UALBANY BEGINS 2018 SEASON IN TUCSON

ucson, Ariz. – The UAlbany women’s soccer team is set for its 2018 season opener, heading to Tucson, Arizona to take on Arizona on Friday, August 17th, and New Mexico State on Sunday, August 19th. Both games will be played at the University of Arizona.

The program is set to enter its second season under head coach Nick Bochette. The Great Danes enter 2018 having finished 4-3-1 in America East conference play last season.

THREE GREAT DANES NAMED TEAM CAPTAINS:

Savanah Courtney, Caroline Kopp and Kimberly Dieroff will serve as captains for the UAlbany women’s soccer team in 2018.

Courtney and Kopp will serve as captains for their second straight year, while Dieroff is a captain for the first time.

“We are fortunate to have a great group of young women throughout our roster, and many who have fantastic leadership qualities,” said UAlbany head coach Nick Bochette. “These three are paradigms of so many of the values our teams strives for: integrity, passion, excellence and many more. To have Caroline, Sav and Kimmy at the core of our group will ensure our culture continues to grow in the right way.”

All three served as starters last season for a team that earned the 3-seed in the America East Tournament, winning its last three regular season games to finish 4-3-1 in the league and 6-11-1 overall. The Great Danes had 1-0 victories over Vermont and Stony Brook, the two participants in the league title game.

FRESHMAN UP!:

UAlbany will bring nine freshman on board this season. Caitlyn Adams (midfield), Chloe Argenziano (midfield), Christina Cernuto (forward), Jada Colbert (midfield), Jasmine Colbert(forward), Sami Falkenstein (midfield), Kelsey Murphy (forward), Amanda O’Brien (forward), and Milan Pfister (goalkeeper) will join the 2018 roster.

NICK BOCHETTE BEGINS SECOND SEASON AS HEAD COACH:

Former associate head coach Nick Bochette was promoted to serve as head coach of the UAlbany women’s soccer team in 2017.

Bochette has been with the program the last five years, including two years as associate head coach and two years as the first assistant coach under Caitlin Cucchiella. Together, they led UAlbany women’s soccer to its first two America East Tournament titles and NCAA Tournament appearances.

BOCHETTE’S COACHING STAFF: Returning to Bochette’s staff this season is assistant coach Claire Scanlan and assistant coach Brian Gordon. Emma Geyer joins the soccer program in 2018 as the director of operations.

THREE ALL-CONFERENCE PLAYERS RETURN: Gina Bracamonte and Caroline Kopp were named to the First Team All-Conference for the 2017 season. Kopp was also chosen as 2017 Defender of the Year in the America East conference.

Mariah Williams was named to the Second Team All-Conference last season.

TRAVELING DANES: UAlbany’s players come from seven different states and four different continents. States represented include the home state of New York, in addition to Colorado, New Jersey, Texas, Florida, Massachusetts, and Arizona. The team also has players from Australia, Canada and Germany.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT: Arizona finished last season with an overall record of 11-5-4, with a conference record of 7-2-2. Gabi Stoian finished her senior year in 2017 as the second highest scorer in Arizona’s history, with a total of 29 career goals.

New Mexico State completed the 2017 season with a 9-10-2 overall record, with a conference record of 3-3-1. Aileen Galicia led the team in goals, scoring seven in 2017 with four assists.