The No. 4 Georgetown women’s soccer team (16-0-3, 8-0-1 Big East) hosts Butler (13-5-1, 6-2-1 Big East) in the Big East final for the second year in a row. The match will kick off at 1 p.m. ET on Shaw Field as the Hoyas look to become the first team to three-peat since Notre Dame won seven straight Big East Championships.
“It’s not easy,” head coach Dave Nolan said. “We’ve set ourselves this goal knowing that it wouldn’t be easy, but the most important thing is to give yourselves a chance to do it, and we’ve given ourselves a chance to do it.”
Last year, Butler came to Shaw Field after conceding just four goals all year, including holding the Hoyas scoreless in their regular season matchup in Indianapolis. Georgetown would score three goals from now-senior forward Caitlin Farrell and graduated midfielders Rachel Corboz and Taylor Pak to win its second straight championship, knocking Butler out for the second straight season on Shaw Field.
“We ended their season last year in the final here,” Nolan said. “We ended their season the previous year in the quarterfinals here, so their seniors are going to be looking at this as their last chance to do something against us.”
This year, the Hoyas already have a 2-0 win over the Bulldogs under their belt, though the conditions played a significant role in the match.
“Last time, the wind was extremely strong in our game,” Nolan said. “I think we did a better job of playing with the wind than they did.”
Both teams played hard-fought semifinals, with Georgetown beating Xavier (10-8-3, 4-3-2 Big East) 3-1 on Thursday afternoon and Butler squeaking past Providence (11-6-3, 4-3-2 Big East) 3-2 later that night. The Hoyas were a dominant force for most of their semifinal, conceding late once they took their foot off the gas, while Butler ground out the result on a windy and rainy night in Indianapolis.
Butler boasts the Big East Freshman of the Year, forward Anja Savich, up top along with senior forward Halle Stelbasky, who scored two goals in the semifinal against Providence. The two have 15 goals between them. One of Stelbasky’s goals in the semifinal was set up by senior forward Paige Monaghan, last season’s Offensive Player of the Year, who leads the Bulldogs with six assists.
“Like us, their three forwards all offer different things,” Nolan said. “Stelbasky’s a real goalscorer. She’s a sniffer in the box. Savich is just a physical presence, and Paige is like Caitlin Farrell, so you’ve got to respect all three of those kids.”
For the Hoyas, Farrell continues to lead the way with 16 goals in her Offensive Player of the Year campaign. Adding graduate student forward Kyra Carusa, who leads the team in assists, and junior forward/midfielder Paula Germino-Watnick, the Hoyas’ starting front three has combined for 27 goals and 15 assists. Georgetown has conceded just seven goals on the season with only two of those coming at home.
The match will be broadcast on FS1. For live updates, as well as breaking news for all of Georgetown sports, follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter.
