NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The 2019 Yale women's soccer season kicks off with a pair of games this weekend. The Bulldogs travel to New York to face St. John's on Friday at 7 p.m. and then play their home opener in the friendly confines of Reese Stadium on Sunday at 5 p.m. ESPN3 has the video on Friday, while Sunday's game can be viewed on ESPN+.
 
Friday's game, the first of the 2019-20 academic year for Yale Athletics, marks the debut for Brendan Faherty, Yale's first-year Loring Family Head Coach. Faherty, the sixth women's soccer coach in school history, comes to Yale from Stony Brook where he and his staff were named America East Coaching Staff of the Year in 2016 and 2018.  Under his leadership, Stony Brook experienced record-setting success.  During his three seasons, he guided the Seawolves to three straight winning seasons and conference tournament appearances, a regular season championship, a conference tournament championship and a berth in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, the school's first NCAA appearance since 2012.  
 
The Bulldogs were picked to finish seventh in the Ivy League preseason media poll but have the talent and experience to exceed those expectations.  Yale has six returners that started at least 10 games a year ago, including senior Noelle Higginson, who started all 17 and earned first team All-Ivy recognition. Higginson led the team with 15 points. Goalkeeper Alyssa Fagel, the captain, also is back. She started 14 games.
 
Faherty also welcomes a talented Class of 2023 that should make significant contributions.
 
HISTORY LESSON
 
Yale is playing the Red Storm for the first time since 2016, a 2-0 St. John's victory at Reese. The teams are meeting in New York for the third time. The first was a 2-0 Bulldog victory in 2005. Yale went on to win the Ivy League title and beat Central Connecticut and Duke in the NCAA Tournament that season.
 
The Bulldogs lead the all-time series with Fairfield 10-3-1. The Stags, though, took the last meeting, 1-0 in 2013 in Fairfield. Yale has won three straight over Fairfield at Reese.
 
SCOUTING ST. JOHN'S
 
The Red Storm opened up last weekend, dropping a pair of games at the James Madison Invitational, including a double overtime loss to the host school on Sunday. St. John's is led by Zsani Kajan, a unanimous selection to the All-BIG EAST Preseason Team. Last fall, Kajan scored a team-best 11 goals, four of which were game winners. Ian Stone is in his 26th season at St. John's. Over his quarter century with the Red Storm, Stone has helped the Johnnies to 18 postseason tournament appearances and three NCAA Tournament berths (2009, 2013, 2015).
 
SCOUTING FAIRFIELD
 
Fairfield also played a pair of games last weekend, opening with a 1-0 double overtime victory over Colgate before dropping a 3-0 decision to UConn. The Stags play at Wagner on Friday. There is a familiar face on the Fairfield sideline. David Barrett, who is in his second season as head coach, was an assistant men's coach at Yale from 1997-2001 under former coach Brian Tompkins. Tompkins is serving as a volunteer assistant coach for the Stags this fall. Fairfield was picked to finish seventh in the MAAC preseason poll.