USA: College Games to Watch: September 12 – 18

In a rematch of the 2023 NCAA Tournament Semifinal, No. 4 Babson looks to take down No. 1 Middlebury.

Babson (4-1) started off their season with three wins but fell just shy of a fourth victory in overtime against No. 8 Williams College this past Saturday. The Beavers bounced right back with an impressive 3-0 weekday win over No. 7 Bates. The DiGiovani sisters have been leading the offense, combining for 11 points. Caroline DiGiovanni tallied three goals in the 4-2 opening win over Endicott, then assisted her sister Helen‘s winning goal in a 1-0 victory over Roger Williams. It’s been a strong performance in net thus far for Bayla Furmanek, who has a save percentage of .833 in four games and picked up the NEWMAC Defensive Athlete of the Week award.

Middlebury (2-0, 1-0 NESCAC), who has not been defeated since October 2022 when Trinity beat them 2-1, opened up their 2024 season with two wins. A 7-0 shutout over Castleton was followed by a 3-1 conference win over Hamilton. The Panthers have already had much offensive success this season, led by veteran players like Caroline Segal, who tallied two goals in each of the two wins. To answer the question of who would start in the cage for the Panthers this year, so far it has been Izzy Redzic, who currently holds a .800 save percentage.

Babson was the only team to come within one goal of Middlebury in 2023, falling 3-2. The Panthers have only lost one match to the Beavers in their 13 meetings, back in 2017.

No. 10 Lynchburg and No. 22 Bryn Mawr will meet for the first time this Sunday.

After a strong first two weeks of their season, previously unranked Bryn Mawr find themselves back in the top 25. The Owls (3-1) enter the weekend 3-1, with three games – two of them wins – ending in overtime. The most recent was a Wednesday night match-up against No. 14 ranked TCNJ. Previously, Bryn Mawr defeated Widener and then-No. 12 Kean University, sandwiching an overtime loss to No. 13 MIT. Junior forward Novy Goetgeluk has not missed a beat since last season, and has found herself as the current points leader going into week three. Seven other Owls have also found the back of the net so far, including Noor Werndelij, who tallied the golden goal – and first in her career – in Bryn Mawr’s most recent victory over TCNJ.

The No. 10 Lynchburg Hornets (3-0) look to maintain their undefeated record. With the opening 4-1 win over DePauw, Jenni Releford picked her first win as head coach. Danielle Coon and Jill Pleiter lead the scoring for the Hornets so far this season, tallying three each. Pleiter was the hero of the most recent match, netting both goals in the 2-0 victory over Mary Washington. After getting some experience last season, goalkeeper Shay Schoones has stepped up for the Hornets so far this season, allowing only a single goal against.

Two undefeated teams who have not met since 2011 will battle this Sunday when No. 18 Old Dominion hosts No. 8 Ohio State.

The Ohio State Buckeyes (4-0) have been an offensive threat in their first four games, scoring a total of 20 goals while holding their opponents to just two goals allowed. These offensive contributions have come in large part from graduate student Makenna Webster and sophomore Brenna Bough, who have found the back of the net a combined nine times. Goalkeeper Abby Danson started off strong with a .895 save percentage that puts her third in Division I.

The Old Dominion Monarchs (4-0) have also put up big numbers offensively thus far, outscoring opponents 19-1. While goalkeeper Suus Broers and the Monarch defense has only allowed one goal against, Tess Jedeloo has helped lead the offensive charge, scoring seven goals in her first four games. Jedeloo joins this team after playing her first three seasons for the Division II powerhouse Shippensburg, and was this week’s Big East Offensive Player of the Week and NFHCA Division I Offensive Player of the Week.

Neither of these teams have allowed many goals this season, so expect a lot of offensive energy from both sides of the field this Sunday.