Red Hawks women's soccer is coming back to campus hungry. Searching for their first conference tournament position since 2018, the returning players see the goal as achievable, with a unified message towards reaching the mark. 

"Success is always built on creating a supportive and positive environment," junior midfielder Rebecca Roszel (Fremont, Calif., Irvington HS) says. "We need a steady and consistent mindset… We will also need to support each other and stay focused on the task at hand. There is strength in numbers, and we need to use this to our greatest advantage. We will play our best when we're connected and confident."

Roszel was the top goal scorer for the Red Hawks last season, starting all 19 games. Although her mark was made statistically for the program, Roszel is just as focused on what else she can contribute.

"As a part of the team, my goal is to contribute to our overall success… I want to be a consistent leader on and off the field. I want to lead by example both athletically and academically and help create an environment where we hold each other to a high standard in both areas by supporting and pushing one another, not just as teammates or classmates, but as partners to life success."

"To perform best this season, our team needs to work together as one," senior goalkeeper Britt Hable (Oshkosh, Wis., Oshkosh West HS) echoes. Although the on-field benefits of team chemistry are palpable, the off-field benefits are just as important to Hable.

"This season I am most looking forward to creating new relationships with our incoming freshmen. You never know what friendship might spark and create a series of lifelong memories."

With nine new freshmen coming into the program, opportunities for new relationships are abundant. Sophomore defender Alex Siudzinski (Green Bay, Wis., Green Bay Southwest HS) also sees the new teammates as exciting additions, building on an already positive environment.

"I am looking forward to being all together again and having stronger connections on and off the field. I loved our team last year and can't wait to meet the newcomers."

Beyond the relationships, the players have been putting in the work to make sure their on-field abilities can match their cohesion. 

"Over the summer, I played with a semi-professional team in Rockford, Illinois," Roszel says of her summer training. "I also volunteered to work with the participants at the Ripon College ID Camp. I find sharing my knowledge is a good benchmark for understanding my own abilities."

For her part, Hable goes after variation in the offseason to gain an edge. 

"Despite my goalie position in season, I play both in goal and on the field in summer. I find this helps with my footwork and technical ability a lot. Playing with people who have more advanced footwork and 'moves' than myself encourages me to try these things in low-stakes environments, which helps me improve. "

Siudzinski maintains a consistent training regimen despite a busy work schedule. 

"I have been lifting twice a week with running three times a week, and soccer everyday, on top of working five days a week. It has been harder to keep up with it all, but it will be worth it."

With the offseason training and a sense of camaraderie bolstering their efforts, the women's team will look to navigate a schedule featuring some strong opposition.

 

The Red Hawks women open their season on Aug 29, taking on Wisconsin Lutheran College in an away game. Ripon dropped their last game to the Warriors in 2023, ending a six game Red Hawks win streak stretching from 2013-2018. Three of WLC's top four goal scorers in 2024 were freshmen, combining for 24 of the program's 41 goals last season as the team earned a 7-7-4 record. The WLC opener comes as the first of four consecutive Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference (NACC) opponents for Ripon, with MWC play commencing at the end of September with an away game against Illinois College.

The Lady Blues had a strong season last year out of conference, going 8-2-1 outside of the MWC, but missed the postseason tournament with a 2-4-2 in conference competition. Ripon tied Illinois College last season, scoring an equalizer in the 48th minute. The match up would see the teams focus on defensive play and time of possession, with each program taking just one shot a piece across the final 40 minutes of action.

Three days later, the Red Hawks look to avenge a narrow loss last season to Cornell College. The Rams took Ripon out 1-0 with a 77th minute goal, despite Ripon earning four more shot attempts across the contest. Cornell returns their top two goal scorers from last season, responsible for almost 80% of the team's total scoring, while adding eleven freshmen to the roster. 

The Ripon women travel to Lake Forest on Oct 14 to face off against one of the MWC regular season co-champions. The Foresters fell 1-2 in an OT thriller against Lawrence in the tournament final, after putting together a 14-3-3 overall record in 2024. Boasting the 34th best scoring offense and the 56th best defensive averages in Division III, Lake Forest defeated Ripon 6-0 in last season's match up. The Foresters hold a 8-1-1 record against the Red Hawks, with Ripon's last win against the program occurring in 2018. 

The Red Hawks take on the other defending MWC regular season co-champion, as well as the MWC tournament champions, on Nov 1. Lawrence put together a dominant 15-5-2 record in 2024, with their four Division III losses coming to teams with a combined 60-16-9 record, and the additional loss coming against BIG10 member Indiana University. Despite an even 5-5 record over the last decade between the Red Hawks and the Vikings, Lawrence has earned four straight wins over Ripon. Last season's 0-1 Red Hawks defeat was decided by a 42nd minute goal, with the Viking's strong defense proving to be the difference maker.

The MWC statistical rankings show a varied spread of offensive and defensive metrics across the programs. Ripon's offensive average of one goal per game ranked second-lowest in the MWC, while their defensive average proved stronger, with a 1.47 opponent goal per game average netting them fifth best in the category for conference teams. The defensive presence lands puts the Red Hawks' goal margin also at fifth best in the MWC, with only the top three teams earning positive margins in the category.

Lake Forest's offensive success is noted by the individual leaderboards, with three of the top five positions for goals scored last season taken by Forester players. On the other side of the ball, Hable's presence in goal solidified Ripon's efforts, with the keeper earning the third best goals against average in the MWC. The efficiency of the Red Hawks' defense is also furthered by the saves per game stat; despite Hable's strong mark for goals against, she ranked just 7th out of 8 conference goalies in saves per game, showing a Ripon defense both effective at limiting scoring opportunities and a keeper strong at shutting those few opportunities down. 
 

Head Coach Jennifer Finco enters her fourth season at the head of the program, familiar with both the changes and opportunities that present in the year-to-year cycle of a team.

"Each year the team is slightly different due to the new players on the roster, so each year is a fresh slate to continue what works, adjust what doesn't, and define our culture through our words and actions." A willingness to adjust does not negate certain standards, Finco goes on to express. "I expect our upperclassmen, and everyone, to model what it means to be a good teammate, good person, and good player."

As for what the team's expectations and alterations will look like on the field, Finco has a clear vision. 

"Our goal is to play with a sense of unity - from how we attack, defend and carry ourselves on and off the field. We will look to build off of last year and continue to move the ball, possess well and have more composure in the final third… While I look forward to seeing the contributions from our incoming players, I also will look to returners for stability, leadership and setting the example of what it means to compete in our program."

The benefit of strong team culture holds clear across the roster and the staff. 

"If we are able to play composed while down a goal or two, we have the potential to see different outcomes in many matches this season," Finco says. "It is easy to get flustered and frustrated if you go down a goal, but the difference maker will be if we can manage the physical and mental load of chasing the game while sticking to the fundamentals of how we want to play."

"We need to be okay with having goals scored on us and coming back even stronger than before," Siudzinski echoes from the player's perspective. "Last year we tried to huddle up after the goals and it seemed to help us reconnect."

With the influx of freshmen, as well as a near even split across the other grade levels, the specific make up of the group excites Finco. 

"This team will be unique because there will finally be a more even spread among how many upperclassmen and underclassmen we have. It will position us better for success to have more experienced players spread throughout the grade levels and have very high quality players spread among [them]," Finco says, citing the team leadership as crucial to this concept bearing fruit. "Our captains have done a great job showcasing their leadership so far, and I am confident they will be able to set the tone for the expectations of the group."

 

Ripon women's soccer home opener is slated for Aug 31 against Marian University; tickets for the game can be purchased at the gate. Follow the team's progress on social media @riponwomenssoccer on Instagram.