Two Ranked Teams up Next as Women's Soccer Travels to No. 20 Georgetown, No. 21 Pittsburgh

Thursday, August 24

Washington, D.C.

4 p.m.

Bucknell University

Georgetown

Photo by: Lianne Garrahan

Two Ranked Teams up Next as Women's Soccer Travels to No. 20 Georgetown, No. 21 Pittsburgh

8/23/2023 4:10:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Bucknell (2-0) at No. 20 Georgetown (1-0-1)
When: Thursday, Aug. 24, 4 p.m. ET
Where: Shaw Field, Washington, D.C.
Streaming: Big East Digital Network on FloSports
Live Stats: GUHoyas.com

Bucknell (2-0) at No. 21 Pittsburgh (2-0)
When: Sunday, Aug. 27, 1 p.m. ET
Where: Ambrose Urbanic Field
Streaming: ACC Network Extra
Live Stats: PittsburghPanthers.com

Bucknell at a Glance

The Bison enjoyed a terrific opening week, posting one-sided home wins over a pair of Atlantic 10 teams in Saint Joseph's (4-0) and George Washington (3-1). Now the schedule ramps up even further with two road fixtures against ranked opponents on tap this week. The Bison visit No. 20 Georgetown on Thursday afternoon, followed by a trip to Pittsburgh on Sunday to face the 21st-ranked Panthers.
Bucknell has never beaten a nationally ranked opponent, although last year the Bison secured their first-ever point against a ranked foe when it played No. 17 West Virginia to a scoreless draw in Morgantown.
Bucknell is 2-0 for the first time since 2016, when the team started 4-0 on the way to a 16-2-2 season.
Sunday's game at Pitt will mark a homecoming for Western PA natives Hannah Stuck (McMurray) and Eva Frankovic (North Huntingdon). Frankovic played her first two collegiate seasons with the Panthers before transferring to Bucknell.
Bucknell graduated 2021 scoring leader and Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year Riley Donaldson and 2022 scoring leader Abby Gearhart after last season's championship run, leaving some question marks about the offense heading into this season. But the Bison quelled some of those concerns by pumping in seven goals in the first two games.
Only twice previously had Bucknell scored three or more goals in each of its first two games of a season, and those came during the program's third and fourth varsity seasons all the way back in 1992 and 1993.
Henna Andican and Teresa Deda each recorded a goal and an assist in both games, and Paige Temple tallied a three-point game against Saint Joseph's. Reese Evans and Lea Tarzy also have goals, and Sydney Hess has two assists, both coming in Sunday's win over GW.
Andican, who scored the opening goal in the first half of both games, was named Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week on Monday. Andican, a sophomore, scored two goals all of last season but has already matched that total. She has already taken 14 shots, 10 of which have been on target.
The Bison claimed two other Patriot League honors on Monday, with Deda named PL Midfielder of the Week and Jenna Hall selected as the PL Goalkeeper of the Week.
Deda, the 2022 Patriot League Midfielder of the Year and 2023 Preseason Midfielder of the Year, led the league in assists in each of her first two collegiate seasons. She handed out two more last week to give her 22 in her career, tied with Liz Woodrow for second-most in team history, and she also scored two big insurance goals. Her strike against George Washington was particularly impressive, a left-footed blast just under the bar from well outside the box.
A suffocating effort from Bucknell's veteran back line meant that Hall was only needed for three saves in each game, but she commanded her box throughout and conceded only once, that coming on a well-placed shot with four minutes left and Bucknell's substitutes on against George Washington. Hall recorded her 18th career solo shutout against Saint Joe's, bringing her within four of Jessica Ratner's all-time team record.
The Bison have used the same starting eleven in both games thus far. Junior Reese Evans and sophomore Sydney Hess both made their first career starts in the midfield on opening day.
Bucknell is the two-time defending Patriot League champion. Last season, the second-seeded Bison won penalty-kick shootouts against Boston University and Army in the Patriot League Tournament, and then dropped a 1-0 overtime decision at Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament.
Seniors Jenna Hall, Hannah Stuck, and Brooke Tracey are this year's team captains.
Kelly Cook is in her ninth season as Bucknell's head coach, and she has led the Bison to four Patriot League championships in her first eight years. Cook owns a 73-55-19 (.561) overall record at Bucknell, including a 40-17-11 (.669) mark in Patriot League play. Cook knows the Patriot League very well, as she was a two-year captain and three-time Second Team All-Patriot League selection at Colgate, where she recorded 27 goals and 23 assists in her career. She ranked in the top 10 in program history in career points (77) and assists. As a junior in 2004, Cook (then Kelly Kuss) was named Patriot League Tournament MVP after leading the Raiders to the league title, and then her team knocked off Arizona in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, marking the first NCAA win in school and league history.
Cook has two new assistant coaches in 2023, as former Clarion head coach Alexa Ream and goalkeepers coach PJ Steiner have joined the program.

Georgetown at a Glance

The Hoyas opened the 2023 season on the West Coast and came back with a 1-1 draw with Pepperdine and a 1-0 victory over Loyola Marymount.
A perennial national title contender, Georgetown is coming off a stellar 15-2-5 season that included an 8-0-2 Big East record. The Hoyas won the Big East Tournament title with 1-0 wins over Creighton and Xavier, then defeated Hofstra 1-0 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Their season ended in the second round, however, with a 2-1 loss to Pittsburgh. Georgetown has won six of the last seven Big East crowns.
Erika Harwood scored Georgetown's goal early in the second half in the win over Loyola Marymount. Natalie Means scored the goal at Pepperdine.
Goalkeeper Allie Augur, the Big East Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year, made five saves while allowing only one goal in the two games last week. Julia Leas was selected as the Big East Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, and Eliza Turner joined those two on the Preseason All-Big East Team.
Leas, a graduate student, was one of 15 semifinalists for the MAC Hermann Trophy last season, and she was recently named to the 2023 Hermann Trophy Watch List.
Head coach Dave Nolan is in his 20th season as Georgetown's head coach and has a 260-91-58 record. He has taken the Hoyas to 11 straight NCAA Tournaments, highlighted by College Cup appearances in 2016 and 2018.

The Bucknell-Georgetown Series

Bucknell is 2-4 all-time against Georgetown. The Bison won the first two meetings in 1994 (4-1) and 1995 (2-0), but the Hoyas have captured the last four.
The last official meeting came in D.C. in 2019, although the two teams scrimmaged this past spring. The 13th-ranked Hoyas won the 2019 affair 2-0 on goals in the 4th and 44th minutes.
Georgetown also won 4-1 in 2002, 4-0 in 2004, and 3-1 in 2005.

Pittsburgh at a Glance

Like Bucknell, the Panthers jumped out to a 2-0 start with wins last week over Buffalo (2-1) and Drexel (4-1). Pittsburgh travels to Kent State before hosting the Bison on Sunday.
Amanda West and Landy Mertz scored goals four minutes apart in the second half to give the Panthers a 2-0 lead on opening night at Buffalo. The Bulls pulled one back in the 86th minute, but Pittsburgh held on for the win.
Pitt exploded for three goals in the first 12:35 of Sunday's match against Drexel, with Sarah Schupansky scoring twice and Samiah Phiri once. West added her second goal of the season in the 48th minute to make it 4-0.
West, a fifth-year striker, was named to the TopDrawerSoccer Preseason Top 100 list (No. 69). The three-time All-ACC honoree was limited to six games last season due to injury, but she now has 41 goals and 23 assists in her career. One of those goals came against Bucknell in overtime in 2019.
Pitt finished 14-5-3 overall and 5-3-2 in the ACC last year. The 14 wins marked a program record, and the last two of those victories came in the NCAA Tournament. The Panthers downed Buffalo and Georgetown to reach the Sweet Sixteen in their very first NCAA Tournament appearance.
Head coach Randy Waldrum recently returned from Australia, where he coached the Nigerian National Team at the FIFA Women's World Cup. Pitt freshman Deborah Abiodun played on that Super Falcons squad. Waldrum was previously the head coach at Notre Dame, where he led the Fighting Irish to national championships in 2004 and 2010, Baylor, and Tulsa.

The Bucknell-Pittsburgh Series

Bucknell is 2-2 all-time against the Panthers, with the wins coming in back-to-back seasons in 2000 (3-0) and 2001 (1-0). Pitt claimed a 3-0 home win in 2013, and then at Emmitt Field in 2019 the Panthers won 1-0 on an Amanda West overtime goal in the 101st minute.
Kristie Simon logged two goals and an assist in Bucknell's 3-0 win in the first-ever series meeting in 2000. A year later in Pittsburgh, Megan Farrell's 85th-minute strike was the difference. Laurie Purse was the winning goalkeeper in both of those shutout victories.

The Road Ahead

After this week's road swing, the Bison return home to face Villanova on Thursday, Aug. 31.
The Bison are 0-4-1 all-time against the Wildcats, but the two teams have not met since 2004. All five previous encounters have been on Villanova's home field.
Former Bison standout Riley Donaldson is using her fifth year of eligibility as a graduate student at Villanova.