2013 proved to be another successful season for the Emory Women’s Soccer Team, as the squad matched the second highest win total in the program’s history with a 16-4-1 record, and qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships for the fourth-consecutive season.

Emory received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, hosting the first two rounds at the Woodruff P.E. Center and earning wins over Piedmont College and 17^th-ranked Lynchburg College to advance to the Round of 16 for the fourth-straight year and the 10^th time in the program’s history.  The Eagles defeated Piedmont 6-1 in the first round, marking the largest scoring output in a single NCAA Tournament game in the program’s history, led by a three-goal performance from junior Emily Feldman, the first postseason ‘hat trick’ ever recorded by an Eagle.  The Eagles went on to come back from a one-goal deficit against Lynchburg in the second round the next day, beating the Hornets 2-1 behind a long-distance goal from junior Jennifer Grant and a penalty kick goal from senior Clare Mullins, both in the first half of the game.

However, the Eagles season would come to an end in the next round, as Emory fell 1-0 in the second overtime period against Wheaton College (Ill.), ranked fourth in Division III at the time, in San Antonio, Texas.

The Eagles’ postseason run came after a successful regular season campaign, which the team ended on a seven-game winning streak.  The Eagles only regular season losses to Division III opponents came against Washington University (Mo.) and Ithaca College, ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, in the final National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll.  Emory ended the campaign as the 12^th-ranked squad in both the NSCAA and D3Soccer.com polls.

Emory finished second in the University Athletic Association (UAA) during the 2013 season, matching the highest win total in conference play in the program’s history with a 6-1-0 mark.  After losing the conference opener 1-0 to Washington, the Eagles bounced back to win each of their next six UAA games, including a 2-0 win at the University of Chicago and a 3-0 win against then 23^rd-ranked Carnegie Mellon University.  Senior defender Lauren Gorodetsky was named the UAA’s Most Valuable Player for the third-straight season, become the first three-time women’s soccer MVP in the conference’s history. 

Gorodetsky also claimed NSCAA All-America honors for the fourth-consecutive season, becoming just the second Division III defender and the eighth Division III player overall to be named a four-time all-American by the organization.  In the history of NCAA Women’s Soccer (Divisions I, II and III), she is one of just 45 four-time all-Americans.

As has often been the case during Head Coach Sue Patberg’s eight seasons with the team, the Eagles’ strength in 2013 was its defense.  Led by Gorodetsky, along with all-UAA First Team selection Lauren Drosick, UAA Rookie of the Year Hannah Meyer, and all-conference honorable mention midfielder Clare Mullins, the Eagles finished the season with a .557 goals-against average, the 20^th-best mark in Division III.  Emory limited its opponents to 8.95 shots and 3.3 shots on goal per game during the year, while recording 10 shutouts, including five in a row from October 20^th through November 9^th.  Emory also benefitted from the emergence of Liz Arnold as the team’s starting goalkeeper, as the sophomore earned an honorable mention to the all-UAA team after ending the year ranked 15^th in Division III with a 0.464 goals-against average and 43^rd with a 0.857 save percentage.

Emory’s offense was spread among a number of players during the season, as the team matched a program record with eight different scorers registering at least 10 points.  Returning from a season-ending injury in 2012, junior Karina Rodriguez led all Eagles in 2013 with six goals, seven assists and 19 total points, including a ‘hat trick’ against Agnes Scott College on October 23^rd, the first by an Eagle in over six years.  Five other Eagles – junior Charlotte Butker, senior Kelly Costopoulos, sophomore Jordan Morell, freshman Cristina Ramirez and junior Emily Feldman – added five goals apiece, as the Eagles totaled 48 scoring strikes during the campaign.  Emory’s 2.29 goals per game was the 90^th-best mark among the 447 ranked Division III teams in 2013. 

The end of the 2013 season also marked the final campaign for the most successful class in the program’s history.  Seniors Samantha Bleiweis, Caitlin Clark, Costopoulos, Drosick, Gorodetsky, Mullins and Veronica Romero – each a four-year member of the team – combined to go 64-9-14 during their careers as Eagles, good for an .816 winning percentage, the best four-year mark in the program’s history.
 
Emory players earned the following honors during the 2013 season: 

2013 Emory Team Leaders:

Emory in the Final NCAA D-III Statistical Rankings (out of 447 ranked teams):

Eagles in the Final NCAA D-III Individual Statistical Rankings (top-150 players ranked in each category):