The Matchup
The Greyhounds continue Patriot League play, as they hit the road to travel to face Colgate on Saturday evening.
This will be the 17th meeting in series history, with Colgate holding a 8-6-2 lead. The teams have faced off in the Patriot League Championships in the 2023 and 2024 seasons, with teams splitting the two meetings, both hosted by Loyola.
Colgate won last years' meeting, 3-0, in Baltimore.
Quick Hits
The Greyhounds 3-1-1 start to last season was their best five-game start to the season since the 2016 season, where they also started 3-1-1.
Loyola's six game unbeaten streak to start Patriot League play last season was the longest unbeaten streak to start conference play since joining the Patriot League.
Loyola is 1-3-2 in their last six season openers and 3-2-1 in their last six home openers.
The Greyhounds return 15 players from last years' team that appeared in at least 10 games.
Defending Home Turf
The Greyhounds will play 8 of their first 11 games at home to start the season.
After hosting William and Mary for the opener, the Greyhounds hosted 2025 SEC Champion Arkansas, tying the then-10th ranked Razorbacks.
Following two away games, Loyola had a stretch of four-straight home games and a streak of six of seven at home, going 2-1-5 so far.
They host Stony Brook, Fairleigh Dickinson, Iowa State, and James Madison at home, before opening Patriot League play by hosting Boston and American.
Loyola has a 25-15-19 record at Ridley since the beginning of the 2021 season, with the Greyhounds going 1-1-7 at home so far this season.
Greyhounds Defense
The Greyhounds defense ranks as the top defense in the Patriot League so far, boasting a 0.85 goals against average, as they lead the Patriot League in GAA.
The Greyhounds back line has been led by
Geneve Pouliot, who has played all but nine minutes this season, along with
Francesca Curatolo,
Renee Wanzor,
Eva McGorian, and
Savannah Hartford.
In goal,
Hannah Goetzer has been lockdown in goal. Goetzer has allowed just nine goals in 12 games, while tallying 63 saves, a .875 save percentage, and a .75 GAA.
She leads the Patriot League in save percentage and GAA this season. She also ranks 12th in Division I in save percentage this season and 43rd in Division I in saves per game (5.25).
As a team, Loyola ranks 59th in the country in GAA, allowing just .846 goals per game.
Scouting Colgate
Colgate comes into the matchup with a 2-10-2 (1-4) record on the season, as they are coming off of a 2-0 win over American last Saturday.
Lydia Thornton leads the team with two goals this season, as seen different players have scored a goal this season for the Raiders.
Thornton is tied for the team lead with four points this season, tied with Ava McCloskey and Regan Taylor, who both have one goal and two assists.
In goal, Ella Poppinga has started in every game, as she has a .768 save percentage, a 1.65 GAA, and 76 saves on the season for the Raiders.
Through five conference games, Colgate has allowed the second most goals (10) in the Patriot League. They have also scored the third fewest goals (5) through five games.
Colgate currently sits in eighth place in the Patriot League, with four games remaining in the regular season.
Entering the season, Colgate was picked to finish in third place, as Ella Poppinga was named the Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year.
Quick Notes
The 2025 season will be the 14th season the Greyhounds have been in the Patriot League, going 39-50-31 in the Patriot League during that span, reaching the Patriot League Championships in six straight seasons, including four trips to the 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 seven season's back at the helm, Mallia has gone 50-42-36.
The Greyhounds have gone 68-49-28 at home since the opening of Ridley Athletic Complex.
Recipe for Success
When scoring first last season, the Greyhounds went 4-0-4 on the season.
When scoring at least one goal last season, Loyola was 5-0-5, including 4-0 when scoring multiple goals.
The Greyhounds have won 32 of the last 37 games in which they have scored two goals or more, which dates back to Sept. 6, 2018.
The Greyhounds are 35-2-9 when scoring first and 25-1-2 when leading at halftime since the beginning of the 2022 season.
Loyola has experienced success on the road last season, posting a 3-2-4 record on the season. In those nine games, the Greyhounds allowed just eight goals.
Between The Pipes
Goetzer has had a great year in goal through nine games, posting a .875 save percentage, a .75 GAA, and 63 saves on the season.
She has recorded at least five saves in eight games this season, including at least six saves in five of the last six games.
Goetzer's .875 save percentage ranks 12th in Division I this season.
She also has five shutouts this season, as Loyola shutout three-straight opponents in George Mason, Stony Brook, and FDU.
Key Returners
Brigid Mulholland and
Hannah Goetzer both return in goal for the Greyhounds this season, after the pair combined to play every minute in goal last season.
On the back line,
Renee Wanzor returns after finishing second on the team in minutes played last season.
In the midfield,
Brigid McElderry,
Ella Moss, and
Reagan Mallia return to the Greyhounds. The trio all appeared in at least 16 games last season, led by McElderry who started in 15 of 18 games she appeared in.
Leading the attack,
Savannah Manset,
Taryn Buckley, and
Francesca Khachatourians return. Manset led the team with seven points, 50 shots, and 21 shots on goal last season as a freshman. Buckley tallied two goals and a assist during her freshman campaign, while Khachatourians had a team-best three assists to go along with a goal last season.
