ALBANY, N.Y. – UAlbany returns home for the first time since August 22 to face UConn.
 
Game Info
Sunday, September 5 at UConn (4:00 pm)
Live Stats | AE.tv
 
Leading the Pack

• Three Great Danes have scored a goal this season, and two have recorded an assist

• UAlbany returns five All-Conference players from the spring season, including spring Strike of the Year Jasmine Colbert
• Colbert led UAlbany with five goals in the spring, all five of which were game-winners
• UAlbany also returns defensive starters Hailey Summers and Sophia Eifler, and goalkeeper Sophia Chen, alongside spring All-Rookie selections Olivia Piraino and Margot Nezaj
• UConn boasts one BIG EAST Preseason All-Conference selection in midfielder Jessica Mazo
• Following the spring's unique two-division schedule, the America East returns to its normal round-robin format for the fall

Scouting UConn
The Huskies are 2-1-0 on the season so far, holding victories over CCSU and LaSalle.  Most recently, UConn fell 4-1 at Boston College.  UConn was picked third in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll after going 8-3-1 in the 2021 spring season.  UConn closed the spring going 6-2-0, falling to Butler in the semifinal round of the BIG EAST Tournament.
 
Last Time vs. UConn
UAlbany last played UConn during the 2016 season, falling to the Huskies in Storrs, Conn. 4-2.  The Huskies were ranked #13 at the time of the game and quickly took a 2-0 lead, scoring two goals in the first nine minutes.  Off the bench, Mariah Williams scored twice for UAlbany, just before halftime and just before full time, but UConn also scored twice after the break to double-up UAlbany's total.
 
Last Time Out
The Great Danes visited a Cornell team over the weekend that was playing just its second game since November, 2019, following the Ivy League's cancellation of the 2020 season.  Sophia Eifler put UAlbany ahead early, scoring her first goal of the season and third of her career, before Cornell came back to tie the game and take the lead on a pair of goals 10 minutes apart.  After halftime, Jasmine Colbert scored from deep in the 71st minute to tie the game and force overtime, during which period neither team broke through and UAlbany came away with a 2-2 draw.
 
Around the America East
Maine is the last remaining unbeaten team in the America East at 2-0-1.  Hartford and Vermont are currently tied for second place at 3-1-0 apiece.  Vermont leads the conference in scoring with 10 goals in four games, while Hartford has scored eight goals in four games while allowing just one.  UMass Lowell's Ioanna Papatheodorou leads the America East in individual scoring, with four goals in four games.
 
Sunday's America East Games

• Hartford at Lafayette, 1:00 pm
• Quinnipiac at Maine, 1:00 pm
• Syracuse at New Hampshire, 2:00 pm
• Stony Brook at Colorado, 3:00 pm
• UConn at UAlbany, 4:00 pm
• Northeastern at UMass Lowell, 6:30 pm
• Buffalo at Binghamton, 7:00 pm 

Schedule Shakeup
Four of UAlbany's first five games on the 2021 calendar have required adjustments from their original plans.  The opener at Syracuse was cancelled due to inclement weather.  The second game, the home opener against Hofstra, was moved up two hours to avoid weather from Tropical Storm Henri.  The third game, at CCSU, was pushed back one hour to avoid excessive heat.  Most recently, the team's road game at Quinnipiac was cancelled due to inclement weather.
 
Picked Fifth
The Great Danes were picked to finish fifth in the 2021 America East Preseason Coaches' Poll.  UAlbany drew 52 points in fifth place behind two-time defending conference champion and unanimous favorite Stony Brook.  The Seawolves pulled in 81 total points and all nine possible first-place votes.  UMass Lowell was second, garnering the final first-place vote and 67 total points.  Binghamton (61) and New Hampshire (52) were picked just ahead of UAlbany.  Behind the Great Danes, perennial power Hartford was picked sixth with 50 points, followed by Vermont (28), Maine and NJIT (20), and UMBC (17).
 
Captains
The UAlbany women's soccer team features three captains for the 2021-22 season in goalkeeper Sophia Chen, midfielder Sophia Eifler, and defender Hailey Summers.  Each was a sophomore on the team for UAlbany's most recent America East title in 2018, and each has elected to utilize their additional year of eligibility to return to UAlbany this season.
 
Colbert Connection
Three times in their careers, twin sisters Jada and Jasmine Colbert connected on a goal.  Jasmine set up Jada for the first goal of the 2019 game against UMass Lowell.  Earlier in the 2019 season, against St. Francis Brooklyn, the twins connected for the first time in their UAlbany careers, when Jada set up Jasmine to put UAlbany up 2-0 right after halftime.  Most recently, the twins connected when Jada set up Jasmine for the game-winner against Stony Brook in the spring 2021 season.
 
Home Field
The Great Danes finished the 2019 regular season unbeaten at home, going 6-0-2, before falling at home in the America East semifinals.  UAlbany went 8-1-1 at Casey Stadium in 2018, including quarterfinal and championship victories in the America East Tournament.  The Great Danes let up just eight goals in 10 games at home in 2019, and just two in the last five.  Dating back to the 2015 season, the year of the program's first America East title, and through the 2021 spring season, the Great Danes are 33-14-4 at home.
 
Next: UAlbany hosts Yale on September 9.