The Matchup
- The Greyhounds will host the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders on Thursday evening to continue their non-conference schedule.
- This will be the first meeting between the two programs.
Quick Hits
- The Greyhounds return three of their top four goal scorers from the 2022 season;
Baylee DeSmit (6),
Kelly Hutton (3), and
Alex Searing (2).
- DeSmit is coming off a strong 2022 season, where she led the Patriot League in points (19) en route to a First Team All-Patriot League nod. Searing is also coming off of a strong season, where she was named to the Second Team All-Patriot League.
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Joe Mallia, the winningest coach in Loyola University Maryland women's soccer history, will be entering his 12th season overall at the helm of the Greyhounds.
Key Returners
- The Greyhounds will return a strong core from last years team, as they return 10 of their top 11 players in minutes played from a year ago.
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Paige Sim and
Alex Searing return to the Greyhounds, using their Covid eligibility for their fifth year with the program.
- Sim,
Zoe Willis,
Olivia Quaranta, and
Baylee DeSmit all return to the Greyhounds after starting in all 18 games during the 2022 season.
- Searing,
Jess Korman,
Kelly Hutton, and
Delaney DeMartino, who all tallied at least 14 starts during the 2022 season, return to the Greyhounds for the 2023 season.
Welcome to the Greyhounds
- The Greyhounds welcome 10 new players to the 2023 team; welcoming eight freshman and two transfers.
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Julia Hellenkamp, a transfer from UNC-Wilmington, joins the Greyhounds after two seasons with the Seahawks. She made 15 appearances during her sophomore season.
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Asma Merzougui, a transfer from CSU Bakersfield, joins the Greyhounds after a season with the Roadrunners. She played in seven games, starting in two during her freshman campaign.
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Malone Christen (Rome, GA),
Francesca Khachatourians (Manhatten Beach, CA),
Abby Wood (Ventura, CA), and
Jessie Brandenburg (Lexington, SC) will look to boost the Greyhounds attack.
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Ella Moss (Delray Beach, FL) adds some depth to the Greyhounds midfield.
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Nele Raap (Haiterbach, Germany) and
Carsyn Weber (Oakville, Ontario) will add depth to an already solid back-line.
- Lastly,
Brigid Mulholland (Fairport, NY) adds to the strong goalkeeper position for the Greyhounds.
Scouting Middle Tennessee State
- The Blue Raiders come into the matchup with a 1-0-1 record on the season. They tied against Louisiana in their season opener 1-1, followed by a 3-1 win against Belmont.
- Cambell Kivisto leads the team with 2 goals on the season, while Faith Adje and Emma Pettersen each have two goals on the season.
- Kivisto, Kaitlyn Butcher, Idun Kvalle, and Caroline Manley each have an assist.
- In goal, Hannah Suder has tallied 2 saves on 12 shots faced this season.
- Defender Caroline Manley was named to the Preseason All-Conference USA team.
- The Blue Raiders were selected to finish in sixth place in the Preseason CUSA Poll.
- They are coming off of a 2022 season in which they finished 2-12-3, with their two wins coming against Mississippi Valley State and Austin Peay.
Quick Notes Entering the Season
- The 2023 season will be the 13th season the Greyhounds have been in the Patriot League, going 25-39-22 during that span, reaching the Patriot League Championships in four straight seasons, which includes two trips to the Patriot League Semifinals.
- This is Head Coach
Joe Mallia's second stint at the helm with the Greyhounds. During his first stint, Mallia went 87-45-9 (54-4-5, MAAC), Winning the MAAC Regular-Season Championship four times, and the MAAC Tournament Championship three times.
- In his four season's back at the helm, Mallia has gone 24-23-14.
- This will be the 14th season the Greyhounds will call Ridley Athletic Complex home. The stadium opened in the spring of 2010.
- The Greyhounds have gone 50-41-18 at home since the opening of Ridley Athletic Complex.
- In their last five season openers, the Greyhounds have gone 3-2 in season openers, with their last win coming in 2021, with a win over Marist, 1-0.
Recipe for Success
- The Greyhounds recorded a shutout in 9 of 18 games during the 2022 season, including a shutout in five straight games.
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Paige Sim recorded 6 or more saves in 6 of the 18 games during the season, including a career-high 9 against Rice.
- Seven different players scored during the 2022 season, and eleven different players recorded an assist.
- The Greyhounds have won 14 of the last 17 games in which they have scored two goals or more, which dates back to Sept. 6, 2018. Loyola was 3-2-0 in 2022 when scoring multiple goals during the season.
- The Greyhounds are 14-1-3 when scoring first and 10-1-1 when leading at halftime since the beginning of the 2021 season.
- During the 2022 season, the Greyhounds were 0-7-0 when their opponent scored first.
More on Sim
- Sim has recorded 24 wins in her career, including 24 shutouts.
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Paige Sim played 1,595 out of a possible 1,620 minutes last season, and she tallied 6+ saves in 6 of her 18 appearances.
- Sim was tied for second in shutouts and fourth in saves per game during the 2022 season.
- Sim was a first team All-Patriot League honoree during the 2021 season, was a third team All-Conference selection during the 2021 spring season and she was a second team selection following her freshman season in 2019.
- For her career, Sim is 23-18-14 with a 0.95 GAA, a .797 save percentage and 23 shutouts in 54 starts.
- Sims current ranks all-time at Loyola;
Shutouts: 24 (3rd)
Goalie Games Played: 57 (4th)
Goalie Games Started: 55 (4th)
Saves: 217 (5th)
Save Percentage: .797 (5th)
Goals Against Average: 0.95 (5th)
Saves per Game: 3.86 (8th)
A Familiar Face
- Middle Tennessee State's Assistant Coach Hannah Hoefs was a 2020 graduate from Loyola.
- During her career with the Greyhounds Hoefs started in 40 games, tallying 15 goals and 9 assists during her career. Hoefs was named the Patriot League Midfielder of the Year following her senior season, while also being named to the United Soccer Coaches All-North Region Second Team.
