mary was picked fifth in the Colonial Athletic Association preseason poll, behind Hofstra, Northeastern, James Madison and Drexel. This will be the third CAA team Bucknell has played already this season. The Bison fell to Hofstra 1-0 and beat Towson 1-0.
Bucknell and William & Mary have met twice previously, with the Tribe claiming both victories. William & Mary won 9-0 in 1992, which was Bucknell's third year as a varsity program. The Tribe prevailed last season in Williamsburg, 3-1. Bailey Hurst scored in the 78th minute to tie the game at 1-1, but William & Mary's Charlotte Hyland completed a hat trick with goals in the 84th and 89th minutes.
This will be William & Mary's first trip to Lewisburg.

About Saint Joseph's/Series History

Saint Joseph's is off to a strong start at 3-1-1, with the lone loss coming at No. 20 Princeton by a 3-0 count last Friday. The Hawks have beaten Temple (2-1), Lehigh (2-0) and James Madison (2-1), and they have a 1-1 draw with Rutgers.
Saint Joseph's is set to embark on a five-game homestand, with Drexel visiting Sweeney Field on Thursday before Bucknell comes to town.
The Hawks have posted seven goals in five games, led by two each from Morgan Bower and Mackenzie Ehresman. Taylor Ryan, Hannah Racis and Aleksa Peev have one goal each.
Grace Bendon has played every minute in goal thus far, logging 22 saves with six goals against.
Saint Joseph's returned 18 letterwinners, including 10 starters, from last year's squad that went 11-6-3 overall, 5-3-2 in conference play and advanced to the semifinals of the A-10 Championship. The Hawks were picked sixth in the A-10 preseason poll, and Paige Bergman and Dakota Mills were preseason all-league picks.
Bucknell has a 5-3 lead in a series that dates back to 1996. The Bison won five of the first six meetings, but the Hawks have claimed the last two, including a wild 3-2 verdict last season at Emmitt Field. The Bison erased a 1-0 halftime deficit with goals by Meghan Holtz (PK) and Jenna Marek, but Saint Joseph's rallied with goals in the 71st and 85th minutes.

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