The Colorado College women’s soccer season is underway with a five-game nonconference stretch, to mixed results. The team finished in eighth place in 2025, but hopes are higher for the 2026 season.
In the Mountain West Conference preseason coaches poll, the Tigers sit in fifth. To back up the preseason talk, CC got off to a flying start in its first two games against the Creighton University Bluejays and Drake University Bulldogs. In the season opener against Creighton, forward Ella Ashouri ‘30 tallied two goals and an assist in her college debut, the first of which came just 81 seconds into the 3-1 win. Four days later, the Tigers rounded out a successful first week with a 1-0 win over Drake, with Ashouri scoring yet again.
Following the first 2-0-0 start for the program since 2020, CC traveled to San Antonio, Texas to face the University of Texas San Antonio (UTSA) Roadrunners, who qualified for the NCAA tournament last year. UTSA ran out 2-0 winners over the Tigers with a goal on either side of halftime. Three days later, the Tigers fell 6-0 to the University of Oklahoma Sooners in Norman, Oklahoma. The Sooners have started the season in scintillating form with a 5-0-1 record and a remarkable plus-22 goal differential. The results of the road stretch were unfortunate, but the Tigers had to return to Colorado for a rivalry matchup against the University of Denver Pioneers.
While the Goldpan Rivalry is a storied NCAA hockey rivalry, it has rarely been contested on the soccer field. It was always likely to be a close affair with CC holding a slight 5-4-2 all-time advantage over Denver going into the game. This was reflected in the match statistics, where CC registered a 12-11 shot advantage over the Pioneers. Despite this, neither team could find the back of the net. Tyler Rose ‘27 scored for the Tigers midway through the second half, although the goal was then chalked off for a handball in the buildup. With the game ending 0-0, CC ended its losing streak in its tracks and can now look ahead to the rest of nonconference play.
The Tigers’ road trip is not over yet as they are headed to South Dakota State University on Thursday, Sept. 3, before heading to the University of Minnesota afterwards. The Tigers then followed that with a pair of home games against Kansas State University and Colorado State University on Sept. 13 and 20, before starting Mountain West Conference play. While results have been mixed so far, there are promising signs for CC to build upon heading into the crucial stretch of the season.