PITTSBURGH -- Point Park women's soccer is set for a matchup with Frostburg State in a clash of MEC North Division rivals. Opening kick is scheduled 1 p.m. at Duquesne University's Rooney Field.

LAST TIME OUT

The Pioneers (3-3-0, 3-1-0 MEC) suffered their first defeat in MEC play in a 1-0 loss to No. 23 Fairmont State. Point Park saw a three-game winning streak end with the result. Of Point Park's three losses in 2026, two have come on the road against ranked opponents, with the first being a 1-0 loss at then-No. 22 Ashland on Aug. 29.

The Falcons outshot Point Park 22-5, including an 8-3 edge in shots on goal. Julia Rusiecki led the team with three shots, and she was one of three Pioneers to tally an attempt on net with Maria Gomez and Rebecca Pihlgren being the others.

Nicole Kuchinski saw her shutout streak end on Wednesday, but she did make six saves in the effort, which ties a season high.

CONFERENCE COMPETITION

With a 3-0 record in conference play, Point Park sits in the third spot in the MEC North Division with 9 points, just a point behind Fairmont State and Frostburg State.

Point Park's 0.67 team goals-against average is third-best in the MEC, trailing only Fairmont State (0.50) and Frostburg State (0.33). The Pioneers average margin of +0.16 goals per game is fourth in the conference.

WELCOME TO MOE'S!

Rebecca Pihlgren was named the Moe's Southwest Grill Pioneer Women's Athlete of the Month on Sept. 10. Pihlgren was named MEC Women's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 7 after her heroics in the match against Wheeling. The award marks the second time Pihlgren, the reigning MEC Freshman of the Year and 2025 First Team All-MEC nod, has been named MEC Offensive Player of the Week, as she received the honor last year on Oct. 20.

Philgren is tied for fourth in the conference in goals and is sixth in points per game. She sits in third place in shots on goal and is 10th in shots. 

SHARE THE WEALTH

Point Park has won three of its four conference games with a goal differential of 5-1. The Pioneers have featured four different goalscorers over this stretch, with Rebecca Pihlgren scoring twice against Wheeling, Charisma Arteaga and Becca Simpkins both scoring against West Liberty and Reece Frank recording the lone tally in the win over Davis & Elkins.

SCOUTING THE BOBCATS

Frostburg State (4-1-1, 3-0-1 MEC) enters on the back of a 5-0 drubbing of West Liberty. The Bobcats tied with then-No. 16 Fairmont State last Sunday. Four different Bobcats tallied on Wednesday against WLU, with Mollie Rebuck scoring twice and Rayiah Davis, Ainsley Wilson and Jocelyn Smith all adding goals. FSU outshot the Hilltoppers 27-4, including 14-2 in shots on goal.

Davis and Rebuck have both scored three goals on the young season, tying for second in the MEC. Only Li-Lou Debaecker of Charleston has four goals on the campaign. Cassidy Paige's two goals place her in a tie for seventh in the league.

Paige is also tied for the MEC lead in assists with three. Abbey Robrecht and Ana Davis are both tied for third in the conference with their two assists. Rebuck, Davis and Paige all have 7 points on the season, placing them all in a three-way tie for third place in the MEC. 

Goalkeeper Mia Graff has appeared in all six of FSU's matches, recording four starts. Graff has yet to allow a single goal all season, and she's recorded 11 saves. Graff is the only MEC goalkeeper (minimum four games) to not allow a goal. 

STURDY AT THE BACK

Point Park is tied for the third-best team goals-against average in the MEC, only allowing 0.67 goals per match. Goalkeeper Nicole Kuchinski sits in second place in the conference with her 0.40 goals-against average and ranks third in save percentage at .913. Her 4.20 saves per game place her in seventh in the MEC.

Kuchinski has a share of the MEC lead in shutouts, tying with Reyna Dalton of West Virginia Wesleyan and Fairmont State's Olivia Johnston at 3 each. Kuchinski has only surrendered two goals all season, both coming on the road at ranked opponents (then-No. 22 Ashland and No. 23 Fairmont State).

PRESEASON POLL

Point Park was picked to place fourth in the Mountain East Conference North Division in the MEC Women's Soccer Preseason Poll. The Pioneers returned 19 players from the 2025 season, in which they qualified for the MEC Tournament, including the aforementioned Rebecca Pihlgren who was named 2025 MEC Freshman of the Year and First Team All-MEC. 

ROONEY FIELD

Point Park will play at Duquesne University's Rooney Field on Sunday. All fans are advised to park in the Forbes Garage on Duquesne's campus, the entrance to which is located on Forbes Avenue, just past the intersection of Forbes and McAnulty. Admission in the parking garage is $6.

Once inside the garage, fans are encouraged to take the stairs or elevator to the eighth level and make their way across the skywalk toward the campus. Fans can either take the sidewalk up the hill toward the Utico Pavilion or walk through the Student Union building. The entrance to the Union closest to the garage is on the second floor, and fans can take the stairs or elevator to the third floor to exit right next to the field.

More information about Rooney Field can be found here.