ANGOLA, Ind. – Head coach Gary Boughton and the Trine University women's soccer team have released their schedule for the 2024 season.
The team boasts a slate of 18 games for the 2024 schedule, including seven at home. Nine will be true road contests with the final two games taking place on a neutral field.
The Thunder open the season with the 2023 NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Tournament runners-up from Washington (Mo.) University. The second rated team in the country, according to the United Soccer Coaches poll, will host Trine on Friday, August 30. Later that same weekend the team will continue their road trip by facing Illinois Wesleyan University on Sunday, September 1.
Trine heads to Sewanee The University of the South for their two neutral games beginning on Saturday, September 7. They will face Transylvania University on the first day followed by the University of Mary-Hardin Baylor on Sunday. The Crusaders finished last season as the best team in Region X, ending the regular season 12th in the national poll, they were receiving votes after the tournament.
The final five games of the non-conference schedule all come from closer to home with three members of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) and one from each the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) and the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC). The OAC delegates represent three of the top teams in that conference from 2023, starting with a road trip to Ohio Northern University on September 11. They then host Capital University on September 14 and Otterbein University on September 28.
The NCAC champions from Denison University come to town on September 18 and the team travels to Anderson (Ind.) University on September 25.
For the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) portion of the season, the Thunder will host three of the top five teams from last year's standings. They open with fifth-placed Albion College on October 2 before taking on the defending champions from Calvin University on October 8. They will also host Adrian College, who finished fourth, on October 16 and Alma College on October 22.
On the road the team will start with a trip to the runners-up from Hope College on October 12 and then head to third-placed Kalamazoo College on October 19. They round out the season heading to St. Mary's College and The University of Olivet.
Last season saw the injury bug take a toll on the team, but still a successful finish of 8-7-5 overall while going 3-4-1 in MIAA play. The team finished sixth in the final standings before winning their opening game in the MIAA Tournament to reach the program's third straight semifinals match.