The Georgetown women’s soccer team might have hoped to start the season strong despite the absence of star sophomore Ingrid Wells, but at 3-0-0, the team has performed above and beyond preseason hopes with the best start in program history. The Hoyas’ perfect record will be on the line this weekend as they take on both Mississippi State and Hartford in the George Mason Tournament.
Mississippi State (2-1) comes into the tournament after a 3-1 win over Northwestern. The Bulldogs of the South Eastern Conference will play some tough teams this season, including seven NCAA tournament teams from last year, and the Hoyas are the first such opponents.
The Hartford Hawks are 2-1-1 and were recently ranked as high as 10th in the region by the Soccer Buzz Regional Polls. They also have the American East Rookie of the Week on their side in freshman forward Breeanna Robinson.
The Hoyas have been strong offensively in their last few games—most of the young team’s inexperience falls on the defensive side of the ball.
“Everyday we do a lot of work [on defense],” Georgetown coach Dave Nolan said. “We spend some time on video and try to help those players learn from situations in games. We are getting better defensively and we are continuing to score goals and create chances, which is good.”
The strong start is more than the Hoyas could have asked for, and bodes particularly well for a team that still expects a lot of development from their freshmen, especially defender Gabby Miller, midfielder Kelly D’Ambrisi, and Big East Rookie of the Week Samantha Baker.
“The freshmen, they have only had five games under their belts,” junior forward Toni Marie Hudson said. “It’s going to take them time to get used to our system, but I am very confident that they will step up to the plate.”
Hudson’s own improvement is indicative of the development of this year’s upperclassmen as well.
“We are getting people stepping up to the plate,” Nolan said. “Toni is a case in point who, this year, has had a tremendous start to the season, has scored some goals, has looked really dangerous, and has really matured as a player. Every one is adding in, and we are getting goals from everywhere.”
The team will face off against Mississippi State Friday at 3 p.m. and Hartford on Sunday at 1 p.m.
