ITHACA, N.Y. — Among the 335 NCAA Division I women's soccer programs in the country, Cornell will be one of just four that has yet to concede a goal when it resumes its schedule this weekend with games at Syracuse and St. Bonaventure. The Big Red is 3-0-1 after capturing the Alumni Classic last weekend at St. Bonaventure.
 
GAME INFORMATION
GAME #5: Cornell at Syracuse
DATE: Friday, Sept. 11, 2015
TIME: 3:30 p.m.
SITE: SU Soccer Stadium – Syracuse, N.Y. (natural surface)
2015 RECORDS: Cornell 3-0-1, Syracuse 2-4
LIVE STATS: cuse.com
 
GAME #6: St. Bonaventure at Cornell
DATE: Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015
TIME: 3:30 p.m.
SITE: Charles F. Berman Field – Ithaca, N.Y. (natural surface)
2015 RECORDS (not including Friday's games): Cornell 3-0-1, St. Bonaventure 2-2-2
LIVE STATS: CornellBigRed.com

ABOUT CORNELL
The Big Red is coming off a pair of shutout victories against Cleveland State (3-0) and Akron (2-0) last weekend to take the Alumni Classic title at St. Bonaventure, marking the first tournament Cornell has won since the St. Bonaventure Invitational in 2003. Cornell kicked off its season the previous weekend with a pair of home games, playing Siena to a scoreless draw on Aug. 28 before recording its first victory Aug. 30 against Loyola, 2-0. It is the Big Red's best start to a season since it won its first four games in 2005. … Excluding the results against Cornell, the cumulative record of the Big Red's opponents to date is 9-5-3. … Junior midfielder Elizabeth Crowell and sophomore forward Paige DeLoach are tied for the team lead in scoring with two goals for four points apiece. Freshman Jessica Ritchie has a goal and an assist for three points, and freshman forward Carolyn Ruoff and senior midfielder Amanda Gaggioli have scored the Big Red's other goals on the season.
 
STINGY START
For the first time in program history, the Big Red has not conceded a goal in its first four games. Of the 335 NCAA Division I programs across the country, Cornell is one of just four that has yet to be scored upon this season — the others are ninth-ranked Auburn (6-0), 19th-ranked Rutgers (6-0) and 22nd-ranked Arizona State (3-0). … Junior goalkeeper Kelsey Tierney has played every minute behind a stellar back line, and she wasn't even called upon to make her first save of the season until 185 minutes, 25 seconds of game time had elapsed. For her efforts, Tierney was named the Ivy League Player of the Week on Monday, then was tabbed as the lone goalkeeper on TopDrawerSoccer's Team of the Week on Wednesday. Tierney now has 10 career shutouts, which moves her up to a tie for fifth on the program's career list with Marybeth Bell (1995-96). She also ranks seventh in all-time victories (13) and sixth in goals-against average (1.29).
 
TOPS IN THE TOURNEY
The Big Red placed four players on the all-tournament team for last weekend's Alumni Classic, hosted by St. Bonaventure. Freshman forward Carolyn Ruoff scored her first collegiate goal, junior Elizabeth Crowell scored goals in both games, junior goalkeeper Kelsey Tierney made five saves and senior defender Charlotte Tate was a key part of both shutout victories.

LOOKING BACK
What a difference one win makes. With Brenna Mockler looping a shoot from 20 yards into the net for a 1-0 victory over Dartmouth in the 2014 season finale, the Big Red won its eighth game in a season and its second game within Ivy League play for the first time since 2002. The program is now three years into its transformation under head coach Patrick Farmer, who has amassed 280 victories over his career. The team started strong in 2014 with wins in five of its first six games. Among the victories in that stretch was a 3-2 come-from-behind win against Buffalo, which then went on a 14-game unbeaten streak and MAC championship. … Junior Elizabeth Crowell led the team with six goals and 14 points, the latter of which was one better than senior Caroline Growney. Both earned All-Ivy Honorable Mention, as did senior defender Charlotte Tate. … Cornell is seeking its first winning season in 13 years.
 
HEAD COACH PATRICK FARMER
Now in his 23rd season as a head coach in the NCAA, Patrick Farmer is in his fourth season as the Cornell women's soccer program's fifth head coach. Farmer came to the Big Red via the University of Wisconsin, where he served as an assistant coach with the Badgers' women's soccer team for three years. Prior to his stint at Wisconsin, Farmer has amassed a 261-97-40 record at Ithaca College, Penn State, Tennessee Tech and Syracuse. He also served as a head coach at the professional level for two seasons, heading the New York Power of the Women's United Soccer Association. Dwight Hornibrook is in his fourth season as an assistant coach after serving as the head coach of SUNY Cortland men's soccer for eight years, and 2012 D3Soccer.com Goalkeeper of the Year Becca Salant has joined the staff for the 2015 campaign.
 
A CALL TO ARMBANDS
Senior defender Charlotte Tate and senior midfielder Shanay Fischer are the Big Red's co-captains this season. It's just the third time in the last nine years that the Big Red has had fewer than three captains, with 2014 (Sydney Cetrullo and Claire MacManus), 2011 (Abigail Apistolas and Sidra Bonner) and 2009 (Katie Hayes and Lena Russomagno) being the other occurrences in that span. Fischer is in her third season with the Big Red after starting her collegiate career at Saint Peter's, and Tate is a four-year starter who earned All-Ivy League honorable mention in 2014.
 
YOUTH IS SERVED
The Big Red is carrying a roster of 28 players this season, but only four are seniors. There are also eight juniors, nine sophomores and seven freshmen on the roster. Of Cornell's 127 points over the last two seasons, 99 were produced by players who are still on the team, and 81 were produced by underclassmen.

NATIONAL APPEAL
The Big Red has 11 different states and the District of Columbia represented on the team roster, with its home state of New York claiming seven players. Cornell has five players that hail from California, three each from Illinois and Ohio, two each from Maryland and Oregon, and single representatives from Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Texas.
 
ABOUT SYRACUSE
The Orange is 2-4, coming off a pair of 1-0 losses at home against 20th-ranked Connecticut last Thursday and reigning Mid-American Conference champion Buffalo on Sunday. Syracuse's victories this season have come against Massachusetts (6-0 on Aug. 21) and Albany (2-1 on Aug. 30). The Orange was 5-10-4 overall last season and 2-7-1 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. … Graduate student Alexis Koval leads the team in scoring with two goals and three assists for seven points. Junior forward Stephanie Skilton has two goals and four points, which is tied for second on the team in scoring with senior Maya Pitts' one goal and two assists. Sophomores Alex Lamontagne, Sheridan Street and Eva Gordon have SU's other goals. … Sophomore Courtney Brosnan (2-4, 0.81 goals-against average, .833 save percentage, one shutout) has been the only goalkeeper to see game action to date. … Friday's game at SU Soccer Stadium is Military Appreciation Day.
 
THE SERIES WITH SYRACUSE
The Big Red will be seeking its first-ever victory against the Orange, with Syracuse holding a 7-0-1 lead in the all-time series after the teams' last meeting Oct. 13, 2004. The lone draw in the series was scoreless in 2002.
 
ABOUT ST. BONAVENTURE
The Bonnies enter their Friday night game at Niagara with a 2-2-2 record, including a 2-0 victory over defending Mid-Atlantic Conference Buffalo on Sept. 1. Bona then dropped a 2-1 decision against Akron last Friday on a 90th-minute goal and rebounded with a 3-2 victory over Cleveland State on Sunday during the Alumni Classic. … Senior forward Abby Maiello leads the team in scoring with four goals and an assist for nine points. Senior forward Lauren Hill has two goals for four points, which is tied for second on the team with sophomore forward Danielle Vis with her one goal and two assists. Senior defender Stephanie Jenkins and freshman forward Jessica Scruggs have the Bonnies' other two goals. … Sophomore Beth Moore (1-1-2, 1.00 goals-against average, .815 save percentage, one shutout) has been the team's primary goalkeeper, though senior Christina Sarokon (0-1, 2.11, .769) has also appeared twice.
 
THE SERIES WITH SAINT BONAVENTURE
The Big Red has a 9-4-1 lead in the all-time series with the Bonnies, though the Bonnies claimed a 3-2 victory when the teams met Oct. 13, 2014 at Marra Athletic Complex. While Bona hasn't played Cornell at Berman Field since 2008, the Bonnies did play two games in Ithaca last season during the Big Red Shootout — a 1-0 loss to Temple and a 2-0 victory over Virginia Military Institute.

UP NEXT
The Big Red makes its only non-league trip out of the Empire State for a 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 17 contest at Seton Hall. Cornell then returns home for a 4 p.m. showdown with Binghamton on Sunday, Sept. 20 before kicking off Ivy League play at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25 with a game against Columbia at Berman Field.