WOMEN'S SOCCER NOTEBOOK
The Vermont women's soccer team will open the 2021-22 UVM Athletics season Sunday afternoon as they host Merrimack College at 1 p.m. from Virtue Field. The contest will be streamed live for free on AmericaEast.TV.
 
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Last season the Catamounts reached the America East semifinals for the eighth time in program history. Head Coach Kristi Huizenga has led the Catamounts to five of those semifinal appearances. UVM was selected seventh in the America East Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll.

NEW CATS
Huizenga welcomed five newcomers to the program in the offseason – Bailey Ayer (Andover, Conn., M), Kate Bossert (Needham, Mass., F), Maddy Cronin (Atlanta, GA, D), Torie Snyder (Portland, Oregon, D) and Tessa Weiss (Brooklyn, NY, F).
 
NON-CONFERENCE DOCKET
Sunday afternoon will be the Catamounts first of seven non-conference games this season. Vermont will also host LIU (Sep. 2, 6 p.m.) and Army (Sep. 10, 6 p.m.) at Virtue Field before hosting Bryan in their non-conference finale in Manchester, Vt. UVM will play its first-ever regular season game at Applejack Field on Sunday, September 12 at 4 p.m.
 
SCOUTING MERRIMACK
The Warriors were picked to finish sixth in the Northeast Conference's preseason poll. Merrimack opened the 2021 fall campaign with a 3-0 loss at New Hampshire Thursday evening. First year goaltender Claire DeFlora made 10 saves in the match in her first collegiate start.
 
During the shortened spring 2021 campaign Merrimack was 4-3-0. They faced two America East opponents in the spring defeating Maine 2-0 at home and falling 5-1 to New Hampshire on the road.
 
Senior midfielders Erin Tyldesley and Rebecca Harty led the Warriors in scoring with two goals and two assists for six points during the spring 2021 campaign. They were two of the four players last season to play over 500 minutes. The Merrimack defense is led by sophomore Abigail Cieri who was All-NEC and an All-Rookie last spring.

INSIDE THE SERIES
Sunday afternoon will be the second meeting in program history between the Warriors and the Catamounts. On September 1, 2019 Merrimack defeated UVM 2-1 in the final game of the 2019 TD Bank Classic. Frances O'Donnell scored her first career goal in the 57th minute on an assist from Alyssa Oviedo. The Warriors scored two goals 11 minutes apart to win their first contest as a Division I program. 
 
FALL 2021 FAN & VISITOR POLICY
UVM Athletics is excited to welcome fans back to the Archie Post Athletic Complex this fall. We are expecting full capacity crowds at Moulton Winder Field and Virtue Field for our field hockey and men's and women's soccer contests.
 
With the number of regional COVID-19 cases increasing, the University of Vermont is now requiring anyone in a campus building to wear a face covering - regardless of vaccination status. The policy went into effect on August 5 to aid in protecting our community from the spread of COVID-19. This includes those entering Gutterson Fieldhouse to use the restroom, pick up tickets or visit concessions.
 
In order to ensure the safety of students, staff and the community, UVM is now also expecting that all vaccine eligible visitors to campus, including fans attending athletic events, will be fully vaccinated.
 
Regardless of vaccination status we are encouraging all fans to continue to wear face coverings while at UVM Athletics sporting events.
 
While we anticipate these policies to last throughout the duration of the fall sports seasons, please continue to check UVMAthletics.com for updates as they are subject to change.
 
DRESS LIKE THE CATS
The UVM Athletics Gear Sale is closing online Monday and almost everything has been marked down 50%!  Game-worn jerseys, practice gear, travel gear and more is available now at UVMAthleticsGear.com with flat rate shipping and local pickup options. The sale has been a part of the ongoing #Rally4TheCats initiative, an opportunity to help off-set the costs to the department due to COVID-19 adjustments.  All items are sold as-is and no exchanges, returns or refunds will be issued.  Please contact Victory.Club@uvm.edu with any questions.