The Matchup
The Greyhounds will continue a three-game homestand, as they will host Rice on Sunday afternoon.
This will be the second meeting between the two teams, with their first matchup coming last season, when the Greyhounds won 1-0, thanks to a
Baylee DeSmit free-kick.
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 Rice
- The Owls are coming into the matchup after an 2-1 loss at Houston.
- Overall on the season, the Owls are 2-3 on the season, with their two wins coming against Northwestern State and Texas Southern.
- Ellen Halseth leads the team with 3 goals and two assists on the season. Kallie McKinney and Mia Brumlow each have two goals on the season. Naija Bruckner and Natalie Gorji both are tied with Halseth with two assists each on the season.
- Stephanie Fortin has played every minute in goal for the Owls, tallying 22 saves on the season for an 2.60 GAA, and an .629 save percentage.
- Rice finished the 2022 season with an 11-8-1 record, but lost in the Conference USA Championship first round.
- In their first season in the American Athletic Conference, the Owls were picked to finish in fourth place in the West Division.
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 25-24-14.
- 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 51-41-18 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 have recorded a shutout in all three of their wins so far this season.
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Paige Sim recorded 6 or more saves in 6 of the 18 games during the 2022 season, including a career-high 9 against Rice.
- Six different players have scored a goal thus far this season, with
Elizabeth Gallagher and
Baylee DeSmit leading the way with two.
- The Greyhounds have won 16 of the last 19 games in which they have scored two goals or more, which dates back to Sept. 6, 2018. Loyola is 2-0-0 when scoring multiple goals this season.
- The Greyhounds are 16-1-3 when scoring first and 12-1-1 when leading at halftime since the beginning of the 2021 season.
- Since the beginning of the 2022 season, the Greyhounds are 0-8-0 when their opponent scored first.
More on Sim
- Sim has recorded 26 wins in her career, including 26 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.
-bFor 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: 26 (2nd)
Goalie Games Played: 61 (3rd)
Goalie Games Started: 59 (3rd)
Saves: 228 (5th)
Save Percentage: .797 (5th)
Goals Against Average: 0.97 (5th)
Saves per Game: 3.86 (8th)
