FOREST, Va. --- ODAC women's soccer returns to its traditional fall designation on the calendar following the first spring campaign a few months prior. Headlining the 2021-22 ODAC Women's Soccer Preseason Poll is Bridgewater College, which captured its first title in program history in the spring.
The Eagles picked up seven first place votes on the way to 138 points to top the table by five markers over Washington and Lee University. The Generals earned four top nods as part of their 133-point haul. Virginia Wesleyan University sits third with 119 points, while the University of Lynchburg garnered the remaining two first place votes towards 116 tallies.
The conference's sponsorship returns to its full allotment in 2021-22. Hollins University, Randolph College, and Sweet Briar College each return to the league standings after opting out of the spring term due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the sections below, we look back to what we saw during the spring season and take a look at what to expect entering the new campaign. Be sure to check out the capsules at the bottom of this page for a more targeted view at each squad entering the fall.
2021 SPRING ODAC TOURNAMENT | BRACKET
- The third time was a charm for Bridgewater in Spring 2021 as the Eagles captured the program's first title in their third ODAC championship game appearance.
- Bridgewater, seeded second in the tournament's eight-team field, earned a 2-0 shutout over #7 Shenandoah in the quarterfinals and then posted a 1-0 victory over #3 Roanoke in the semifinals.
- Top-seeded Washington and Lee earned its 10th title game appearance following a pair of 4-0 results over #8 Guilford and #4 Virginia Wesleyan in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively.
- Bridgewater and Washington and Lee played to a 0-0 draw thru 110 minutes of regulation and two extra time periods leading to penalty kicks to decide the first spring champion in ODAC history.
- Emily York, Hanna Randolph, Skyler Daum, and Lindsey Winkels made BC's first four PKs and two Generals shots off the post propelled the Eagles to a 4-2 win in the spot-kick shootout.
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2021-22 Preseason Interview | Mike Van Horn, Bridgewater Women's SoccerAugust 25, 2021Defending champion Bridgewater was picked #1 in the ODAC Women's Soccer Preseason Poll. Head coach Mike Van Horn joined us for a preseason interview.
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2021-22 Preseason Interview | Neil Cunningham, Washington and Lee Women's SoccerAugust 25, 2021Washington and Lee was picked #2 in the ODAC Women's Soccer Preseason Poll. Head coach Neil Cunningham joined us for a preseason interview.
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2021-22 Preseason Interview | Jeff Bowers, Virginia Wesleyan Women's SoccerAugust 25, 2021Virginia Wesleyan was picked #3 in the ODAC Women's Soccer Preseason Poll. Head coach Jeff Bowers joined us for a preseason interview.
RETURNING STATISTICAL LEADERS
The athletes listed below represent the top-three returning statistical leaders for each category from the 2021 spring season.
Save Pct./GAA Minimums | 33% of team goalkeeper minutes played
- Points | 14 - Erin Hoeh, W&L; 13 - Alyssa Damato, LYN; 12 - Ava Boussy, W&L/Cameron Grainger, W&L/Emily Leding, W&L/MC Petrucelli, RC
- Goals | 6 - Alyssa Damato, LYN/Erin Hoeh, W&L; 5 - Ava Boussy, W&L/Alicia Keo, BC/MC Petrucelli, RC/Destiny Zapata, BC
- Assists | 6 - Taylor Smith, LYN; 4 - Cameron Grainger, W&L/Emily Leding, W&L
- GK Saves | 58 - Abbey Hayes, FC; 39 - Sydney Davis, BC/Anna Filipkowski, EMU
- Save Pct. | .907 - Sydney Davis, BC; .905 - Grace Coombs, W&L; .842 - Zoe Long, R-MC
- Goals Against Avg. | 0.22 - Grace Coombs, W&L; 0.41 - Sydney Davis, BC; 0.73 - Carrington Lippi, RC
RETURNING ALL-ODAC TALENT | 2020-21 ALL-ODAC WOMEN'S SOCCER AWARDS
The 2021-22 season features 27 of the 39 All-ODAC honorees from the 2021 spring campaign. Below we take a look at those returning to league rosters.
FORWARDS/STRIKERS
- Alyssa Damato, LYN -- All-ODAC First Team
- Skyler Daum, BC -- All-ODAC First Team
- Julia Marrone, VWU -- All-ODAC First Team
- Morgan O'Neill, RC -- All-ODAC Third Team - ROY
- Destiny Zapata, BC -- All-ODAC Second Team
MIDFIELDERS
- Kennedi Anders, VWU -- All-ODAC First Team
- Caitlin Barnes, WLU -- All-ODAC Second Team
- Olivia Bryant, VWU -- All-ODAC Third Team
- Erin Hoeh, WLU -- All-ODAC First Team
- Alicia Keo, BC -- All-ODAC Second Team
- Maddy Myers, LYN -- All-ODAC Third Team
- Hanna Randolph, BC -- All-ODAC First Team - POY
- Emily Santana, LYN -- All-ODAC First Team
- Taylor Smith, LYN -- All-ODAC Second Team
DEFENDERS
- Alix Allen, LYN -- All-ODAC First Team
- Sam Crawford, VWU -- All-ODAC First Team
- Maren Dougherty, BC -- All-ODAC Second Team
- Erin Flamm, RC -- All-ODAC First Team
- Abbie Marquette, SU -- All-ODAC Third Team
- Chloe Rapier, W&L -- All-ODAC Second Team
- Eliza Ryan, RC -- All-ODAC Second Team
- Alexandria Soteriou -- All-ODAC Third Team
- Liz Sullivan, W&L -- All-ODAC Second Team
- Emily York, BC -- All-ODAC Third Team
GOALKEEPERS
- Grace Coombs, W&L -- All-ODAC Second Team
- Sydney Davis, BC -- All-ODAC First Team
- Abbey Hayes, FC -- All-ODAC Third Team
THE SCHEDULE AND TOURNAMENT
- The 13-team ODAC contingent will continue with its 10-game unbalanced conference schedule in addition to each team's non-conference slate.
- The top-eight teams in the ODAC standings will qualify for the ODAC Tournament with the winner earning the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
- This year's ODAC Tournament will feature quarterfinal play at seeds 1-4 on Tuesday, November 2, followed by the semifinals on Friday, November 5, at the two highest remaining seeds. The ODAC championship will be played at the highest remaining seed on Sunday, November 7.
- The NCAA Tournament field will be selected on Sunday, November 7, with first round play set for Saturday-Sunday, November 13-14 followed by sectional play on Saturday-Sunday, November 20-21. The national semifinals and championship are set for Friday-Saturday, December 3-4. UNC-Greensboro will serve as host at UNCG Soccer Stadium in Greensboro, N.C.
For more information on ODAC women's soccer, visit the websites of any of the participating schools, or go to the ODAC's home on the Internet at www.odaconline.com. Don't forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook and follow @odacathletics on Twitter and Instagram.
2021 ODAC WOMEN'S SOCCER PRESEASON POLL (#) denotes first place votes |
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1. Bridgewater College (7) | 138 pts. |
2. Washington and Lee University (4) | 133 pts. |
3. Virginia Wesleyan University | 119 pts. |
4. University of Lynchburg (2) | 116 pts. |
5. Roanoke College | 97 pts. |
6. Randolph-Macon College | 96 pts. |
7. Shenandoah University | 76 pts. |
8. Ferrum College | 65 pts. |
9. Eastern Mennonite University | 53 pts. |
10. Guilford College | 43 pts. |
10. Randolph College | 43 pts. |
12. Sweet Briar College | 18 pts. |
13. Hollins University | 17 pts. |