Army West Point Athletics
Drysdale Lands on Preseason All-Conference Team, Black Knights Picked to Finish Fourth
August 10, 2021 | Women's Soccer
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Lauren Drysdale has landed a spot on the Preseason All-League Team, highlighting the early awards for the 2021 Army West Point women's soccer team. The announcement, which was put out by the Patriot League on Tuesday morning, also shared that the program has been picked to finish fourth in the coaches' poll.
"After a COVID year, we are all looking forward to stepping back on the pitch for the season and certainly back into our Patriot League matchups," head coach Tracy Chao said. "Every preseason there are a lot of questions every team is looking to answer in a really short window, and now, it has been two years since any of us have been in this position going into a fall. What we do know is there are no easy games in the Patriot League, and our focus is not on where we're predicted to start but the process of getting to where we need to be at the end. With that said, Lauren Drysdale is just a piece of our process for this fall who certainly came off a solid spring. She is a servant leader who exhibits that on and off the field and has the quality and consistency in her game and work rate that obviously goes unnoticed."
Drysdale, who landed on the 11-player squad as a midfielder, will captain the Black Knights after garnering First Team All-League honors in the shortened 2020 campaign. The junior started all five of the team's games last season, playing the full duration in two matches. She finished the slate with one goal, a game-winner during the team's 1-0 victory over conference foe Lehigh (March 13). Drysdale is one of two all-conference players returning from last year's team, joined by Elise Urkov (Third Team).
With 154 points and four first-place votes, Navy earned the top spot in the preseason coaches' poll. Boston University (132 points) and Colgate (128 points, five first-place votes) rounded out the top three, followed by the fourth-place Black Knights (112 points).
Following a trio of exhibition matches, Army will officially kick off its 2021 slate with a road trip to California to take on San Diego State (Aug. 19) and San Diego (Aug. 22). The team's home-opener is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 26 against Marist.
Further details regarding attendance policies will be released as it is finalized. For up-to-date information, please follow Army women's soccer on Twitter and Instagram @ArmyWP_WSoccer.
2021 Patriot League Women's Soccer Preseason All-League Team
Jenna Oldham, Boston University, Sr., F
Adrienne Vaughn, Colgate, Sr., F
Ada Tempert, Loyola Maryland, Jr., F
Lauren Drysdale, Army West Point, Jr., M
Hannah Pinkus, Colgate, Sr., M
Victoria Tran, Navy, Sr., M
Ruby Diodati, Colgate, Sr. D
Lyna Schaffer, Colgate, So., D
Erin Keefe, Lehigh, Sr., D
Avery Fries, Navy, Sr., D
Paige Sim, Loyola Maryland, Jr., GK
2021 Patriot League Women's Soccer Major Preseason Awards
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Jenna Oldham, Boston University, Sr., F
Preseason Midfielder of the Year: Victoria Tran, Navy, Sr., M
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Ruby Diodati, Colgate, Sr. D
2021 Patriot League Women's Soccer Preseason Poll
Navy – 154 (14 first-place votes)
Boston University - 132
Colgate – 128 (5 first-place votes)
Army West Point – 112
Loyola Maryland – 104 (1 first-place vote)
Lehigh – 82
Lafayette – 77
Holy Cross – 46
Bucknell – 45
American – 20
"After a COVID year, we are all looking forward to stepping back on the pitch for the season and certainly back into our Patriot League matchups," head coach Tracy Chao said. "Every preseason there are a lot of questions every team is looking to answer in a really short window, and now, it has been two years since any of us have been in this position going into a fall. What we do know is there are no easy games in the Patriot League, and our focus is not on where we're predicted to start but the process of getting to where we need to be at the end. With that said, Lauren Drysdale is just a piece of our process for this fall who certainly came off a solid spring. She is a servant leader who exhibits that on and off the field and has the quality and consistency in her game and work rate that obviously goes unnoticed."
Drysdale, who landed on the 11-player squad as a midfielder, will captain the Black Knights after garnering First Team All-League honors in the shortened 2020 campaign. The junior started all five of the team's games last season, playing the full duration in two matches. She finished the slate with one goal, a game-winner during the team's 1-0 victory over conference foe Lehigh (March 13). Drysdale is one of two all-conference players returning from last year's team, joined by Elise Urkov (Third Team).
With 154 points and four first-place votes, Navy earned the top spot in the preseason coaches' poll. Boston University (132 points) and Colgate (128 points, five first-place votes) rounded out the top three, followed by the fourth-place Black Knights (112 points).
Following a trio of exhibition matches, Army will officially kick off its 2021 slate with a road trip to California to take on San Diego State (Aug. 19) and San Diego (Aug. 22). The team's home-opener is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 26 against Marist.
Further details regarding attendance policies will be released as it is finalized. For up-to-date information, please follow Army women's soccer on Twitter and Instagram @ArmyWP_WSoccer.
2021 Patriot League Women's Soccer Preseason All-League Team
Jenna Oldham, Boston University, Sr., F
Adrienne Vaughn, Colgate, Sr., F
Ada Tempert, Loyola Maryland, Jr., F
Lauren Drysdale, Army West Point, Jr., M
Hannah Pinkus, Colgate, Sr., M
Victoria Tran, Navy, Sr., M
Ruby Diodati, Colgate, Sr. D
Lyna Schaffer, Colgate, So., D
Erin Keefe, Lehigh, Sr., D
Avery Fries, Navy, Sr., D
Paige Sim, Loyola Maryland, Jr., GK
2021 Patriot League Women's Soccer Major Preseason Awards
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Jenna Oldham, Boston University, Sr., F
Preseason Midfielder of the Year: Victoria Tran, Navy, Sr., M
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Ruby Diodati, Colgate, Sr. D
2021 Patriot League Women's Soccer Preseason Poll
Navy – 154 (14 first-place votes)
Boston University - 132
Colgate – 128 (5 first-place votes)
Army West Point – 112
Loyola Maryland – 104 (1 first-place vote)
Lehigh – 82
Lafayette – 77
Holy Cross – 46
Bucknell – 45
American – 20
Players Mentioned
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