NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Preparations for the 2019 season are under way for the Yale women's soccer team. The Bulldogs hit the Reese Stadium turf for the first time on Tuesday and had a spirited session under Brendan Faherty, Yale's first-year Loring Family Head Coach.
On Wednesday, the Bulldogs learned what some of the prognosticators foresee this fall. Yale was selected seventh in the official 2019 Ivy League Women's Soccer Preseason Poll which should serve as motivation for a squad that returns talent and experience.
Seniors
Noelle Higginson and
Aerial Chavarin both earned All-Ivy recognition last fall. Higginson, a midfielder, was a first team selection after tying for the league lead with seven assists. Chavarin, a second team All-Ivy selection last year, is one of the most dynamic offensive threats in the league. She led the team with five goals, three of which were game-winners. In her career, she has tallied eight game-winning goals. Also back is goalkeeper
Alyssa Fagel, the team captain who won a gold medal with Team USA at the European Maccabi Games in Budapest, Hungary, over the summer. Fagel was fourth in the league with 54 saves last year.
The Bulldogs open the season next Friday at St. John's. The home opener is set for Sunday, Sept. 1 vs. Fairfield at 5 p.m.
Two-time defending champion Princeton is the favorite, according to the league's sports information directors and select media. The Tigers received 10 of the 16 first-place votes to accumulate 120 points. Penn, which shared the 2018 Ivy title, is second with 112 points followed by Harvard (80), Dartmouth (76), Columbia (74), Brown (59), Yale (37) and Cornell (18).
The Bulldogs' first Ivy game is Sept. 28 at Princeton.
2019 IVY LEAGUE WOMEN'S SOCCER PRESEASON POLL
(FIRST-PLACE VOTES)
| Rank |
School |
Points |
| 1. |
Princeton (10) |
120 |
| 2. |
Penn (5) |
112 |
| 3. |
Harvard (1) |
80 |
| 4. |
Dartmouth |
76 |
| 5. |
Columbia |
74 |
| 6. |
Brown |
59 |
| 7. |
Yale |
37 |
| 8. |
Cornell |
18 |
