Women’s Soccer Opens Atlantic 10 Action on Thursday

Bronx, N.Y. - Conference action for the Fordham women's soccer team starts this week with a pair of matches.  The Rams begin Atlantic 10 play on Thursday at Rhode Island for a 7:00 PM match, while coming home to face Saint Joseph's at 1:00 PM on Sunday.
 
Fordham enters league action after a 5-3-1 non-conference season, where the Rams had nine different players score a goal and 14 registered at least one point.  Rhode Island is 3-3-2 on the season, scoring eight goals in eight games.  Taylor Ross leads the offensive attack with three goals, while Katie Nickles has played all 766 minutes in goal, posting a 0.94 goals against average.  Saint Joseph's rolled through non-conference play to a 7-1-1 mark, led by Emily Gingrich and Dakota Mills.  Gingrich, the defending Atlantic 10 Midfielder of the Year, has five goals and 11 points this season, while Mills has a team-high seven goals.
 
GAME COVERAGE:
Thursday – Fordham at Rhode Island – 7:00 PM – Live Stats | Live Video (PPV) | Follow on Twitter @FordhamWSoccer
 
Sunday – Saint Joseph's at Fordham – 1:00 PM - Live Stats | Live Video (Free) | Follow on Twitter @FordhamWSoccer
 
SERIES HISTORY: For Fordham and Rhode Island, it will be the 19^th edition of the "Battle of the Rams" with Rhode Island holding a slim 9-8-1 edge in the all-time series.  However, Fordham has gotten the better of Rhode Island as of late, winning six of the last seven matches.  Against Saint Joseph's, this will be the 21^st all-time meeting with Fordham leading the series with a 10-6-4, and since 2005, the Rams are 6-1-3 in the last ten games.
 
LAST TIME OUT (9/22): UConn's Stephanie Ribeiro netted a goal and three assists, while Rachel Hill had a goal and an assist, as the 23^rd-ranked Huskies topped the Fordham Rams, 4-1, at Morrone Stadium on Thursday night.

 
The loss caps Fordham's non-conference record at 5-3-1, while UConn improved to 8-2-0 on the year.
 
The Huskies opened the scoring in the 13^th minute, as Kristen Vinciguerra backheeled a cross into the goal for her first career goal with Stephanie Ribeiro and Rachel Hill credited with the assists.
 
The score remained 1-0 until the second half, when Ribiero struck in the 49^th minute.  Ribeiro headed in a cross from the right side by Tanya Altrui for her team-leading eighth goal of the season.
 
Fordham then got on the scoreboard, cutting into the Huskies' lead in the 70^th minute.  Margaret Roughley started the play at the midfield stripe, outletting a pass to the right sideline for Keri Villano.  Villano's first touch sent a lead pass ahead to Nicol Natale for a breakaway.  Natale cut around the UConn goalkeeper to the left and scored from eight yards out, making it a 2-1 game.  It was Natale's second goal of the season.
 
However, that was as close as the Rams would get, as UConn scored twice in the final ten minutes of the game to wrap up the 4-1 win.
 
The Huskies finished with an 18-7 shot edge over the Rams in the game, as Fordham goalkeeper Adaeze Obinelo finished with three saves on the night, compared to one for UConn's Emily Armstrong.
 
WHO'S NEXT: After this week's games, the Fordham women's soccer team continue Atlantic 10 play on Thursday, October 6^th with a home match against VCU, while playing at St. Bonaventure on Sunday, October 9^th.