Photo courtesy University of Pennsylvania Soccer

With Union-land still reeling from the shock firing of Jim Curtin, let’s take a minute to distract ourselves from the uncertain future and center our minds by focusing on some college soccer.

Here are the top storylines to follow in the Philadelphia (and Penn State) college soccer landscape as the NCAA post-season begins. 

Key Points of Interest:

• Union draftee Stas Korzeniowski has been a top contributor to #12 ranked UPenn
• Temple look to play “dark horse” after unlikely post-season qualification
• High powered Drexel offense could break CAA drought
• Penn State Women are at risk of missing their first NCAA Tournament since 1994

The Broad strokes

The Quakers’ impressive 12W – 2L – 1T record sees them ranked #12 nationally. Union draftee Stas Korzeniowski has continued to bag goals for U-Penn. They are perfect in Ivy League conference play (6 W) with the regular season final coming away to second-placed Princeton this Saturday, November 9 at 2 p.m. A win would see the Quakers ‘three-peat’ the regular season title and will have them eyeing the National Tournament.

Temple (5W – 6L – 5T) battled back from a slow start, going undefeated over their last 5 conference games (3 W – 2 T) to qualify for the American Athletic Conference Championship. The Owls will face off with 3rd placed AAC side Charlotte this Friday, November 8 at 7 p.m. 

Drexel (9W – 5L – 2T) lost 3 out of their first 4 games but locked in over the remaining 12, winning 8. The Dragons finished second in the Coastal Athletic Association, scoring 32 goals. Drexel begins Conference Tournament play Sunday, November 10 at 3 p.m. vs 6th seed UNC Wilmington. The Dragons are undefeated on their home turf winning 5 and drawing once. 

Penn State has amazingly qualified for every NCAA Women’s tournament between 1995-2023. That record is in serious danger this year as the Nittany Lions were bounced from the Big Ten Tournament and now need an at-large bid from the NCAA to qualify.

Into the Nitty-Gritty

UPenn

My, my, my, the Quakers have become quite the team. After a conference regular season title followed their fantastic 2022 campaign, Brian Gill has again got the Quakers playing like a well-oiled machine. With four straight wins to start 2024 and three straight Ivy League wins ahead of their regular season finale, UPenn could be poised for their best season in recent history. 

They have an iron-clad defense, only allowing 11 goals. Center backs Connor Dawson and Leo Burney have started all 15 games. Sophomore keeper Phillip Falcon III has kept 8 shutouts, tied for 3rd overall in NCAA D1. To make things even better, Philadelphia Union draft pick Stas Korzeniowski is the Quakers’ leading scorer with 11 goals on the year.

Stas, Stas, he’s our man!

The Union drafted Korzeniowski in the 2nd round of the 2024 SuperDraft, using the 53rd overall pick on the then-junior. Given the Union’s typical disregard of their draft picks, you would be forgiven for completely forgetting about Korzeniowski, especially since he opted to finish his degree/eligibility and returned to UPenn for his senior season.

Either way, Stas has built a truly impressive college resume. He currently sits at 31 goals and 17 assists across 4,155 minutes through 65 games (50 starts) in his career with the Quakers. He has a number of impressive accolades including a 2022 Second Team All-American nod.

Korzeniowski celebrates after scoring

This season he is the team’s leading scorer with 11 on the year, adding 2 assists.

Based on this article, it seems he has a good head on his shoulders. In it, he examines his journey on the team and discusses helping change the team culture for the good.

He is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Philosophy Politics & Economics (PPE) while double minoring in Consumer Psychology and Hispanic Studies, by the way.

Back to The Quakers

All things considered, UPenn has a very good chance to clinch the Ivy League regular season title this Saturday. However, Quaker fans be aware: UPenn will need to win the Ivy League Tournament to get a berth in the NCAA Championship – something they failed to do last year after clinching the regular season title.

Temple 

First the positives: Temple’s defense is strong. Through 16 games, the Owls have only conceded 17 goals. Credit should be given to goalkeepers Flannan Riley and Andrew Kempe, who each played 8 games. Kempe is preferred for AAC matchups, and holds a .85 save percentage. Defender Kemali Green’s 1,334 minutes leads the team. His play on the backline has been huge for the Owls and this was reflected in his selection to the All-Conference Second Team.

Now the negatives, Temple’s offense has struggled. Despite having 8 different goal scorers, the Owls have only managed a meager 10 goals. Their leading scorer, senior Xavier Rimpel, only has 2. Injuries to junior Rocco Haeufgloeckner have hurt the team. The versatile wingback was a key player over the last two seasons. His return has coincided with good results, starting and logging 76 minutes in the vital win at Tulsa on the final day of the regular season.

Haeufgloeckner captains Temple vs Army

Ultimately, Temple will need their defense firing on all cylinders if the Owls are to have any chance of advancing, let alone winning, the AAC. Their recent form is a good sign but serious questions linger. Head Coach Bryan Green will have a chance to lead the Owl’s to their first AAC Championship victory since 2019.

Drexel

In Head Coach David Castellanos’s first season the Dragons have performed well with a roster that has both experience (5 Graduate Students and 4 Seniors) as well as youth (10 Freshman). 

Drexel had no issues finding the back of the net, scoring 32 times in the regular season. Grad Students Dominik Bachstein (12 g/6 a) and Patrick Short (5 g/10 a) each made their presence felt and both were honored with First Team All-CAA selections. Bachstein finished near the top of all D1 scorers nationwide. Short was named as the conference’s Co-Midfielder of the Year. Omar Jallow was named to the All-Rookie team after scoring 3 goals and adding an assist as a true Freshman.

The only question is, will Drexel perform in the Conference Tournament? Over the past decade, they have not. Their lone Conference Championship came in 2013, which was also the last time the Dragons earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament. They will face-off with #6 seeded University of North Carolina Wilmington. The Dragons lost in Wilmington during the regular season, dropping a tight contest 2-1, but will have home field advantage this time. Drexel remains undefeated at Vidas Athletic Complex.

Penn State

The Nittany Lions women (12W – 6L – 3T) might be about to break a big streak. Despite a solid individual year that saw forward Kaitlyn MacBean net 14 goals, and prospective pro Jordan Fusco bag 10 assists, Penn State could miss out on the NCAA Tournament for just the second time in program history. A 1-0 victory over Minnesota in the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament was not enough, as the Nittany Lions were knocked out in the second round by #9 ranked UCLA.

Kaitlyn MacBean is surrounded by teammates after her goal

Origins of a Powerhouse

It seems almost unbelievable, but PSU has only missed one National Tournament. Part of that reason is how the program came to be. Penn State didn’t have a women’s varsity team until the 90’s. Despite the successes of the club team, the University was unwilling to grant varsity status.

After nearly 15 years of petitioning the University, including an attempted Title IX lawsuit, Penn State administration finally caved following a ‘Gender Equity Policy‘ issued by the Big Ten Conference. Following their inaugural season in 1994, the Nittany Lion women have qualified for the last 28 editions of the tournament (1995-2023), winning the National Championship in 2015.

In the Balance

Head coach Erica Dambach will be hoping that the NCAA committee will grant her team bid. They certainly have the pedigree but this year’s results might not be good enough.

The Selection Show for the Women’s College Cup will be held Monday, November 11 where their fate will be decided. It will be streamed live, for free, on NCAA.com.

Also of Note:

• La Salle men’s soccer begin their Conference Tournament this Friday, November 8 at 7:00 p.m. The #8 seeded Explorers are looking to upset #1 George Mason.
• Saint Joe’s University Women’s soccer beat Fordham 2-1 in the First Round of the Atlantic-10 Championship. The Red Hawks made it to the A-10 semifinal before being eliminated by #1 Saint Louis.

Photos courtesy of University of Penn, Temple, and Penn State soccer programs respectively