ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College women's soccer team will look to build off of its last contest – a 2-2 double-overtime tie against SUNY New Paltz – as the Soaring Eagles return home to Campus Field for a 3:00 p.m. matchup with SUNY Potsdam on Saturday, September 17th.

LAST TIME OUT: After beginning the year with an 0-3-0 mark, the Soaring Eagles responded with some early offense en route to a 2-2 double-overtime draw against SUNY New Paltz on day two of the Mount Saint Mary College Tournament. EC scored twice in the first half to pull ahead, 2-0, the first lead of the year for the Purple and Gold. The Hawks, however, would tally twice in the second half to knot the game and force overtime. Sara Kazerouni '18 and Maddie Miller '17 netted one goal apiece, and senior goalie Amanda Banner '17 made six stops for the Soaring Eagles.

OFFENSIVE OUTBURST: Elmira's offensive outburst against New Paltz was a major key to earning the draw. After being shut out by the University of Mary Washington and Montclair State University in back-to-back games, EC attempted a season-high 10 shots, seven of which were on target, also a season high. Kazerouni , Elmira's leading scorer on the season, ripped a team-high four shots on goal against the Hawks and found the back of net for the second time this year. She needs one more goal to equal her single-season career-high.

SPITZNOGLE GETS STARTING NOD: Sophomore transfer Celina Spitznogle '19 is the first newcomer on the 2016 roster to crack the starting lineup. Not only has she seen increased minutes with each game, but after coming in off of the bench in the first two contests, Spitznogle started and played the entirety of EC's two games in the Mount Saint Mary College Tournament. The 5-foot 7-inch defender came to Elmira after spending her rookie season at the College at Brockport and is making the push to become an everyday backliner. 

SCOUTING SUNY POTSDAM: The Bears are off to a roaring start to the 2016 season at 4-1-0, this after posting their first winning season since 2008 a year ago with a 9-8-1 overall record. Over its last two games, SUNY Potsdam has outscored its opposition 11-0, including a 7-0 home victory over Johnson State College on September 9th. Sophomore Brooke Falsion, who paced the Bears with 16 points as a rookie in 2015, leads the team with five goals and 10 points. The Bears' defense hasn't been too shabby either, as senior goalie Bri Thibeau boasts a 0.93 goals-against average and a pair of clean sheets.

SERIES HISTORY: Elmira has controlled the series against SUNY Potsdam in the new millennium, as the Soaring Eagles are a perfect 5-0-0 against the Bears since the start of the 2001 season. In those contests, the Purple and Gold outscored the opposition, 15-to-4. In the last matchup, which took place two seasons ago in Potsdam, New York, EC blanked the Bears 2-0. Banner earned the win with a shutout and a trio of saves in that game.

UP NEXT: The EC women begin a three-game road trip with a stop in Bradford, Pennsylvania, to face the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford in a non-conference tilt on Wednesday, September 21st, at 4:00 p.m.