VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton women's soccer begins a challenging two-game road swing when the Bearcats (6-5-2, 3-1 America East) face longtime rival Albany (5-7-2, 3-1-1 AE) Thursday night. The matchup between the second-place Danes and third-place Bearcats begins at 7 p.m. at Bob Ford Field and will be broadcast on ESPN+. 

The Bearcats, tied with UMass Lowell for third in the America East standings, which have separated into two distinct groups at the halfway point of the regular season. The top five teams each have either two or three wins, while the bottom four teams are all winless. The top six advance to postseason with the top four hosting a playoff game. 

Binghamton is coming off its first conference loss of the year - a 2-1 setback to UNH on Sunday. The schedule toughens up this week with the Albany game followed by the long trek to Maine for a Sunday afternoon tilt against the unbeaten Black Bears (3-0-1), who sit atop the standings. Looming ahead is a Oct. 23 meeting with 2021 regular season runnerup UMass Lowell. 

Senior forward Maya Anand still leads the conference in both goals (9) and points (21). Sophomore forward Peyton Gilmore has six goals and 14 points and owns a share of the league lead with three game-winning goals. Sophomore keeper Kaitlyn Williams has a 1.36 goals against average and a .806 save percentage (4th in AE).

Albany has gone 5-3-2 after starting the season 0-4. In conference play, the Great Danes have posted wins over UNH (2-1), UMass Lowell (1-0) and most recently, UMBC on Sunday (2-1). The were beaten by Maine (1-0) and tied Bryant (1-1). Emily Jozak leads the team with five goals. First team all-conference midfielder Olivia Piraino has three goals. Albany graduated its top two players and twin goal scorers Jasmine (9 goals) and Jada Colbert (3) and was picked to finish fifth in the preseason poll. 

Binghamton leads the all-time series 11-8-3, though Albany won two crucial games head-to-head last October. In a four-day span, the Great Danes posted a 1-0 road win that denied BU a top-four conference finish (and home playoff game) and then eliminated the Bearcats 2-0 at home in the ensuing America East quarterfinals. On the road, BU is 7-4-1 against the Great Danes, including a 2-1 win in March of 2021 (COVID spring season).     

After the Albany game, BU will head straight to Maine to face a Black Bears team that has surprised many with its unbeaten start to conference play. Picked to finish eighth in the Coaches' Preseason Poll, the Black Bears have instead opened up 7-2-3 overall, 3-0-2 in conference play to take control of the standings. Maine hasn't finished among the top-four in seven years but is in strong position heading into its Thursday night home game against UMass Lowell. The Black Bears are the only team in the conference averaging more than two goals a game and have at least one tally from 10 different players in the lineup. 

The Bearcats own a 12-5-4 lead head-to-head against Maine but the Black Bears have a win and a tie in the last two meetings. The teams played to a scoreless draw last October in Vestal.