Women’s Soccer Starts Stretch Run of A-10 Play

Bronx, N.Y. – (October 16, 2019) – After picking up another point in the Atlantic 10 standings, the Fordham women's soccer team begins the stretch run of conference play with just four games left on the schedule.  The Rams start that stretch with a Thursday night match-up with the first place Saint Louis Billikens, while traveling to Saint Joseph's Hawks on Sunday.  The match against Saint Louis will be the team's Cancer Awareness game, sponsored by New York Presbyterian Lawrence Hospital.
 
Fordham (4-8-3, 3-2-1 A-10) are currently tied for fourth in the Atlantic 10 standings with Davidson and Massachusetts, heading into the match-up with Saint Louis.  The Billikens (11-3-1, 6-0-0 A-10) are in the top spot in the league after a 4-1 victory over La Salle on Sunday, and currently average over three goals per game offensively in conference action.  Saint Joseph's (6-7-1, 3-3-0 A-10) will face George Washington prior to meeting the Rams on Sunday.  The Hawks have won back-to-back games over La Salle and Duquesne and sit one point behind Fordham in the standings.
 
GAME COVERAGE:
Thursday – Saint Louis at Fordham – 7:00 PM ET – Live Video (ESPN+) | International Stream | Live Stats
 
Sunday – Fordham at Saint Joseph's – 1:00 PM ET – Live Video (ESPN+) | International Stream | Live Stats
 
SERIES HISTORY: Thursday will be the tenth all-time meeting between Fordham and Saint Louis.  The series has been relatively even with the Billikens holding a 5-4 edge in the nine previous meetings.  In all nine games, the home team has come out on top.
 
On Sunday, the Rams look to avenge a pair of losses last season to the Hawks, as Saint Joseph's eliminated Fordham from the 2019 Atlantic 10 Championship in the quarterfinals.  Overall, this is the 25^th meeting with Fordham ahead by a 10-9-5 count.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Over the last four years, Senior Day for the Fordham women's soccer team always seems to come down to one of the seniors making a play late to earn the Rams a decision.  Sunday was no different as senior Margaret Roughley drew a penalty kick late that Saige Bingman converted on to give Fordham a 1-1 draw with Rhode Island at Jack Coffey Field.

 
After a scoreless first half, Rhode Island cracked the scoreboard in the opening minute of the second half.  Tali O'Leary found Rebecca D'Anna on the rush and she found the back of the net inside the left post from the top of the box.  It was D'Anna's third goal of the season.
 
The score remained in favor of Rhode Island until Fordham knotted the game at one in the 89^th minute.  Fordham pushed the attack into the box, where Margaret Roughley was taken down for a foul and a penalty kick was awarded.  Saige Bingman then tucked the penalty kick into the bottom left corner for her second goal of the season and tie the game.
 
In overtime, Fordham had the only true chances, receiving two corner kicks and putting one shot on net, but none of them materialized into the deciding marker, leaving the game as a 1-1- draw.
 
In net, Kelly LaMorte made four saves for Fordham, while URI's Teresa Morrissey had eight saves.
 
ETIENNE LISTED AS TOP 100 FRESHMAN BY TOP DRAWER SOCCER:  TopDrawerSoccer.com released its mid-season freshman rankings for the top 100 first-year player, and among them is Fordham's Danielle Etienne.  She rated 90^th overall  and is one of three Atlantic 10 freshmen listed along with Saint Louis' Anna Lawler (#28) and UMass' Melissa Kössler (#31).
 
Etienne has had an eventful first season with Fordham.  She has started 12 games with the Rams this year, and also was called up the Haitian Women's National Team, taking part in the Caribbean CONCACAF qualifiers for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and helped Haiti win the Group C of the Caribbean Qualifiers.  
 
LAMORTE AMONG NATIONAL & ATLANTIC 10 LEADERS: The NCAA released its weekly statistics report and Fordham goalkeeper Kelly LaMorte finds herself among the national leaders in two categories.  She is tied for 12^th in the country in total saves (82), while being fifth in minutes played (1430).   Both marks are tops in the Atlantic 10 Conference this season as well.
 
WHO'S NEXT: After Sunday's game, Fordham concludes the regular season next week with a road game at Dayton on October 24^th and then a home match with Davidson on October 27^th.