College Games to Watch: October 17 to 22

Looking to secure a place in the Big East tournament, Temple will travel to take on Old Dominion on Friday.

Temple (10-3, 2-2 Big East) most recently picked up a 6-0 shutout over Lock Haven, pushing their win column into the double digits and marking the fourth consecutive year of 10 or more victories for the Owls. Sophomore Rozlyn Maciejewski earned a Big East Weekly Honor Roll spot after notching her first two career goals, bookending the scoring. Temple currently sits tied in conference play, 2-2, with Villanova.

Old Dominion (5-7, 3-1 Big East), currently tied with UConn with a 3-2 conference record, bounced back after falling to No. 2 North Carolina with a 4-1 win over conference opponent Villanova. Sian Emslie secured the Big East Offensive Player of the Week honor after her two goal effort against the Wildcats. The redshirt senior leads the Monarch offense with seven goals and five assists on the season.

This weekend continues with a Mid-American Conference (MAC) clash between UMass (11-2, 4-1 MAC) and James Madison (8-6, 3-2 MAC).

UMass has enjoyed overall success in their inaugural season in the MAC, consistently earning a spot in the coveted NFHCA Coaches poll and notably topping No. 18 Miami (Ohio)—the MAC champion for the past seven seasons—a few weeks back. Most recently, the Minutewomen claimed a dominant 5-0 victory over Longwood in the progams’ inaugural meeting. The win signaled UMass’ sixth shutout of the season, placing them second nationally and first in the MAC in shutouts. Freshman Emily Barrett notched her third two-goal game of the season, increasing her total to a team-leading eight.

James Madison, who also shutout Longwood, 5-0, could not take down Miami (Ohio), dropping the match, 3-1, last Friday. The Dukes’ most notable victory came earlier this season, stunning No. 14 (then No. 8) Michigan, 3-1.

UMass bested James Madison, 1-0, in their last matchup in 2009.

Bouncing back from a shaky 2024 season, Vassar (8-4, 3-0 LL) has already doubled their win count from last year and captured three straight Liberty League victories. Sophomore Zoe Robinson has had a breakout season, scoring recently in a 2-1 win over Union and leading the Brewers in goals (10).

Rochester (11-4, 2-1 LL) recently suffered their first conference loss, falling to Ithaca 1-0 (a match that Vassar won 1-0 the previous week.) The Yellowjackets have played some tough competition to close margins, including a 4-3 loss to No. 5 Tufts and 1-0 shootout defeat to No. 9 Hamilton.

Last fall, Rochester edged Vassar, 2-1 in OT, in their last conference game of the season.

Brown (7-3, 3-1 Ivy) earned its first national ranking of the year this week, rounding the list out at No. 20. The Bears picked up their sixth consecutive win with a 4-1 comeback victory over Penn last Friday, matching the program’s record for longest win streak and garnering three consecutive Ivy League wins for the first time since 2006.

Harvard (11-0, 4-0 Ivy) has been untouchable all season, and is now the last undefeated Division I team after both Northwestern and Virginia collected their first losses this past weekend. The Crimson has outlasted ranked opponents like Ivy League foe No. 6 Princeton—who handed Northwestern their first loss most recently— No. 12 Ohio State, and No. 13 Monmouth. Sophomore Martha le Huray picked up her second Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week honors after dominant performances over Boston University and Cornell. The 2024 Ivy League Tournament MVP notched three goals and two assists over the two contests, rounding out to an eight-point weekend.

Shippensburg will host Bloomsburg this Saturday in a high-powered conference matchup.

Shippensburg (12-1, 4-1 PSAC) enters following a 3-0 shutout of No. 7 Millersville, where Elaina Fragassi scored twice, giving the Raiders their eighth shutout of the season. Prior to that win, Shippensburg suffered their first loss of the season–a close 3-2 game to No. 4 East Stroudsburg, where they fell behind early and were unable to recover.

Bloomsburg (11-2, 3-2 PSAC), meanwhile, is coming off their own 3-2 loss to East Stroudsburg. Tied after regulation, the Huskies were thwarted by a Warriors goal in the 73rd minute of play. Bloomsburg’s only other loss of the season was to No. 1 Kutztown.

Last season, the Raiders defeated the Huskies with a 3-2 OT win both in the regular season and in the NCAA Quarterfinals.

A pivotal Centennial Conference matchup awaits this weekend as No. 13 Dickinson (12-1, 4-1 CC) travels to face No. 19 Haverford (12-1, 6-0 CC).

The Red Devils continued their remarkable season with a narrow 2-1 win over Swarthmore last weekend, sealed by Natalie Slusser’s fourth-quarter penalty stroke, her first goal of the season. Dickinson’s defensive unit is anchored by goalkeeper Taylor Morrow, who currently ranks fifth in Division III in save percentage (0.878).

Haverford enters the contest riding momentum after climbing to No. 19 in the NFHCA Coaches Poll. The Fords are led by standout goalkeeper Steph Ionescu, who was named Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. Ionescu, who appeared last season only as a shootout specialist, was instrumental in the Fords’ recent victory over Gettysburg—making six saves in game play and shutting down five of six shootout attempts. With a 2-1 OT win over Washington College this week, Haverford retained their perfect record in Centennial Conference play.

A rematch of the 2024 Division III NCAA Championship is set for this Saturday as No. 5 Tufts takes on No. 7 Middlebury.

Tufts (10-2, 7-1 NESCAC) comes in riding a seven-game win streak and fresh off a 3-1 Senior Day victory over No. 6 Bates. Five of those wins have been against ranked opponents, including No. 11 Wesleyan, who took down Middlebury this past weekend. The Jumbos’ offense is led by senior Hannah Biccard, who has now scored in the past six matches and tallied 22 points. Tufts currently tops the NESCAC standings with a 7-1 record.

Middlebury (9-3, 5-2 NESCAC) is looking to rebound after a tough double-overtime loss to No. 14 Wesleyan this past Sunday. The loss marked the third consecutive weekend that the Panthers dropped a match that was tied at regulation, and the first time seeing three losses in a season since 2016. Despite this, Middlebury has still picked up five conference wins so far.

This weekend Middlebury will be fresh against Tufts–playing on a Saturday instead of Sunday following a match. Last season, the Jumbos won this match-up, 2-1, in conference play, then fell by that same scoreline in the NCAA Final.

The two teams that have handed perennial powerhouse Middlebury it's two NESCAC losses this season will face off on Saturday, as Wesleyan hosts Bowdoin.

After starting 0-3 in conference play, Wesleyan (8-3, 4-3 NESCAC) has bounced back with four straight NESCAC wins, including defeating No. 15 Williams and No. 7 Middlebury in a single weekend. First-year Emily Smith scored her first two goals of her career in the 2-1 double OT win over the Panthers, earning the NESCAC Player of the Week honor.

In similar fashion, Bowdoin (9-3, 5-2 NESCAC) Middlebury the previous weekend by a score of 2-1 after going to shootouts. The Polar Bears had defeated Williams, 1-0, in overtime the weekend before. Outside of NESCAC play, Bowdoin faced a tough opponent in No. 4 Babson this past Tuesday, but were unable to quell the Beavers, falling 1-0.

After a one-week stint in the rankings, Adelphi (7-4, 6-1 NE10) fell out of the top-ten after a crushing 2-1 defeat at the hands of Bentley. Despite outshooting their opponent 23-4, the Panthers could not generate the offense they needed after going down two goals in the first half. Adelphi had won all their previous NE10 matches, including over No. 10 Saint Anselm and then-No. 10 Southern New Hampshire.

Assumption (8-5, 7-1 NE10) entered back into the rankings this week for the first time since preseason, following their two-win week which included victory over Bentley and Saint Anselm. The Greyhounds continued their success in conference play with a 3-0 shutout over Pace on Tuesday, and claimed three of the four NE10 Weekly Awards.

Last fall, Assumption defeated Adelphi, 3-2.

A highly anticipated non-conference clash is set for this Saturday as No. 13 Monmouth travels to face No. 6 Princeton. Both teams have been dominant this season, with Monmouth (9-2, 2-0 CAA) achieving its highest national ranking in program history. The Hawks most recently secured back-to-back conference wins–a 3-2 overtime victory over Drexel and 4-0 shutout over Hofstra. Junior forward Lauren Relik played a pivotal role in that win, scoring the game-winning goal and earning this week’s Coastal Athletic Conference(CAA) Offensive Player of the Week spot.

Princeton (8-3, 3-1 Ivy), on the other hand, is coming off a massive win in which they toppled top-ranked, previously undefeated Northwestern. The Tigers' 3-2 victory was highlighted by senior goalkeeper Olivia Caponiti, who made crucial late saves to preserve the win, and senior forward Beth Yeager, whose gamewinning tally was also her 50th career goal.

After a five game win-streak, Converse (7-4, 4-3 SAC) dropped their two most recent matches to South Atlantic Conference (SAC) opponents No. 8 Lander and No. 3 Newberry. The Valkyries fell to Lander in a close 2-1 matchup, outshooting the Bearcats 12-8, but with only a single goal from rookie Mayla Weissenrieder to show for it. With the loss, Converse is tied with Wingate for the fourth spot in conference standings.

Belmont Abbey (7-4, 6-2 SAC) currently comes in behind undefeated Newberry in the SAC rankings. The Crusaders recently picked up a pair of victories over Lincoln Memorial, winning in OT for their conference contest and securing a spot in the SAC tournament. Junior Sarah Schumacher notched the gamewinner, while goalkeeper Lily Willard made four saves.

Last year, the Valkyries bested the Crusaders, 1-0. The two programs are matched in all time wins and losses, 7-7.

It should be an evenly matched contest on Tuesday when WPI hosts MIT in Worcester, Mass.

WPI (9-4, 4-1 NEWMAC) will seek seek to avenge their New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) semifinal loss of last season, where they fell to MIT, 2-1. It's been another balanced season so far these two teams, who both fell to reigning NEWMAC champion Babson by a 2-0 scoreline. Both teams picked up a 3-1 conference win last weekend, but then dropped a mid-week contest. MIT (8-5, 4-1 NEWMAC) just barely missed out against Western New England, falling 2-1 in overtime.

In all-time meetings, MIT has 30 wins to WPI's 25.

A pivotal NESCAC clash is on the horizon as No. 15 Williams visits No. 9 Hamilton on Wednesday. Both teams are currently tied in the conference standings, but with wins over different opponents. Williams (6-5, 4-3 NESCAC) recently suffered three straight tight conference losses, to No. 11 Wesleyan, No. 6 Bates, and No. 8 Bowdoin — all matches that Hamilton won. On the flip side, Hamilton (9-3, 4-3 NESCAC) lost to Colby and No. 5 Tufts, two games that Williams was victorious.

Williams enters the match following a challenging 2-0 loss to top-ranked Christopher Newport. Despite the setback, the Ephs have demonstrated resilience throughout the season, with an offense led by senior captain Kiki Higgins. Hamilton is coming off a key 1-0 shutout against Connecticut College, with standout forward Becky Felker netting the game-winning goal. The Continentals have shown strong offensive and defensive balance, averaging 2.58 goals per game.

Bentley will face No. 10 Saint Anselm College in a pivotal Northeast-10 (NE10) Conference showdown.

Bentley (9-5, 7-1 NE10) enters the match on a strong note, having secured a 4-0 victory over American International College following a tight 2-1 win over Adelphi. Goalkeeper Annie Lorenz recorded eight saves against the Panthers in the win. Offensively, the Falcons are led by senior Gracie Moore, who tallied the winning goal.

Saint Anselm (9-5, 6-2 NE10) is coming off a dominant 8-0 midweek win against St. Thomas Aquinas. The Hawks remain in the top part of the table in NE10 standings, despite a recent 1-0 loss to No. 9 Assumption.