CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Lesley University women’s soccer program announced its 2010 fall schedule today which includes a full slates of 20 NCAA matches.  Along with their New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) schedule, the Lynx will expand their non-conference competition nationwide with matches against teams from Wisconsin, New York, and Illinois. 

Fourth year head coach Paul Vasconcelos has molded an exciting schedule that will prepare the Lynx as they look to defend their NECC Championship and make their first NCAA Tournament appearance with an automatic qualifying bid. 

“The staff and I are very happy with the 2010 fall schedule,” said Vasconcelos.  “We were able to add some programs that played in post-season tournaments last year to our schedule.  We feel it would benefit us tremendously to play them prior to our own conference tournament.”

Lesley will play in nine non-conference matches to start the 2010 season including two matches against powerhouse programs Wheaton College and fellow Cambridge school MIT.  Both teams made the 2009 NCAA Tournament in 2009.  The Lynx will host their regular season opener against The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC) opponent Eastern Nazarene College on Wednesday, September 1.

On October 2, the women’s soccer team kicks off their in-conference schedule on the road against NECC rival Elms College, who finished second to the Lynx in the NECC regular season standings in 2009 and defeated Lesley in overtime to take the 2008 NECC Championship. 

The Lynx will also take on foe Brandeis University on October 26 in a late season non-conference match up.  Brandeis reached the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championship match last season.  It will be the first meeting between these two programs.

On October 30, Lesley wraps up their NECC regular season schedule in Brookline against Newbury College and the conference playoffs will begin on November 2 with the championship match slated for November 6.