Riverdale, NY— On Thursday night, Manhattan will take the field at Jack Coffey Stadium to kick off the 2024 season. The Jaspers return 27 letter winners from a season ago and have also retained 78 percent of their goal-scoring from 2023.
"No matter how long you do this, opening day is always exciting! We have been getting better every day in preseason and we can't wait to get started with the Battle of the Bronx!," says Manhattan head coach Brendan Lawler.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW:
-Leading goal-scorer and redshirt senior Sami Derrico headlines the Jaspers attacking unit. The former UCONN transfer netted a team-high 3 goals last season and also paced the Jaspers with 9 points thanks to her 3 assists.
-Sophomore goalkeeper
Molly Brunk will return to the net for Manhattan. She played every minute of every game during her freshman season, garnering a pair of MAAC Rookie of the Week Awards and was also nominated for Rookie of the Year among all Jasper student-athletes. As a true freshman, Brunk was an instant impact in net by averaging 5.6 saves per game, which ranked her 25th in Division I and was tops among all MAAC goalkeepers. Brunk managed to keep LIU and Mount St. Mary's off the scoresheet last season.
-Manhattan has added five freshmen to their 2024 roster. They are
Lily Bandel (Defense),
Faith Zollo (Defense/Midfield),
Julia Wagstaff (Defense/Midfield),
Mackenzie Lennon (Defense) and
Julia Leonard (Midfield). The roster breakdown goes like this: 5 freshmen, 8 sophomores, 4 juniors, 8 seniors, and 2 graduate students.
-Head coach
Brendan Lawler enters his 14th year at the helm of the Manhattan women's soccer program. Lawler has led Manhattan to 2 appearances in the MAAC Championship Game (2015, 2017). The 2015 squad went a remarkable 11-5-3 on their way to advancing to the MAAC Finals for the first time in program history dating back to 1990. In 2017, Manhattan took the league by storm with a roster that had 17 underclassmen in tow and was led by MAAC Offensive Player of the Year Erica Modena, who was the first Jasper to win the prestigious award. That season, Manhattan engineered a six-game unbeaten streak which the Jaspers rode into the MAAC Championship Game versus Monmouth. The Jaspers were robust 6-2-2 in MAAC play, only suffering 2 losses over the final 12 games counting the title game defeat. Lawler's right hand man for the 2017 season was Brad Bolton, who has returned as an assistant coach for 2024. Bolton previously spent five seasons on Lawler's staff before spending three seasons on the Yale women's soccer staff.
ROCK SOLID:
The Manhattan defense is anchored by proven veterans Julia Nicholas and Maddie Feller. Nicholas, one of two captains along with red-shirt senior Ianah Mackey, made the switch from striker to defense last season and was utilized as a fullback. Meanwhile, 2024 will be business as usual for Feller, who has started on defense for Manhattan since her freshman campaign in 2021. Mayah Wheeler has ascended to upperclassman status and will also be relied upon to help anchor the backline along with the likes of Nicholas and Feller.
THE BATTLE OF THE BRONX:
Manhattan and Fordham will square off for the 29th time in the history of the rivalry in women's soccer. The Rams hold a 19-9-1 advantage over the Jaspers, which includes Fordham victories in each of the last seven meetings. Manhattan registered a 2-1 season-opening overtime win over Fordham in 2013. The last meeting came back in 2021 and ended with a 2-1 overtime result in favor of the visiting Rams.
THE SCOUT:
The 2024 season will be the Rams' third season under head coach Magnus Nilerud, the former University of Bridgeport coach who led his alma mater to a victory in the NCAA DII Title Game in 2018. Fordham has a record of 9-21-5 under Nilerud, and Thursday's meeting will be the first between Lawler and Nilerud. The Rams return a pair of A-10 All-Rookie Team members in striker Riley Carroll and midfielder Lena Johnsen. Junior goalkeeper Kyla King projects to start in net for the Rams. She started 9 of 10 games last season, with three shutouts and a 1.24 goals against average to her name.
The action will be streamed live on ESPN+ and live updates and postgame coverage will be provided from @jasperswsoc and @gojaspers on Instagram and X.
