VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton women's soccer welcomes longtime SUNY rival UAlbany to campus Thursday when the first-place Bearcats (3-4-3, 2-0 America East) put their three-game unbeaten streak on the line against the Great Danes (3-5-1, 0-1-1 AE). Kick-off is set for 6:07 p.m. at the Bearcats Sports Complex and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+. Admission is free, part of the athletics department's "Experience the Bearcats" initiative. 

The Bearcats have started conference play with back-to-back wins over UNH (1-0) and UMBC (3-1). Dating back to last season and including the tournament, BU has been beaten just once in its last 12 games against conference foes (8-1-3). On Sunday, Brooke Herber (43'), Lauren Clark (45') and Paige Luke (82') each scored to lift the Bearcats to a home win over UMBC. Graduate midfielder Olivia McKnight tallied two assists (her third and fourth of the season) and twin sister Victoria McKnight slid a perfect ball to Luke for the late insurance goal. 

The Great Danes are on a three-game winless stretch after posting back-to-back victories over Rider and Fordham. Albany began conference play with a 1-1 road tie at NJIT and then dropped a 3-0 home game to unbeaten Maine on Sunday. The team has been outscored 7-1 in its last three games. Albany was picked to finish fifth (of nine) in the America East Preseason Poll after reaching the semifinals last season. The team returns senior all-conference midfielder Olivia Piraino but graduated two other all-conference selections from a 7-8-5 squad that placed fifth in the America East (3-2-3). Senior keeper Megan Hart has a 2.13 goals against average.  

Binghamton leads the all-time series 12-8-4 but the matchup is deadlocked 4-4-3 in Vestal. After BU posted a 3-1 regular season win last October in Albany, the teams met in the America East semifinals at the Bearcats Sports Complex and played to a 3-3 tie before BU prevailed 3-2 in PKs to advance to the title game.