ITHACA, N.Y. — The women's soccer team will look to even its record when it kicks off the Ivy League season on Friday night against visiting Columbia at Berman Field. The Big Red then concludes the busy weekend with a non-league game Sunday at Fairleigh Dickinson in Teaneck, N.J.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Columbia at Cornell
DATE: Friday, Sept. 22, 2017
TIME: 7 p.m.
SITE: Berman Field – Ithaca, N.Y. (natural surface)
RECORDS: Cornell 2-3, 0-0 Ivy League; Columbia 3-4-1, 0-0 Ivy League
VIDEO: Ivy League Network
LIVE STATS: CornellBigRed.com
UPDATES: @CUBigRedGameday
 
Cornell at Fairleigh Dickinson
DATE: Sunday, Sept. 24, 2017
TIME: 3 p.m.
SITE: University Stadium – Teaneck, N.J. (artificial surface)
RECORDS: Cornell 2-3, Fairleigh Dickinson 2-7-1
VIDEO: NEC Front Row
LIVE STATS: FDUKnights.com

ABOUT THE BIG RED
Sophomore defender Kaili Gregory scored her first collegiate goal and was part of the back line's stifling performance in a 1-0 victory over Maine on Saturday afternoon at Berman Field. Senior midfielder Katerina Weikert earned a penalty kick in the game's 17th minute, setting the stage for Gregory's powerful left-footed finish into the low netting to the Maine goalkeeper's left. Gregory also teamed with freshman Maddie Hoitink for 90 minutes in central defense, with junior goalkeeper Meghan Kennedy needing to make just one save for her first clean sheet of the season and the fourth of her career. The Big Red outshot the Black Bears on the day, 22-7. … The Big Red's other victory came Sept. 8 against Buffalo, on the strength of an overtime goal from sophomore forward Kennedy Yearby. It took about 13 seconds for Cornell to work the ball from a goal kick into the Bulls' goal, finished off by Yearby's path for a 30-yard sprint between central defenders and finish inside the far post. … Freshman midfielder Shelby Wray scored the Big Red's first goal in the first half, nodding on a perfect header into the upper corner of the net off a cross from senior forward Meera Dheer. … Senior forward Paige DeLoach has the Big Red's other goal on the season. She also owns the team's current career lead with 10 strikes. ... Cornell has surrendered multiple goals in each of its three losses to Syracuse, Eastern Washington and Binghamton.
 
HIGHLIGHTS OF SATURDAY'S GAME vs. MAINE
 

HEAD COACH DWIGHT HORNIBROOK
After serving as an assistant coach for five seasons, Dwight Hornibrook was named the head coach in February 2017. While he's in his first season at the helm of the Big Red, he has 17 years of head coaching experience with the men's soccer programs at Houghton and SUNY Cortland. After joining the Cornell women's soccer team, Hornibrook had helped the Big Red win 30 games over the last five years — the program's highest total in such a span since 2002-06. Hornibrook's overall record as a head coach is 184-118-30. After a three-year professional career, two-time Cornell captain goalkeeper Tori Christ '14 joins the Big Red as an assistant coach. Megan Giles is the team's other assistant coach after serving as the volunteer assistant coach with the Big Red last year. Dana Daniels '17 now fills the role of volunteer assistant coach after completing a four-year career with Cornell as both a goalkeeper and field player.
 
CASE IN POINTS
Of Cornell's 36 points last season, 32 were notched by players who return to the squad this year. Also, eight of the team's 16 goals from its memorable 2015 season were scored by players on its current squad — four from senior Paige DeLoach, two from junior Jessica Ritchie and one each from seniors Carolyn Ruoff and Tess Pullano.
 
A CALL TO ARMBANDS
Seniors Kaylee Fitzgerald and Whitney Farber are serving as the Big Red's co-captains this season. Both players figure to be among the leading contributors on the back line this season, with Fitzgerald shifting back to central defense after playing much of her first three years on East Hill as a holding midfielder. Cornell carries eight seniors on its roster of 28 this season.

NATIONAL APPEAL
The Big Red has 14 different states, the District of Columbia and the province of Alberta represented on the team roster. The most represented state on the Big Red is California, which is called home by six players. Five hail from New York, four from New Jersey, two each from Illinois, Maryland and Ohio, and one each from Nevada, Oregon, Virginia, Wisconsin, the District of Columbia and Alberta. Head coach Dwight Hornibrook also hails from Canada, native to the New Brunswick capital of Fredericton.

ABOUT COLUMBIA
The Lions slipped to 3-4-1 after a pair of losses to Atlantic 10 programs last weekend. Columbia had all of the game's seven corner kicks and outshot Fordham on Friday, but the Rams scored once in each half for a 2-0 victory. The Lions then erased a two-goal deficit Sunday at St. Joseph's, only to concede the winning goal in overtime to fall below .500 for the season. The loss to the Hawks was the first time since Sept. 2, 2016 that Columbia surrendered three goals. … Though they haven't lost on their home field since 2015, Columbia has lost six straight on the road dating back to last season. … Senior forward Natalie Neshat leads the team with 11 points on five goals and one assist. Junior forwards Emma Anderson and Rachel Alexander have combined to score five goals, and sophomore forward Emily Koe leads the team with two assists. … Junior goalkeeper Sophie Whitehouse has started seven of eight games with a 2-3-1 record, 1.72 goals against average and .766 save percentage. … Tracey Bartholomew is in her fourth season as the head coach at Columbia.
 
THE SERIES WITH COLUMBIA
The Big Red holds a 19-12 advantage in the all-time series between the Ivy League rivals, who have met in every season since the Lions added the sport in 1986. While Columbia has won each of its last six home games against Cornell, the Big Red has come out on top via shutout in the last two meetings at Berman Field. Brenna Mockler '16 scored on a rebound of her own penalty kick to fuel a 1-0 victory in 2015 to extend Cornell's season-opening unbeaten streak to nine games.
 
ABOUT FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON
The Knights are 2-7-1 and still looking for their first win in September after conceding eight goals in a pair of road losses to Gonzaga (5-1) and Eastern Washington (3-2) last weekend. Both of FDU's victories this season have come on the fast artificial surface at University Stadium. … Junior forward Elma Kolenovic leads the team with 10 points on five goals. Freshman midfielder/forward Sofia Albertsson has scored in four straight games and has nine points. Freshman midfielder Viktorija Miseljic has seven points on three goals and one assist, and senior midfielder Jessi Reinhardt and sophomore midfielder Stasi Torchia are tied for team's assist lead with two apiece. … Sophomore goalkeeper Amanda Fitzgerald has started eight of 10 games with a 1-6-1 record, 2.30 goals against average and .703 save percentage.
 
THE SERIES WITH FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON
Sunday's game will mark the first-ever meeting between Cornell and Fairleigh Dickinson — though the Big Red has played at FDU's University Stadium as recently as last year, when renovations at Columbia's home field forced the applicable Ivy League tilt to be relocated to Teaneck, N.J. The game against the Knights is Cornell's only tilt against a Northeast Conference foe this season, with the Big Red holding a cumulative all-time record of 7-3-1 against teams from the circuit.

UP NEXT
Cornell plays its first road contest of the Ivy League season at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29, when it visits Penn.