Saturday, October 12
Fairfield, Conn.
Noon
Sacred Heart
vs
Siena College
Photo by: Josh Gee
Women's Soccer Hosts Siena For Senior Day on Saturday
10/10/2024 2:20:00 PM | Women's Soccer
Pios to recognize six seniors during the afternoon contest
FAIRFIELD, Conn. — The Sacred Heart University women's soccer team continues on its trek toward earning a bid in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Postseason tournament, playing host to Siena College on Saturday, October 12 for Senior Day at Park Ave Field. Kickoff is slated for noon. More information can be found at sacredheartpioneers.com.
LAST TIME OUT
The Pios last played a week ago, picking up their first win of the season via a 1-0 decision over Iona before battling to a hard-fought, scoreless draw on the road at Rider to close out matchweek seven.
Shea Kelleher's 56th minute tally provided the spark for the Pioneers in Wednesday's affair against Iona as the Pios eventually eked out a 1-0 win on the road for their first-ever conference win. Early in the match, starting goalkeeper Kyran Thievon was called into action, stopping a penalty to keep the score level before both sides could settle into the match. Though SHU had its chances, it was Kelleher – who scored her team-leading fourth goal of the season – who found the lone goal of the match, wiring a looping ball past the Iona goalkeeper and into the back of the net as the Pios clamped down for the 1-0 win.
In Saturday's affair, the Pios had a tale of two halves with a majority of the first 45 minutes having been spent in the defensive third. Though SHU gave up six shots on goal in the first half, Thievon and her defense came in for some support as the sophomore keeper stymied the Broncs on all six attempts. In the second half, the Pios flipped the script on Rider, taking chances of their own. However, neither team found the elusive goal to break the deadlock as both teams settled for a point in the standings via a 0-0 draw.
ON SIENA
Siena (6-6-2, 3-2-2) enters the weekend having already secured a point during matchweek eight via a scoreless draw at home against Canisius on Wednesday evening. In what was a card-ridden affair, Siena took points away from the conference leaders with solid defensive work and goalkeeping from Cate Burns, as the Saint goalie registered six saves on 13 shots faces through 90 minutes.
The Saints are led by standout freshman Catherine Rodgers who owns the top spot of the stats leaderboard with 19 points and seven goals. Rodgers also sits tied in assists with Megan Stowell (5) with both players accounting for 57% of Siena's total points on the season. Both players have also accounted for a combined nine multi-point outings with Stowell having recorded the latest via a goal and two assists in the 3-2 win over Saint Peter's. In goal, Kate Burns has seen a majority of the action on the season, starting and playing in 12 matches in 2024. Burns holds a 6-4-2 record this season with a 0.92 goals against average and .804 save percentage while recording four shutouts this season.
Steve Karbowski enters his 26th season with Siena, amassing a 215-203-56 record during his tenure in the Hudson Valley. This weekend's meeting marks the seventh all-time meeting between the two squads and the first since 2022 as the Pios hold a 3-1-2 record against Siena including a 2-1 win at home in 2021.
SENIOR SATURDAY
Miriam Shomstein heads into senior Saturday having played 47 games and grabbing three starts during her time in the Red & White. Shomestein has been a valuable asset in the SHU midfield in the last two seasons and has already eclipsed a single-season high in minutes played this season and hit the 1,000 minute played plateau earlier this season.
Faith Gargano heads into the match having been a valuable presence on and off the pitch during her time with SHU. A club national champion before coming to Sacred Heart, Gargano has served as a much-needed morale booster during her career in the Red & White.
Kelly Medeiros has served as a mainstay in the midfield for the Pioneers during her time in the Red & White, playing in every single match during her four-year career which spans 69 games heading into Saturday, while also making 36 starts. Medeiros has totaled six goals in her career and one assist while playing over 3500 minutes in four seasons.
Connie Herrera has made important contributions along the backline this season, grabbing seven starts in 10 matches this season while appearing in 38 matches during her time with the program. Herrera has set a new single-season minutes played marker with 692 minutes heading into Saturday and has also registered over 1,000 minutes as a Pioneer.
Jaci Budaj enters Saturday's match having appeared in 59 games for SHU during her time, starting 23 of those matches. She currently has two assists during her career and has logged over 2,000 minutes as a Pioneer with this season's total of 400 minutes being the third-highest minutes she has recorded in a season during her time in the Red && White.
Grace O'Hara heads into Saturday's match having already etched her name in the program's history books, grabbing the all-time record in career points with her 63rd having come from an assist in this year's match against Yale. O'Hara sits tied for the program record in assists (15) and is two goals back of the record in goals (24). She has appeared in 65 matches for SHU and totaled just under 5,000 minutes in the Red & White.
LAST TIME OUT
The Pios last played a week ago, picking up their first win of the season via a 1-0 decision over Iona before battling to a hard-fought, scoreless draw on the road at Rider to close out matchweek seven.
Shea Kelleher's 56th minute tally provided the spark for the Pioneers in Wednesday's affair against Iona as the Pios eventually eked out a 1-0 win on the road for their first-ever conference win. Early in the match, starting goalkeeper Kyran Thievon was called into action, stopping a penalty to keep the score level before both sides could settle into the match. Though SHU had its chances, it was Kelleher – who scored her team-leading fourth goal of the season – who found the lone goal of the match, wiring a looping ball past the Iona goalkeeper and into the back of the net as the Pios clamped down for the 1-0 win.
In Saturday's affair, the Pios had a tale of two halves with a majority of the first 45 minutes having been spent in the defensive third. Though SHU gave up six shots on goal in the first half, Thievon and her defense came in for some support as the sophomore keeper stymied the Broncs on all six attempts. In the second half, the Pios flipped the script on Rider, taking chances of their own. However, neither team found the elusive goal to break the deadlock as both teams settled for a point in the standings via a 0-0 draw.
ON SIENA
Siena (6-6-2, 3-2-2) enters the weekend having already secured a point during matchweek eight via a scoreless draw at home against Canisius on Wednesday evening. In what was a card-ridden affair, Siena took points away from the conference leaders with solid defensive work and goalkeeping from Cate Burns, as the Saint goalie registered six saves on 13 shots faces through 90 minutes.
The Saints are led by standout freshman Catherine Rodgers who owns the top spot of the stats leaderboard with 19 points and seven goals. Rodgers also sits tied in assists with Megan Stowell (5) with both players accounting for 57% of Siena's total points on the season. Both players have also accounted for a combined nine multi-point outings with Stowell having recorded the latest via a goal and two assists in the 3-2 win over Saint Peter's. In goal, Kate Burns has seen a majority of the action on the season, starting and playing in 12 matches in 2024. Burns holds a 6-4-2 record this season with a 0.92 goals against average and .804 save percentage while recording four shutouts this season.
Steve Karbowski enters his 26th season with Siena, amassing a 215-203-56 record during his tenure in the Hudson Valley. This weekend's meeting marks the seventh all-time meeting between the two squads and the first since 2022 as the Pios hold a 3-1-2 record against Siena including a 2-1 win at home in 2021.
SENIOR SATURDAY
Miriam Shomstein heads into senior Saturday having played 47 games and grabbing three starts during her time in the Red & White. Shomestein has been a valuable asset in the SHU midfield in the last two seasons and has already eclipsed a single-season high in minutes played this season and hit the 1,000 minute played plateau earlier this season.
Faith Gargano heads into the match having been a valuable presence on and off the pitch during her time with SHU. A club national champion before coming to Sacred Heart, Gargano has served as a much-needed morale booster during her career in the Red & White.
Kelly Medeiros has served as a mainstay in the midfield for the Pioneers during her time in the Red & White, playing in every single match during her four-year career which spans 69 games heading into Saturday, while also making 36 starts. Medeiros has totaled six goals in her career and one assist while playing over 3500 minutes in four seasons.
Connie Herrera has made important contributions along the backline this season, grabbing seven starts in 10 matches this season while appearing in 38 matches during her time with the program. Herrera has set a new single-season minutes played marker with 692 minutes heading into Saturday and has also registered over 1,000 minutes as a Pioneer.
Jaci Budaj enters Saturday's match having appeared in 59 games for SHU during her time, starting 23 of those matches. She currently has two assists during her career and has logged over 2,000 minutes as a Pioneer with this season's total of 400 minutes being the third-highest minutes she has recorded in a season during her time in the Red && White.
Grace O'Hara heads into Saturday's match having already etched her name in the program's history books, grabbing the all-time record in career points with her 63rd having come from an assist in this year's match against Yale. O'Hara sits tied for the program record in assists (15) and is two goals back of the record in goals (24). She has appeared in 65 matches for SHU and totaled just under 5,000 minutes in the Red & White.
Players Mentioned
Forward/Midfield
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Goalkeeper
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Defense
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Forward
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Midfield
/ Women's Soccer
Forward/Midfield
/ Women's Soccer
Midfield
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Goalkeeper
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