EWING – It’s that time of year again. The schedule is shrinking, the leaves on the trees are changing, the weather is getting cooler. It’s nearly playoff time.
The College of New Jersey’s Women’s soccer team will try to add to its incredible season by going up against Ramapo College on at 1 p.m. on Saturday, October 7th and look for its 11th-straight win, and to continue its undefeated streak.
The Lions squad is currently rolling after another victory against Gettysburg, Rutgers-Camden and Rutgers-Newark, outscoring the opposition 10-0 over that stretch.
The Lions, currently ranked third in Division III according to the United Soccer Coaches Association poll, have had a monstrous season both offensively and defensively. The team has yet to surrender a single goal this season, the only team in Division III to do so at this moment. The team also has scored four goals a game on average, the eighth highest in the division.
To add to its dominance, the team has outshot their opponents 287-36 this season. Those 287 shots are the second-highest total in Division III. The Lions’ 133 shots on goal is good enough for the 12th most in Division III.
Unranked Ramapo (3-7) has lost its last three games, falling to Rutgers-Camden, William Patterson (8-4) and Stockton University (3-8-1). The Roadrunners have also lost seven out of their last nine games, being outscored 17-7 in that stretch.
The lineup, also consisting of mainly freshmen and sophomores (much like TCNJ), has been mainly unimpressive in the stat lines. Ramapo has been outshot by opponents 126-118, and outscored for the entire season, 18-12, resulting in a .102 shooting percentage. In addition, Ramapo has received more fouls, 116 to TCNJ’s 101.
Ramapo’s two top scorers are Amber Hermanns and Nani Vizcaino, with 11 and eight total points respectively. However, TCNJ’s high powered offense consists of four double-digit total point scorers – Christine Levering (21), Hannah Richman (13), andJessica Goldman and Kayla Bertolino (10 each).
Goalie Nicole DiPasquale has continued to shut down all of TCNJ’s opponents, along with TCNJ’s iron-curtain like defense and powerhouse offense.
Despite TCNJ’s dominant success, in any game there is always the possibility of its first loss, or surrendering its first goal. And with the playoffs fast approaching, the Lions know that they will have to get even tougher against teams they are favored to defeat.
Will the Lions continue remain unbeaten and continue their streak of not surrendering a goal? Perhaps both? Saturday will tell the tale.
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