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Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. – The second-seeded Molloy women's soccer team travels to Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. to take on the top-seeded Mercy Mavericks in the ECC Final Saturday, November 7 at 1:00 p.m.
 
About the Lions:

• Molloy finished the regular season 4-1-2 in ECC play and enter the final 7-6-3 overall.
• The Lions have gone 4-0-2 in their last six games played, remaining unbeaten since September 26 at D'Youville.
• The squad will appear in the ECC title game for the fifth time in the last seven seasons, looking to capture their fifth title in that time.
• The cardinal and white have surrendered just four goals against ECC opponents, the fewest in the league. Molloy has allowed 17 goals overall, ranking third in the conference.
• Molloy garnered seven All-Conference selections, led by junior Meghan Wetzel who was named the Tri-Defensive Player of the Year and All-ECC First Team selection. Joining Wetzel on the first team were juniors Bella Juliano and Jana Strait. Senior Elyse Muñoz and freshman Ysabelle Perillo earned Second Team honors, while senior Madison Keenan and sophomore Gabrielle Justiniano were named to the Third Team.
• Wetzel became the third player in program history to be named Defensive Player of the Year marking the third time in the last four seasons that a Lion has received the distinction. The junior enters the final leading all field players with 1,444 minutes on the pitch, playing the full 90 minutes or more in 15 of 16 games.
• Juliano and Strait have accounted for 41 percent of the team's total points, totaling 33 between the pair. Strait leads the squad with eight goals, fourth in the ECC, handing out one assist while Juliano has scored five goals and has dished out a team-high six assists, tied for second in the league.
• In goal, Muñoz ranks third in the conference with 70 saves and five shutouts and fifth in the league in save percentage at .805. In conference play, Muñoz leads the ECC with a .897 save percentage and 0.50 goals against average while surrendering a league-low four goals allowed.
• Perillo has been a spark for the Molloy offense, ranking second on the squad with four assists and third with four goals and 12 points. Perillo has been one of the conference's most accurate forwards, putting 18 of her 30 shots on target for a 60 percent shots-on-goal percentage.
• This will be the fourth ECC title game that the Lions will appear in on the road, holding a 2-1 record in ECC Championship games as the visitor.

Against Mercy:

• When they kick off on Saturday, the two programs would have met four weeks earlier on October 10 in Rockville Centre where the Lions earned a 2-1 victory.
• In the contest, the Lions used to two first half goals from Strait and Juliano to collect the victory.
• In goal, Muñoz made five saves, with one coming in the final seconds of the contest to secure the victory.

Recapping the Semifinal:

• The second-seeded Lions hosted third-seeded Queens Saturday, October 31 in a double-overtime thriller.
• Molloy took an early 1-0 lead following a goal from junior Emily Scali in the 27^th minute. After a gritty and physical beginning to the second half, Queens converted on a corner kick in the 74^th minute to knot the contest at one to force overtime.
• The two overtimes only saw one shot, which found of the back of the net for Molloy in double-overtime. Juliano connected with Strait on a corner kick that resulted in a game-winning header to send the Lions to the title game. 

Playoff History Against the Mavericks:

• Since 2019, the two programs will meet for the sixth time in postseason play, with Saturday's meeting marking the third time they will get together in the ECC Final.
• Molloy holds a 1-1 record in the three meetings in the championship game.
• In their most recent matchup for the crown, the Lions and Mavericks battled in the 2022 title match into penalty-kicks where Mercy topped Molloy, 5-4, in PKs in Dobbs Ferry on November 5.
• Molloy and Mercy met in the 2021 title game in Rockville Centre, playing into double-overtime where the cardinal and white clinched the crown, 1-0, November 14.
• The Lions are 2-3 all-time against Mercy in postseason action.

Scouting the Mavericks:

• Mercy concluded the regular season 6-1 in East Coast Conference play and enter the contest 11-3-4 overall.
• The top-seeded Mavericks hosted fourth-seeded Roberts Wesleyan in the ECC Semifinal Saturday, October 31. Mercy defeated Roberts, 1-0, to advance to the final.
• Mercy sport nine seven-All-Conference selections, led by four major award winners. Co-Offensive Player of the Year and Co-Rookie of the Year Astrid Borglund, Tri-Defensive Player of the Year Sarah Lill Hanks, and Coach of the Year Jack Nicholson. Borglund sits atop the league with 12 goals, 27 points, and six game-winning goals.
• In goal, Anneliese Becker comes into the game with a 8-2-1 record, making 29 saves with a 0.80 goals against average and a .784 save percentage appearing in 11 contests, making 10 starts.
• Molloy is 16-12-4 all-time against Mercy.