Tartan Women’s Soccer Ranked 15th in United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll

(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) – The Carnegie Mellon University women's soccer team will start the year ranked nationally, as the Tartans received a ranking of 15 in the 2022 Preseason Top 25 Poll released by the United Soccer Coaches last week.

The Tartans finished the 2021 season in the Sectional Semifinal of the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament with a record of 13-6-1. The team played eight nationally ranked opponents in 2021 with a record of 3-5. All five losses were by one goal. The team started last year ranked fifth in the nation after playing in the national semifinal in 2019.

Carnegie Mellon returns seven members of the team who played in all 20 matches last season and two others who played in 19. Two-time All-American forward Alex Adams returns for her senior season after leading the team in goals scored and points the past two full seasons. Maria Askounis, last year's University Athletic Association (UAA) Rookie of the Year, also returns for the Tartans who have nine newcomers on the preseason roster.

The team opens the season with a road match at fifth-ranked William Smith College on Sunday, September 4 and will also play ninth-ranked Johns Hopkins University in non-conference action at home on Sunday, September 11. The schedule also includes two other non-conference opponents who played in the NCAA Tournament last year while five other UAA schools are ranked in the preseason top 25 poll.