Women's Soccer To Host Duquesne For A-10 Quarterfinals

University of Massachusetts Women's Soccer Game Notes & Information
Game 18 (Atlantic Quarterfinals)	No. 4 Massachusetts (9-4-4, 6-2-2 Atlantic 10) vs. No. 5 Duquesne (7-7-4, 4-2-4 Atlantic 10)
Date \| Time	Friday, October 27 // 2 p.m.
Location	Amherst, Mass. // Rudd Field
Watch	ESPN+
Live Statistics	StatBroadcast
Twitter	@UMassWSoccer
Instagram	UMass Women's Soccer
Facebook	UMass Women's Soccer

AMHERST, Mass. – University of Massachusetts women's soccer begins postseason action on Friday, October 27, when the team hosts No. 5 Duquesne at Rudd Field for the Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals. The Minutewomen, the No. 4 seed, will compete in the A-10 Championships for the sixth year straight at 2 p.m. on ESPN+.

Massachusetts finished the regular season with a 6-2-2 mark in league play, good for fourth in the A-10 standings, while going 9-4-4 overall on the season.

Atlantic 10 Tournament History
UMass is making its 20th appearance in the conference tournament in program history. The Minutewomen are 14-15-1 all-time in the A-10 postseason competition and has won the league championship four times (1993, 1994, 1995, 1997).

Additionally, Massachusetts has made the A-10 Tournament every year since Jason Dowiak took over as head coach of the program. Under Dowiak's helm, the Minutewomen appeared in six straight A-10 Quarterfinals, three A-10 Semifinals and were the 2021 A-10 Runner-Ups.

Friday's contest marks the seventh time the Minutewomen have hosted the A-10 Quarterfinals in program history, hosting in 1994, 1995, 1999, 2004, 2019 and 2021. UMass first held the round in Amherst on November 4, 1994, when the team defeated Rutgers, 4-1. Massachusetts last hosted the quarterfinals on October 31, resulting in a 5-1 triumph over St. Bonaventure.

Last Time Out
UMass secured the No. 4 seed after shutting out both Saint Joseph's and Fordham, 2-0, last week.

Against Saint Joseph's, junior midfielder Bella Recinos and senior forward Grace Pinkus notched UMass' two goals in the 49th and 63rd minutes, respectively. At Fordham, Recinos scored her second goal of the week to put the Minutewomen ahead early in the contest, before junior midfielder Rose Gevanthor extended Massachusetts lead with her first collegiate goal.

Senior goalkeeper Bella Mendoza collected her seventh and eighth shutouts of the year, making four saves against the Hawks and stopping five shots from the Rams.

Defending Fort Rudd
Massachusetts completed its regular season home slate with an undefeated 6-0-1 record with the 2-0 win over Saint Joseph's last Thursday.

The Minutewomen's undefeated home record marked the first time for the program since the 1993 season, when the team went 8-0-2. It also marked the first time in program history UMass went undefeated at Rudd Field since its opening in 2002.

Keeping Track
Graduate student defender Fiona Kane become the program's all-time leader in career games started with 88 starts. She also became the all-time leader in career games played, leading with 88.

Kane became the all-time minutes leader, currently accumulating 7,935. She surpassed Danielle Dion (1994-97), who tallied 6,913 minutes of playing time and Briana Scurry (1990-93), who totaled 6,073 minutes over her career.

Mendoza etched her name in the record books after tallying 202 career saves to claim eighth place in the program, surpassing Lauren Luckey (2006-10) with 196 saves. With 47 more saves, the senior will tie for seventh with Kelly Nigh (2000-03), with 249.

Mendoza also is one shutout away from tying for 10th in the program alongside Tammie Easton (1982) with 12. The San Ramon, California, native, has recorded 11 career shutouts, garnering a career-high in a single season of eight this year.

Statistically Speaking
UMass is fourth in points with 79, while also placing fourth in goals (26) and ranks third in assists (27). Massachusetts has also allowed the third fewest number of goals this season, behind with Dayton and Saint Louis with 10 apiece, only letting in 15 by its opponents.

Recinos leads the team in points (19), goals (seven) and assists (five). She is currently third in points in the conference, while tying for third in goals and tying for fourth in assists. Junior forward Ashley Lamond follows with the second-most points on the team with 12, the second-most goals with five and tying for fourth in assists with two.

Recinos also leads the team in game-winning goals with four and is tied for second in the league.

Mendoza tallied 1,445 minutes in net for the Minutewomen, averaging a 0.93 goals-against-average (GAA) and a .830 save percentage. She has also accumulated eight shutouts, combining for one on the year.

Mendoza has placed herself in the conference rankings, sitting third in goals-against-average with a 0.93. She also ranks third with a .830 save percentage and is seventh in total saves with 73. She is also second in shutouts per game with a .471 average and with tied for second with her eight total shutouts.

Scouting Duquesne
The Dukes earned the fifth seed in the tournament after posting a 4-2-4 recording the conference and finishing 7-7-4 overall. Duquesne enters the A-10 Championships with a 3-0 win over Richmond in the regular season finale. UMass and Duquesne faced off earlier in the season on the road with the two programs tying, 1-1, on September 28.

Maya Matesa and Brianna Moore lead the Dukes with 11 points apiece, both tallying a team-high five goals and adding one assist each. Morgan Kulniszewski sits atop the leaderboard in assists with four. Matesa recorded a team-best 35 shots, including 13 on target. Maddy Neundorfer has spent the most time in net for Duquesne, accumulating 1,557 minutes. She holds a 6-7-4 record and recorded eight shutouts on the year, with one combined shutout. Neundorfer has a 1.33 GAA and a .777 save percentage, making 84 total saves on the season.

Weekly Honors
Kane collected the first Atlantic 10 weekly accolade of the year for the Minutewomen on September 5. She earned A-10 Defensive Player of the Week after playing a key role for UMass' defense to post back-to-back 2-0 shutouts over Syracuse (8/31) and Bryant (9/3). Kane combined for 176 total minutes, playing the full 90 minutes against Syracuse and 86 minutes against Bryant.

Mendoza garnered the second A-10 weekly award, earning A-10 Defensive Player of the Week on September 25. She tabbed the accolade after recording two complete shutouts after defeating VCU, 1-0, and Davidson, 5-0. Playing 180 minutes in net, Mendoza allowed no goals and had a perfect save percentage to earn her fourth and fifth shutouts of the season. She turned aside 13 total saves, including a season-best seven against VCU.

The senior goalkeeper earned the weekly honor for the second time this year, and fourth time in her career, on October 23. She was named the A-10 Defensive Player of the Week after recording her seventh and eighth shutouts of the season and tallying a 1.00 save percentage. Mendoza turned aside nine total shots in both 2-0 victories over Saint Joseph's and at Fordham.

Recinos tabbed the third A-10 weekly award for the Minutewomen on October 2 after being named the A-10 Offensive Player of the Week. The accolade marked the first of her career and accumulated 149 minutes of playing time, while registering two goals and two assists for a total of six points. She scored the lone goal at Duquesne (9/28) for two points. Against Loyola Chicago (10/1) she notched the game-winning goal, and added two assists, matching a career-high, on the day for four total points. Recinos also recorded four shots, placing three on goal, on the week.

Scoreboard

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Players Mentioned

Rose Gevanthor

Fiona Kane

Ashley Lamond

Bella Mendoza

Grace Pinkus

Bella Recinos

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics