Women's Soccer | September 6, 2023
NEWARK, N.J. — The La Salle women's soccer team looks to win its third game of the season Thursday night when it takes on NJIT in a non-conference match at Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
The game will be televised on ESPN+. In addition, Explorers fans can follow the team on X
@LaSalle_WSOC and Instagram
@lasalle_wsoc.
ABOUT THE EXPLORERS
- The Explorers (2-4) are coming off a 3-1 loss to Bucknell last Sunday at McCarthy Stadium. The Explorers saw Elizabeth Estrada score her first career goal in the 15th minute, but allowed three straight goals to the Bison and wound up dropping the match.
- The Explorers and Highlanders are meeting for the first time since 2019, when the Explorers came away with a 1-0 victory in their home opener of that season at McCarthy Stadium. In that game, Amirah Louketis scored a goal on a header in the third minute.
- Estrada paces the Explorers in points (five) and assists (three). The sophomore is tied for third in the Atlantic 10 Conference in assists.
- Sophomore Richsya Walker and junior Haley Gschrey lead La Salle in goals with two apiece. The duo also leads the team with 12 shots apiece.
- Sophomore Gabby Neal and junior Michela Auguadro have split goalkeeping duties this season. Neal is 2-1 in net in three starts and has registered seven saves. Auguadro leads the team in saves with 19 in four games of action.
- La Salle is led by Paul Royal, who is in his 21st season at the helm. Royal has a 201-157-37 record for the Explorers.
ABOUT THE HIGHLANDERS
- The Highlanders are 3-1-2 after going 2-0-1 in their last three games. NJIT topped Long Island University (3-0) and Fairleigh Dickinson (3-2) while playing UC Riverside to a scoreless tie during this stretch.
- The Highlanders are paced by Gabby Zalot, who has racked up eight points on four assists and two goals. The Highlanders also sport Bailey Chant and Briana Andreoli, who have scored one goal apiece and taken 14 and 11 shots, respectively.
- Defensively, goalkeeper Samantha Constantine heads NJIT's unit, saving 10 shots while yielding only five goals this season.
- NJIT is led by former La Salle standout player and assistant coach Ally Nick, who is in her eighth year as head coach. Nick, who played for La Salle from 2006-09 and was an assistant coach on Royal's staff from 2011-15, has a career record of 50-55-19.
- As a player at La Salle, Nick led the Explorers to 39 wins in four seasons and La Salle's record while she was on the coaching staff was 70-27-11. More importantly, she helped the Explorers reach the NCAA Tournament four time in a row, capture the Atlantic 10 regular season title three times, and claim the A-10 Tournament championship twice.
