The Rockhurst women's soccer team opens the 2022 season on Thursday night with a match at Concordia-St. Paul followed by a trip to Upper Iowa on Saturday afternoon. 
 
Head coach Greg Herdlick is looking to get back to the GLVC conference tournament after missing out last year. With the addition of the incoming freshmen, three transfers will also be on the roster for the Hawks this year. A familiar face will be returning in redshirt junior Greta Seal, a two-time All-GLVC player who had to sit out with a torn ACL last season but is now in top form and ready to take the field. 
 
"Along with Greta, Hallum Mallum, a defender/transfer from the University of Northern Iowa, will solidify our defensive core. Freshmen Anna Lantz, Elizabeth Rosenthal and Lauren O'Connor, and junior Hanna Jones (transfer from Illinois State) are all new to the program and will hopefully provide a spark to the offense," said Herdlick, who is going into his 24th season as RU's head coach.
 
The Hawks were extremely young last season and are looking to build off the experience they learned. Olivia Schwarzen, who was just a freshman last year, posted a team-high four goals and one assist. There will also be six seniors and one redshirt junior on the roster: Carter Holton, Olivia Van Belle, Greta Seal, Kaylee Freihaut, Mallory Mumby, Lauren Cousins, and Sydney Baker. who will bring leadership for the Hawks. 
 
"The first couple weeks of our season feature several teams that we haven't played in several years. While we did play Concordia-St. Paul last season, we are also playing Upper Iowa. Both opponents should be a very good test to gauge our upcoming conference season as both have quality programs and have had recent success. CSP gave us a humbling experience last season so hopefully we learned from it and prepare to match their intensity level for 90 minutes," said Herdlick.
 
The women will be on the road until September 23 when they take on Missouri S&T for their home opener.