PREVIEW: Women's Soccer Prepares For First Round of PSAC Championship Against Millersville

The Huskies make their 10th consecutive conference tournament appearance under head coach Matt Haney.

By: Tim Freligh, Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant

Women's Soccer | 11/7/2025 2:25:00 PM

BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The No. 4-seeded Bloomsburg women's soccer team begins its postseason campaign in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship First Round inside Steph Pettit Stadium at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 8, against No. 5 seed Millersville.

The Huskies enter Saturday's contest with a record of 10-5-2 overall and a 7-5-2 conference record. Bloomsburg snapped a three-game losing skid with a 2-1 road victory over Lock Haven in the regular-season finale to regain some positive momentum. The Marauders are 7-6-3 on the year with a 6-5-3 record in conference play. Millersville had its three-match winning streak snapped in its final regular-season game with a 2-1 defeat to Shepherd.

Fans can purchase tickets with the following link through Hudl Tickets. Tickets are $12 for adults and $7 for kids K-12. PSAC students with a valid member institution I.D. receive free admission. All ticket purchases must be made via a cashless transaction.

Inside the Matchup
The Huskies have gotten the better of what has been a high-octane matchup this season. Bloomsburg overcame a 1-0 first-deficit at Millersville in the first meeting to earn a 3-2 win. The Huskies once again rallied late against the Marauders, scoring twice in the final six minutes of the match following an 84th-minute goal from Millersville to salvage a 2-1 win. Saturday's contest will be the third conference tournament meeting hosted by the Huskies, with the last result being a 1-0 win for Bloomsburg in the 2021 PSAC Championship match.

In total, the two teams have combined for eight goals across the two meetings in 2025. Shots have favored Bloomsburg, 35-22, in addition to shots on target, 17-10. The Huskies have also been successful in both contests in creating opportunities from corner kicks. Bloomsburg has the edge in the category, 14-6.

Historically, the Huskies have dominated the matchup with the Marauders. In three postseason meetings between the teams, Bloomsburg has come out on top. Going back further, the Huskies hold a record of 18-1-7 at home when taking on Millersville, with that lone victory coming on October 11, 2003. The Marauders' last win over Bloomsburg came on September 5, 2018.

Millersville returns to the PSAC Championship field for the first time since the 2021 season. The Marauders are led by a talented attack that thrives in counter-attacking situations. Junior forward Aubrey Strohecker spearheads the Millersville offense. Strohecker is tied for fifth in the PSAC and is second in the Eastern Division with 10 goals scored in 2025. The forward has a goal in each of the two games against the Huskies this season. Also playing up top is senior forward Isabel Coy. Coy has four goals and one assist to her name this year after leading the team with seven a season ago. The senior scored in the first meeting this season between the two teams at Millersville. Coy and Strohecker have combined for 34 goals and 13 assists in their careers, with four goals and one assist against Bloomsburg. Lia Francis has emerged for the Marauders late in the season, totaling five goals and two assists to this point. The sophomore midfielder was in form to close the regular season, recording three goals and an assist in her final four games. In goal for Millersville will likely be senior Sabrina Zimmerman. In two matches against the Huskies this season, Zimmerman has allowed five goals and made 12 saves.

Handcrafted By Haney
In his 11 seasons at the helm, Bloomsburg head coach Matt Haney has left his mark on the women's soccer program. Last season, Haney became the third coach in program history to eclipse 100 career wins and became the second-winningest coach for Bloomsburg women's soccer. With the team's 10th victory of the season on Wednesday, Haney tied Chuck Laudermilch for the second-most double-digit win seasons in program history. In his tenure, Haney has accumulated a 121-52-26 (.673) record entering Saturday's contest.

Haney is no stranger to the postseason in his time at Bloomsburg. The coach has now qualified for 10 consecutive PSAC Championship appearances. Haney and the Huskies have been crowned conference champions twice, in 2018 and 2021. Haney is the only coach in team history to lead the Huskies to the NCAA Elite Eight, making back-to-back appearances in 2018 and 2019.

Hitting the Mark
In a season series that has been dictated by offense, Bloomsburg will need to be at its best in the final third. In their first nine contests of the season, the Huskies scored 21 goals, averaging 2.33 per contest. In that stretch, the team went 6-1-2. In the last eight games, Bloomsburg has found the back of the net just eight times. That has led to a 4-4 stretch, with all four defeats coming against the top three seeds from the Eastern Division.

The Huskies' leading goal scorer entering the postseason is junior defender Daryn Savage (Bensalem, Pa./Archbishop Wood). Savage is having a career year on the offensive end in her first full season playing. The junior has five goals and one assist in 2025. Olivia Thompson (Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) is second on the team in points with 10 and tied for second on the team with four goals. Alexa Arrigale (Blackwood, N.J./Highland Regional), who had missed a majority of the season due to injury and has returned for Bloomsburg in its last two matches, is tied with Thompson at four goals. Anna Dalesandro (Robesonia, Pa./Conrad Weiser) is the team's leading assist getter with four on the season, coming off a two-assist performance in the regular-season finale against Lock Haven.

Overall, the Huskies have 11 players with a goal, including nine with at least two. 14 players have an assist, and eight have at least two.

Refortify
A key to successful teams under Haney has been strong defensive cores and tendencies. Through the team's first nine games, the Huskies posted five shutouts. In the eight games since, the team has registered just one. Bloomsburg has only given up more than two goals this season, a lopsided 5-1 result on the road at Shepherd. Aside from the seven goals netted by the Rams in the two games between the sides, Millersville is the only other PSAC team to score at least three goals in the scheduled conference matchups. If the Huskies look to make a deep postseason run, the team will hope to end a stretch of six consecutive matches with a goal allowed.

A key piece to improved defensive showings for the Huskies will be the play of senior goalkeeper Samantha Merklin (Effort, Pa./Pleasant Valley). The two-time All-PSAC East selection and second-team all-region nominee a season ago will be relied upon to establish a level of composure across the Bloomsburg backline. Merklin has 75 saves across 17 matches for an .824 save percentage and .99 goals against average in 2025.

Among active Division II goalkeepers, Merklin is eighth in minutes played, clocking in over 5,750 in her 66 games played over four seasons. The senior is also second among D-II shot stoppers with 377 career saves.

Numbers to Watch
A key for the Huskies will be the team's ability to slow down Strohecker. In games this season, when the forward registers a goal, the team is 5-3, compared to 2-3-3 without. When the junior records a point, the Marauders are 6-4 and 1-1-3 without. Limiting Millersville's top scoring threat while accounting for the team's other options will be vital to success on Saturday.

Bloomsburg's success in its first-round contest will rely heavily on the potency of the team's attacking efforts. The Huskies sit around the Division II average with shots on goal per game (5.71). However, the team is 212th out of 250 teams in Division II and 16th out of 17th in the PSAC in shot accuracy at .437. Bloomsburg will need to find ways to get in good goal-scoring opportunities to apply pressure on the Millersville defense.

The winner of the contest will advance to the PSAC Championship Quarterfinals to face the West No. 1 seed, Slippery Rock, at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 11.

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Players Mentioned

#2 Alexa Arrigale: F/M; 5' 6"; Senior

#13 Anna Dalesandro: M; 5' 2"; Junior

#1 Samantha Merklin: GK; 5' 9"; Senior

#23 Daryn Savage: D; 5' 8"; Junior

#19 Olivia Thompson: M/F; 5' 3"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#2 Alexa Arrigale
: 5' 6"; Senior
: F/M

#13 Anna Dalesandro
: 5' 2"; Junior
: M

#1 Samantha Merklin
: 5' 9"; Senior
: GK

#23 Daryn Savage
: 5' 8"; Junior
: D

#19 Olivia Thompson
: 5' 3"; Junior
: M/F