QU Women's Soccer Heads to Vermont for 15th Annual TD Bank Classic

Friday, September 4

Virtue Field - Burlington, Vt.

1:30 pm

Quinnipiac University

New Hampshire

Photo by: Quinnipiac Athletics

QU Women's Soccer Heads to Vermont for 15th Annual TD Bank Classic

9/3/2015 12:42:00 PM | Women's Soccer

By: QU Sports Information

Quinnipiac Bobcats (2-0-0, 0-0-0 MAAC)
vs. New Hampshire Wildcats (1-1-2, 0-0-0 America East)
Friday, Sept. 4, 2015 • 1:30 PM
Virtue Field • Burlington, Vermont
All-Time Series vs. New Hampshire (DI): First All-Time Meeting
Last Meeting: First All-Time Meeting

Quinnipiac Bobcats (2-0-0, 0-0-0 MAAC)
at Vermont Catamounts (1-1-0, 0-0-0 America East)
Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015 • 1:30 PM
Virtue Field • Burlington, Vermont
All-Time Series vs. Vermont (DI): 2-2 (2-2)
Last Meeting: Sept. 13, 2014 (W, 1-0) @ Quinnipiac

TD BANK CLASSIC
The Quinnipiac women's soccer team heads up to the Green Mountain State this weekend to compete in the annual TD Bank Classic. At the weekend tournament, Quinnipiac is slated for two games over the weekend starting with the first all-time meeting between the Bobcats and New Hampshire on Friday, Sept. 4 at 1:30 PM from Virtue Field on the campus of Vermont in Burlington. The weekend finale falls on Sunday as the Bobcats challenge the host Catamounts at 1:30 PM.

ALL-TIME AGAINST NEW HAMPSHIRE (FIRST ALL-TIME MEETING)

These two regionally-based opponents will be squaring off against one another for the first time in program history.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
The Wildcats are making their 12^th appearance at the TD Bank Classic and have won the tournament twice before (2010, 2001). UNH opened the year with back-to-back scoreless draws against Rhode Island and UMass. The Wildcats posted a 2-0 win over Holy Cross and fell 2-0 at Siena in a pair of games last weekend. Brooke Murphy, an America East All-Rookie selection last year, led the team in scoring in 2014 with 11 goals. She scored two goals in the victory over the Crusaders and leads the team in scoring this year. Junior goalkeeper Mimi Borkan has played every minute in the net for UNH and owns a 0.45 goals against average. The 2014 Wildcats were a lockdown defensive team only allowing 20 goals in 21 games last season. Borkan had a strong sophomore campaign with a .835 save percentage while matching a school record for most shutouts in a season (nine).
ALL-TIME AGAINST VERMONT (2-2-0)

Quinnipiac and Vermont have faced off four times in the series history, with the home team taking the win in each matchup
Every game in the four-game series history, has been decided by just one goal
Each team has scored five goals in the series history
The last two decisions have been 1-0, with the last meeting ending in victory for Quinnipiac from Hamden

SCOUTING THE CATAMOUNTS
The University of Vermont Catamounts enter the game with an even split against the MAAC this season. In the 2015 season opener, the Catamounts feel to Manhattan, 1-0, but came back two days later to defeat Iona by the final of 1-0. Vermont returns 22 letter winners from last year's squad including the team's top four scorers from 2014. In the America East Preseason Poll, the Catamounts were picked to finish 8^th in the conference. Sophomore Sarah Martin had a stellar freshman year for the Catamounts leading the team with six goals while being named to the All-America East Rookie Team. Another sophomore Rylee Osgood also had a big impact during her rookie season leading the team with three assists and finishing behind Martin with three goals. The Catamounts have a strong senior presence in goal as Ally Ramos has allowed only one goal in her first two games this season and for her career has a career 1.70 GAA and .770 save percentage.

KEEP THE W'S COMING
Quinnipiac is off to their best start since the 2012 season when they started the year 3-0 on their way to a 9-6-1 season in their final year in the Northeast Conference. Quinnipiac's road victory against Delaware State was its first away from the QU Soccer Field since Sept. 21, 2013 when they defeated Saint Peter's, 3-0, and the first non-conference road win since Sept. 2, 2012 when they knocked off Holy Cross, 1-0.

NADYA GILL THE THRILL
Freshman Nadya Gill made history this week as she was named the MAAC Women's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week. Gill became the first Quinnipiac women's soccer weekly award winner since Natalia Grodzki was named the Defensive Player of the Week twice in 2013, most recently on Oct. 28, 2013. Gill is also the first offensive player to win Player of the Week honors since Kemeshaa Woodfine on Sept. 4, 2012 and is the first rookie to be named Player of the Week since Furtuna Velaj on Oct. 6, 2008, both awards coming when the Bobcats were still a member of the Northeast Conference.

MAAC ATTACK
Through two games in 2015, Quinnipiac ranks in the top half of the league in all major offensive categories. With four goals scored in two games, the Bobcats are tied for 2^nd in the MAAC in goals per game (2.00), 2^nd in assists per game (2.50) and 2^nd in goals against average (0.48). Individually, Nadya Gill leads the MAAC in shots per game (5.00), points per game (2.00), goals per game (1.00) and game-winning goals (two). Natalia Grodzki has the 2^nd-best GAA in the MAAC (0.48) and also holds the 2^nd-best save percentage (.889).

HISTORY MADE
The history-making debut continued for Nadya Gill, as she is the first Bobcat freshman since Jessica Fontaine to score two game-winning goals in the 2013 season and is the first freshmen since Furtuna Velaj in the 2008 season to record at least two goals and two game-winning goals in her first two career games as a Bobcat.

WHAT A DEBUT
Nadya Gill started her Bobcat career off with a bang as she tucked home the game-winning goal 7:46 into overtime for the Bobcats. She is the first Quinnipiac women's soccer player to have her first career goal result in the game-winner since Furtuna Velaj in 2008. Gill fired a game-high six shots and three on goal for the Bobcats against Holy Cross.

MAD-NESS
Gill was not the only freshman to tally goal in the season opener for the Bobcats as Madison Borowiec registered her first career goal with just 19 seconds remaining in the first half to provide the Bobcats with the equalizer heading into halftime. Borowiec was the first freshman since Jessica Fontaine in 2013 to score the first goal of the season for the Bobcats.

STARTING OFF THE SEASON RIGHT
Quinnipiac started off the season on a high note with its 2-1, overtime victory over the Holy Cross Crusaders on Monday. It is the first time since the 2012 season in which the Bobcats opened up the season with a win. In 2012, the Bobcats opened up the season 3-0, starting with a 1-0 win over the Providence Friars.

YOUTH MOVEMENT
Quinnipiac's youth movement was in full force in the home opener for the Bobcats against Holy Cross. Eight freshmen logged time on the field, led by Borowiec and Gill who tallied the goals for the Bobcats. Included in the group of young players, five freshman started for the Bobcats as Amanda Westman, Jess Gargan, Sarahkate Norton, Caroline DeBonis and Gill all started in the opener.

SENIOR ANCHOR
Goalkeeper Natalia Grodzki had a strong senior season debut for the Bobcats, making six saves in the victory. It was the eighth time in her career that she had recorded at least six saves, most recently recording six saves on Oct. 22, 2014 against Manhattan. Grodzki followed that up with a two-save shutout against Delaware State to up his career win total to eight while also tallying her fifth career clean sheet.

JUNIOR ASSISTANCE
The junior class was vital in the Bobcats' 2-1 victory over Holy Cross as Joanna Proctor assisted the game-winning goal and Kelly Caruso assisted the game-tying goal. Proctor's assist was the first of her career after playing 30 games in her first two seasons while Caruso notched her sixth career assist after recording a career-high four in the 2014 season.

OFFENSIVE PRESENCE
Quinnipiac turned up the heat on the Crusaders offensively in the first game of the season, recording 14 shots with seven on goal in the victory. The Bobcats 14 shots are the fourth-most recorded in a game dating back to last season, and they are now 2-1-1 when recording at least 14 shots in that timespan.

UP NEXT
After one full week off, the Quinnipiac women's soccer team will return home for a three-game homestand starting with a matchup against Maine on Sunday, Albany follows on Tuesday and the 2015 MAAC season opener is slated for Saturday against Rider.