The UConn women’s soccer team will take the short trip to Kingston, Rhode Island on Thursday for the second to last non-conference match of the season.
The Huskies currently have a record of 2-2-1 and are coming off a 1-0 victory against Yale last Thursday.
Anaya Johnson scored the lone goal against the Bulldogs, getting her junior season off to the right foot.
Freshman Ava Yamas has started all five games so far for Connecticut. The IMG Academy product has only conceded three goals this season while averaging two saves per game. Elizabeth DiBlasi is another option in net. The junior saw 20 minutes of action and recorded a save in UConn’s draw against Rutgers.
UConn lost some key players from their trip to the NCAA tournament last year. Former Big East Goalkeeper of the Year Kaitlyn Mahoney graduated alongside 2024 captains Lucy Cappadona and Abbey Jones. Head coach Margret Rodriguez also lost a few players to the transfer portal.
Rodriguez and her staff retained many key players while also adding in the transfer portal. First Team All-Conference forward Chioma Okafor returned to Storrs for her senior season. The Malawi native scored in the season opener against Stony Brook. Utah State transfer Kaitlyn Richins has also tallied a goal this season. Richins was named to the All Mountain West First Team last season as a defender. Other transfers include Kansas State transfer Farrah Stephens-Martin, Boston College transfer Riley Prozzo and Rutgers transfer Gabby Miller.
Rhode Island is off to a 5-1 start, with their lone loss being to Brown University, who also defeated UConn. The Rams have scored two goals in five of their first six games, posing a possible test for the freshman Yamas. The top goal scorers to watch for on URI are the trio of Mie Cartensen, Lauren MacDonald and McKenna Sylvester who provides a spark off the bench for the Rams.
The women’s team is an astounding 10-0 against URI all-time. First matching up in 1988, the Huskies have only allowed four goals in those 10 games. UConn outscored Rhode Island 21-0 in 1991 and 92, scoring 10 and 11 goals respectively. The two teams went almost 20 years without facing each other, however this will be their third meeting since 2021. The Huskies have not traveled to Kingston since 1993.
After the game against Rhode Island, UConn will host Maine before the Big East Regular season begins. Connecticut will then play all 10 Big East teams once before the conference tournament, a tournament which the Huskies won in 2024.
Kickoff time is set for 7 P.M. on Thursday. The game can be watched on ESPN+ or fans can find live updates on uconnhuskies.com.