Bryant hosts Mountaineers on Senior Day

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Looking to wrap up the season on a winning note, the Bryant University women's soccer team will conclude its 2011 campaign this weekend when it hosts Mount St. Mary's on Friday (Oct. 28) before traveling to Quinnipiac on Sunday afternoon.

Before tomorrow's showdown, the program will honor three players who will be playing their final game at Bulldog Stadium.  Seniors Mary Green, Kaitlyn Hinck and Stephanie Morse will all wrap up their careers with the Black and Gold this weekend.   The trio has played a pivotal role during Bryant's reclassification to a Division I program, and has already led the team to a new single-season high in victories since beginning DI play in 2008.

The Bulldogs (7-7-3, 2-3-2 Northeast Conference) are coming off a weekend split in the Keystone State, with a 2-1 victory over Robert Morris in their most recent outing on Oct. 23.  In that win, sophomore Ari Goldberg (East Bridgewater, Mass.) put Bryant up 1-0 with a goal in the 13^th minute, with classmate Shana Follette (Plymouth, Mass.) earning an assist on the play.  Late in the second half, Hinck netted her third strike of the season – and 16^th in her career – on a penalty kick, and the Bulldogs held on after a late goal by the Colonials to secure the win on the road.

First up for Bryant will be a match against the Mountaineers (6-8-2, 4-4 NEC) tomorrow afternoon.  MSM holds a 2-0 lead in the all-time series, netting overtime victories in the last two seasons by identical 2-1 margins. 

The Mount is coming off a big weekend, sweeping a pair of home games to stay alive in the playoff race.  The Mountaineers currently sit in a tie for fifth place in the standings, and will need another big weekend to move into the top-four of the league standings. 

Freshman Alicia Mirando is coming off an adidas/NEC Rookie of the Week performance after scoring twice in a 4-1 win over Quinnipiac.  Those four goals against the Bobcats were the most scored by a Mount team since a 5-2 victory over NJIT on Sept. 17, 2008.  The only other Mountaineer with more points is Sadie Winship, who leads the team with nine (4g, 1a).  Between the posts, Alicia Miller as seen all the action this season, as the senior broke the Mount's career record for shutouts in a 1-0 win over CCSU last weekend.  She now has 11 career shutouts, and is the all-time leader at the Mount in career wins, saves, shutouts, minutes played and games played by a goalkeeper.

On Sunday, the Bulldogs will travel to Hamden, Conn., finishing up 2011 against the Bobcats.  Bryant has posted one win against Quinnipiac, a 1-0 victory back in 2008, but the Bobcats have won the last two meetings, posting back-to-back 1-0 decisions in the previous two seasons.

Quinnipiac enters the weekend losers of four of its last five contests, but stunned second-place Monmouth with a 2-1 victory last weekend.  Senior defender Chelsea Smith scored the game-winning goal – her first of the season – against the Hawks on an assist from Aine McKeever.  Furtuna Velaj leads the offense with 11 points on five goals and one helper, while Shauna Edwards has dished out a team-high three assists.  Jill Kelley has made 14 starts in net and holds a 1.83 goals-against average.

For continuing coverage of Bryant University women's soccer, check back at www.bryantbulldogs.com, and be sure to follow the Bulldogs on Twitter @BryantAthletics.