Friday, September 6, 2024 / Sunday, September 8, 2024
Rider Broncs (2-0) vs. Bellarmine Knights (1-1)/Lehigh Mountain Hawks (1-1)
Location:  Ben Cohen Field
Time: 4:00 PM / 12:00 PM
Live Stats:  GoBroncs.com
Broadcast: BroncVision (Friday) / ESPN+ (Sunday)
 
What You Need To Know
- The Broncs will extend their homestand with games at Ben Cohen Field Friday and Sunday.
- The Broncs were picked to finish fourth in the NEC Preseason Coaches Poll. Rider finished in a three-way tie for third in the NEC last season under then first-year head coach Alicia Govannicci.
- Rider won its fifth-straight season opener last Friday, defeating Colgate 5-1. The Broncs previously defeated Central Michigan, 4-3, last season, Bellarmine, 4-1, in 2022, La Salle, 3-2, in overtime in 2021, and LIU, 1-0, in the spring 2021 campaign.
- The Broncs are off to a 2-0 start to the 2024 campaign, outscoring opponents 12-1 across the pair of games and outshooting their opponents 77-6.
-  Megan Normile (New Egypt, NJ/New Egypt) earned NEC Offensive Player of the Week honors after scoring four goals, currently tied for most in the country, and adding an assist in the opening week of the season. Olivia Machiavelli (Madrid, Spain/International School Sek el Castillo) was named NEC Rookie of the Week after scoring twice and adding an assist during the opening seven days.
- Rider returns a pair of First-Team All-NEC performers from a season ago in Valeria Perales (Madrid, Spain/IES Mirasierra) and Lyric Scott (Union, NJ/Union).
- Perales led the Broncs in goals and points for the second-straight season, finishing the year with eight goals and 19 points. Scott was a key member of the Broncs midfield, scoring a pair of goals and helping anchor the Rider defensive penalty corner unit.
- Other key returners in the field include Semra Said (Mannheim, Germany/Feudenheim Gymnasium Mannheim), Normile, Emma Bonshak (Whitehall, PA/Whitehall), Ang Borisow (Harleysville, PA/Souderton), and Kate Mahmud (Downingtown, PA/Downingtown West).
- Jade Regnart (Cape Town, South Africa/Fairmont) has taken control of the goalie position early in the season. The freshman earned her first career shutout in the win Sunday over Mercyhurst.
- Rider's roster features players from four different countries, Germany, South Africa, Spain, and the United States.
- Rider leads the all-time series over Bellarmine 2-0, winning in both 2021 and 2022.
- The Broncs and Mountain Hawks will meet for the 42^nd time when they play Sunday with the all-time series tied 20-20-1.
- The Knights went 1-1 to open the season, splitting a pair of overtime games. Anna Crump has assisted on all three goals Bellarmine has scored this season.
- The Mountain Hawks are 1-1 entering their Friday matchup against Yale. Lehigh defeated fellow NEC opponent, Wagner, 3-2 Sunday, with Eleni Kountroubis breaking a 2-2 tie with just over nine minutes to play in the contest.