ALBANY, N.Y. – The University at Albany women's soccer program closes out its three-game home stand, and September, against America East newcomer Bryant on Thursday.
 
Game Info
Thursday, September 29 vs. Bryant (7:00 pm)
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Game Notes
 
Leading the Pack

• UAlbany is 3-2-1 at home this season; Bryant is 1-3-1 on the road
• Since scoring zero goals in its first four games, UAlbany has scored 13 in its last seven
• UAlbany leads the America East in shots taken
• Sahara Zingano leads the America East in shots taken and shots per game
• Emily Jozak ranks tied for third in goals scored
• Megan Hart ranks third in total saves
• Bryant played a non-conference game at America East opponent Maine earlier this season, falling 4-0
• Thursday is women's soccer's Spread Respect game for the season

Scouting Bryant
The Bulldogs are 3-5-2 overall in their first season in the America East, and 0-1-1 against America East opponents.  Since starting the year 1-4-0, Bryant has gone 2-1-2 in its last five games.  Most recently, the Bulldogs played the defending conference regular-season and tournament champions Vermont to a 1-1 tie at home.  Ten Bulldogs have scored the team's 11 total goals this season, led by sophomore midfielder Emma Pedolzky.  UAlbany is 1-1-0 in two Division I era meetings against Bryant.
 
Last Time vs. Bryant
September 22, 2011 | UAlbany last played Bryant during the 2011 season, falling to the Bulldogs 2-1.  Rebecca Lee scored UAlbany's lone goal, a penalty kick in the 33rd minute, but the Great Danes had already surrendered two goals to Bryant in the 18th and 19th minutes.  UAlbany outshot Bryant 15-11 and put nine shots on net but could not break through to score from the field.
 
Last Time Out
UAlbany hosted preseason America East favorite UMass Lowell at Casey Stadium for the team's second conference game of 2022.  Great Danes' goalkeeper Megan Hart, after taking the brunt of a collision with a UMass Lowell player, made a big save on a penalty kick in the 10th minute to keep the game scoreless.  In the 56th minute, Emily Jozak scored in a scrum off a corner kick to net the game's first and only goal, giving UAlbany the 1-0 victory.
 
Around the America East
UAlbany holds a small separation at the top of the America East standings with six points after winning each of its first two conference matchups.  Maine is second with four points, followed by Binghamton and New Hampshire with three points each.  Defending champion Vermont has two points, and UMBC, Bryant, and NJIT each have one.  UMass Lowell dropped its first and only conference game to this point and still has zero points.  Maine still holds the best overall record in the conference, and is one of three teams, with UMBC and Binghamton, with a .500 overall record or better.
 
Thursday's America East Games

• Maine at New Hampshire, 6:00 pm
• Vermont at UMass Lowell, 7:00 pm
• Bryant at UAlbany, 7:00 pm
• NJIT at Binghamton, 7:00 pm

Defensive Player of the Week
Megan Hart earned her first-ever America East weekly award following her performance in the Great Danes' 1-0 victory over America East preseason favorite UMass Lowell.  Hart recorded five total saves against the River Hawks, including one on a penalty kick in the 10th minute, and earned her first career shutout, powering the Great Danes' second conference win of the season.
 
Rookie of the Week III
Emily Jozak won her third America East Rookie of the Week award in four weeks following her game-winning goal against preseason America East favorite UMass Lowell.  When UAlbany drew a corner kick in the 56th minute, Jozak successfully navigated a scrum of UMass Lowell defenders to redirect Tiffany Bernot's serve into the back of the River Hawks' net.  The goal was the only score of the game, giving UAlbany a 1-0 victory.
 
Offensive Player of the Week
Junior midfielder Olivia Piraino had a career game against New Hampshire to start the 2022 conference season.  Piraino scored a career-high two goals, one in each half, to power the Great Danes to victory over the 2021 America East finalists.  Her efforts earned Piraino her first-ever America East Offensive Player of the Week honor.
 
Road Win
In their fifth opportunity of the season, the UAlbany women's soccer team secured their first victory of the year away from home.  The Great Danes downed 2021 America East finalist New Hampshire in Wildcat Stadium by a final score of 2-1 behind two goals from junior midfielder Olivia Piraino.
 
Rookie of the Week II
Emily Jozak won her second-straight America East Rookie of the Week award after scoring one goal in UAlbany's 4-1 victory over Wagner at home.  Jozak brought her goals total to four on the season, maintaining her team lead and ranking tied for third among all America East scorers.
 
Rookie of the Week I
Following her big game against Rider, Emily Jozak was named America East Rookie of the Week.  Jozak's three goals matched the program's single-game record for goals and points in the Division I era, matching the mark set in 2017 by Mariah Williams against Maine.  Jozak is UAlbany's first Rookie of the Week winner since Cassie Coster was named Rookie and Defensive Player last October.
 
Record-Setting
The UAlbany women's soccer program record book required rewriting following the team's first victory of 2022, a 3-1 win over visiting Rider.  Freshman Emily Jozak recorded the program's second hat trick of the Division I era, matching Mariah Williams' single-game records with three goals and six points.  Additionally, the team's 29 total shots against the Broncs were tied for the sixth-highest in a single game in Division I program history, matching two previous efforts in 2019 against Maine and 2008 against UMBC.
 
First Win
Five games into her career as head coach at UAlbany, her first head coaching stint, Sade Ayinde recorded her first victory.  The Great Danes fell behind at home against Rider 1-0 but rallied and maintained their offensive pressure to score three times in 10 in-game minutes to knock off the Broncs 3-1.
 
Breaking Through
The Great Danes started the season slowly, dropping each of their first four games without scoring a goal in any.  In game five, at home against then 3-0-1 Rider, UAlbany finally found the back of the net in the 40th minute when Sahara Zingano connected with freshman Emily Jozak for Jozak's first career goal.  The score ended a run of more than 400 in-game minutes without a goal dating back to the final game of the 2021 season at Vermont in the America East semifinal round.
 
Picked Fifth
UAlbany was picked to finish fifth in the 2022 America East Preseason Coaches' Poll, after finishing the 2021 season fourth and advancing to the America East semifinal round.  It is the second-straight season in which the Great Danes were picked fifth.  UMass Lowell narrowly edged defending regular-season and conference champion Vermont for first-place in this season's poll.
 
Home Field
UAlbany has been excellent within the confines of Tom & Mary Casey Stadium for the better part of the last decade, boasting a 39-18-6 record at home since the start of the 2015 season, the year of the program's first America East title.  The Great Danes went 4-3-1 at home in 2021, and between the 2018 and 2019 seasons, UAlbany was 14-1-3, including a 2019 season in which they gave up just eight goals at home.
 
First Year
Sade Ayinde was hired on February 16, 2022 as UAlbany's 14th head women's soccer coach, and eighth during the program's Division I era.  She steps in for Leigh Howard, who oversaw the team for two seasons before moving on to work with the Special Olympics.  Ayinde was a standout at Maryland during her collegiate career, scoring 16 goals with 17 assists in 79 appearances over four seasons.  Her previous collegiate coaching stops include Stony Brook and, most recently, Yale, and she also works with the US National program.
 
Game Over
Adopted starting this season, regular-season matches will no longer go into extra time when tied at the conclusion of regulation.  The regular-seasons games will conclude after 90 minutes of play.  Overtime and shootouts will return starting in the postseason.
 
Next: UAlbany visits Maine on October 2.