10/2/26 
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – After a narrow defeat against a solid opponent, Lackawanna College women's soccer team will be traveling to take on Shippensburg University on Saturday, October 3^rd. Kickoff is set for 2:00pm ET at Shippensburg, PA.
 
Game Details 
Who: Lackawanna College Falcons (1-8-0) at Shippensburg University Raiders (2-6-2) 
When: Saturday, October 3^rd, 2:00pm ET  
Where: Shippensburg, PA. 
 
Video | Live Stats  
 
Video Coverage: PSAC Sports Digital Network
There is a video livestream available via the PSAC Sports Digital Network for those who cannot make the trip to Shippensburg.
 
Live stats: Shippensburg Live Stats
Live stats coverage is available and will be updated as the game goes on.
 
This is the second meeting between the two sides, as Shippensburg put the Falcons down, 6-0, back on August 29^th in the opener for Lackawanna. Shippensburg had 31 shots, 16 on target, and had nine corners in a dominating performance. You can read the full recap HERE.
  
The Falcons 
Lackawanna (1-8-0) hasn't played since falling 5-1 to then-#4 West Chester on Saturday, September 26^th, at home against the Golden Rams. West Chester scored four goals in the first half and buried the Falcons under 25 shots, 16 on target, but Lackawanna scored its second goal of the season in the 67^th minute on a long-range attempt by Alana Alayo (Cherry Hill, NJ). You can read the full recap HERE.
 
Apart from Alayo's shot and goal, Tazjeane Bird (Upper Darby, PA) had a shot for the Falcons. Goalkeeper Sophia Arvelo (Allentown, PA) had eleven saves. 
 
On the season, the Falcons have given up 43 goals and scored two in nine games this year. Lackawanna has 18 shots, 13 on target (.722), with their opponents have an eye-popping 268 shots, 130 on target (.485). The Falcons have five corner kicks, while their opponents have 96 corners this year.
 
Alayo and Kosi Nwozuzu (Queens, NY) have the only goals for the Falcons this season, with Nwozuzu's goal scored against Mansfield on September 9^th in the only win for the Falcons on the year. Aislyn Fitzgerald (Langhorne, PA) had the assist on Kosi's game winner. Isabella Caligiuri (Effort, PA) leads the team with three shots on target. Alayo and Darexy Monroy (Pleasantville, NJ) each have two shots for the Falcons this season.
 
Arvelo had made an astounding 85 saves in nine games this season, with one clean sheet to her credit. She had a season-best 17 saves against West Chester on September 5^th, and she has recorded double-digit saves in her last four matches. She had ten saves against Shippensburg in the season-opener.
 
Coach Juan Almonte was named the head women's soccer coach at Lackawanna College in July 2025, and he will be entering his second season in charge for the fall 2026 campaign. Coach Almonte came to Lackawanna after stints as a volunteer coach with both East Stroudsburg and Marywood University. Before that, he was a head coach with East Stroudsburg South HS for two seasons.
 
In his inaugural season, Almonte and his Falcons battled injuries and a shortage of players to still compete in ten matches, winning a road contest at PSU Scranton for the highlight of the season. Despite the lack of on-field success, Almonte helped coach Melanie Shumway to her second-straight All-Region XIX selection, pacing the Lackawanna College offensive attack. 
 
The Raiders 
Shippensburg (2-6-2) enters the contest after a much-needed win at Mansfield University this past Wednesday afternoon. The Raiders outshot the Mounties, 21-12, and scored two goals on either side of the halftime break. Mansfield had six shots on target, but Shippensburg held on for the clean sheet and the win, their first since beating Lackawanna back on August 29^th.
 
Shippensburg has scored 16 goals this season, while allowing 19. The Raiders have 125 shots, 61 on target, and a .488 SOG percentage. Their opposition has 148 shots, 73 on target, for a slightly better .493 this season. The Raiders' opponents have 26 corners, while Shippensburg has 49 corners on the year. 
 
Sophomore midfielder Paige Marek has three goals, two against Lackawanna and one against Mansfield this season. She has nine shots, six on target. All three of her shots against Mansfield were on target in the 4-0 win for the Raiders.
 
The Raiders have five players with two goals this season. First-year midfielder Andrea Black has a pair of goals and two assists on the season for six points in her ten games. Black has 14 shots, tied for second on the squad, and has put six of them on frame. She had one goal against Lackawanna on two shots back on August 29^th. Then she scored her second nearly a month later against Bloomsburg in a 3-2 loss to the Huskies on September 26^th. She has scored at least a point in her last three matches, and had an assist and two shots in the win against Mansfield.
 
Senior midfielder Gabrielle Walker has two goals and one assist this season for five points in her ten appearances. Walker has nine shots, six on target, and converted the only penalty for Shippensburg this season, coming against Lackawanna back on August 29^th. She had an assist in the loss to Bloomsburg last weekend, and she scored a goal against Mansfield this past Wednesday.
 
First-year midfielder Kamryn Runkle has a pair of assists and one goal in her nine appearances. Runkle has seven shots, four on target. Runkle had an assist in each of the games against West Virginia Wesleyan and Lackawanna to start the year, and she scored her first goal of the season on Wednesday at Mansfield.
 
Redshirt senior keeper Kristin Brown has started all ten games for the Raiders this season. Brown has given up 19 goals in 10 games, just over two per game this year, with 52 saves on the season. Brown earned her first clean sheet against Mansfield on Wednesday, making six saves to preserve the shutout. Brown had a season-high ten saves in a loss to Shepherd back on September 2^nd. She had nine saves in a loss to Kutztown on September 16^th. She played 45 minutes against Lackawanna and faced two shots, neither on target, in the win on August 29^th.
 
The head coach is Rob Fulton, now in his 21^st season as the head coach with the women's program and in his 23rd season overall with the Raiders. Fulton has 137 career wins in his time at Shippensburg, and he was named the 2013 PSAC and NSCAA Atlantic Region Women's Soccer Coach of the Year, winning 12 games with the Raiders and making the NCAA tournament. Under Fulton's direction, the SU women have advanced in the PSAC Tournament, qualified for the NCAA Tournament, and won a match in the NCAA Tournament – all tasks never achieved at Shippensburg until his arrival. Before becoming head coach, Fulton was an assistant coach for both the men's and women's teams for two seasons. Before arriving at Shippensburg, he spent two years as the head coach at College of the Southwest in Hobbs, New Mexico, competing in the NAIA. Fulton has been coaching soccer at the collegiate and high school levels for over 30 years.
  
Next 
Next up, the Falcons remain on the road with an away contest at Bloomsburg University, taking on the Huskies for the second time this season. Kickoff is set for 7:00pm ET in Bloomsburg at Steph Pettit Stadium on Wednesday, September 7^th. The Falcons will be home next Saturday, October 10^th, when Millersville University comes to town. Kick is set for 1:00pm ET at Schautz Stadium in Dunmore.