Maryland (0-0-0) vs. Temple (0-0-0)
August 19, 2021
Ludwig Field
7:00 pm EDT
Maryland (0-0-0) at George Mason (0-0-0)
August 22, 2021
George Mason Stadium
7:00 pm EDT
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland women's soccer team will kick off its 35th varsity season this week starting with a home matchup against Temple on Thursday, August 19. The Terps will then make the short trip to Fairfax, Va. to take on George Mason on Sunday, August 22 at 7 p.m. Thursday's game will be streamed on B1G+. Sunday's matchup will be streamed on ESPN+.
THIS WEEK'S STORYLINES
WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE
- Lack of experience will not be an issue for head coach Ray Leone in 2021, as he returns six players who will qualify as graduate students using their extra fifth year of eligibility granted due to Covid-19. Additionally, the Terrapins bring back 14 players who are upperclassmen.
- Of the returning group, eight players have played in at least 40 college games in a Maryland uniform including Hope Lewandoski (67), Mikayla Dayes (57), Loren Sefcik (50), Alyssa Poarch (48), Emily McNesby (48), Adalee Broadbent (47), Malikae Dayes (45) and Alexis Hogarth (43).
- Seven of the eight players in that group have made at least 30 career starts, giving the Terps a solid veteran core to rely on in 2021.
- Leone's take: "I think it just says a lot about the connection of our team having so many players back. You think about the stretch that we had and the difficulties that we went through, maybe a lot of people would say 'that's it.' But they didn't. So, I'm proud to return this many players. It's a family and they're committed to turning it around."
NEW FACES IN COLLEGE PARK
- Coach Leone and his staff welcomed three transfers and two freshmen to the fold in 2021, highlighted by graduate student Kori Locksley (Auburn). Locksley is set to make an immediate impact for the Terps in the attacking half of the field, a few months removed form tallying a pair of game-winning goals and an assist at Auburn in 2020-21.
- Maryland also welcomed two new goalkeepers to the fold in graduate student Liz Brucia (Georgia) and junior Madeline Smith (Omaha). Brucia made two starts a season ago for the Bulldogs, making six saves and sealing a win vs. Wake Forest. Smith made six starts for Omaha last season, posting a 2-2-2 record with three shutouts and a .93 GAA.
- Mori Sokoloff and Toni Domingos will look to make their collegiate debuts in 2021 as the Terps' two-member freshman class. Sokoloff comes to College Park after a successful career at Severna Park, where she was a two-time First Team All-MIAA performer. Domingos comes to Maryland by way of Bridgeport, CT, and Notre Dame Catholic, where she tallied a school-record 108 goals en route to earning 2020 All-American honors.
SERIES HISTORY
- Maryland is 2-3-1 all-time vs. Temple, last facing the Owls on September 12, 2019 in College Park. After taking an early lead, Temple managed a late goal to force overtime before the teams settled for a 1-1 draw.
- The Terps resume a long-standing series with George Mason on Sunday, holding a 17-6-1 edge on the Patriots since first meeting in the program's inaugural 1987 season. Maryland defeataed GMU 3-0 when the teams last met on September 5, 2019, getting goals from Alyssa Poarch, Alexis Hogarth and Mikayla Dayes.
- Former Maryland assistant coach Manya Puppione will begin her first season at the helm of George Mason this week. Puppione served as an assistant under Ray Leone from 2016-2018, and played for him while he was the head coach at Arizona State from 2002-06.
- Leone's Take: "This weekend will be a great opportunity for us to continue to figure out our system and substitution pattern. You really can't fully assess your fitness until you're playing a game that matters. So that'll be important to see where our fitness is and who's ready to come in off the bench and make a difference."
B1G PLAYERS TO WATCH
- Alyssa Poarch, Mikayla Dayes and Malikae Dayes were all named players to watch by the Big Ten in a release made on August 16. The trio will be key players for Ray Leone again this season, combining to make 128 starts in their Terrapin careers.
- Poarch and Mikayla Dayes are Maryland's top returning goal scorers, tallying 12 and 11 goals (respectively) in their Maryland careers.
- Malikae Dayes will look to get back to her 2019 form which saw her start in all 19 games for the Terps on their way to a sixth place finish in the Big Ten. Dayes only saw action in two games last spring after suffering an early injury.
2021 SCHEDULE
- After a spring season of Big Ten only competition, the Terps are back to a normal 18-game schedule with eight non-conference matchups on tap in August and September. UMD will be well-acquainted with Ludwig Field early on, with four of its first five games and eight of its first 11 games played at home.
- The Terps will fire up Big Ten play on Sunday, September 19 when they host Ohio State in College Park.
