BU Women’s Soccer Gears Up for Another Deep Playoff Run
Terriers open Patriot League play Saturday vs. Navy
Members of the women’s soccer team stand for the National Anthem while hosting the University of San Francisco, August 30. The Terriers won, 3-1. Photo by Dan Koerner/BU Athletics
BU Women’s Soccer Gears Up for Another Deep Playoff Run
Terriers open Patriot League play Saturday vs. Navy
The Boston University women’s soccer team enters the 2026 season with heightened expectations. The Terriers have only lost one regular-season Patriot League game in the past two years, clinched the conference title in 2024, and fell just short of winning a consecutive title last season.
With league play set to begin on Saturday against the US Naval Academy at Nickerson Field, the Terriers are eyeing a deep playoff run once again. Second-year head coach Megan Burke says her players have learned a lot from the games they’ve played preceding conference competition.
“You get a clean slate and you move on to the next chapter when you hit conference play,” she says. “I want [the team] to really embody what it means to be tough and confident, and feel that they have learned so much through nonconference play.”
The Terriers are 3-5-1 but have shown flashes of excellence through a gauntlet of nonconference matches. Playing a tough schedule was intentional, Burke notes, as it exposes the team to different playing styles and personnel the players can learn from.
Despite dominating time of possession and consistently outshooting opponents, the Terriers have struggled to score—outside of a 5-1 thrashing of SUNY Albany in which BU recorded the most goals in a nonconference matchup since the BU team of 2003.
“We’ve done a really good job creating opportunities in the final third so far this season, and it shows what we are capable of,” Burke says. “Now it’s the execution piece, it’s gaining that confidence and that feel around the goal to be able to put the ball in the back of the net.”
Senior Kat Slott (CAS’27) is confident the team can deliver.
“We have really talented individuals, and we’re putting ourselves in really good spots. Obviously, the last moment is execution, which will come, and we keep building and keep improving.” she says.
Slott and junior Jaiden Schultz (Sargent ‘28) are key to the offense, with eight and seven points respectively. After missing her sophomore season due to injury, Schultz has hit the ground running; she was awarded Patriot League Forward of the Week in mid-August after scoring a brace (two goals) against Albany.
“It feels great to be back on the field,” Schultz says. “Getting my momentum back was a big thing throughout the summer.”
Without Giulianna Gianino (Sargent ‘26), who led Division I in assists last season and tied BU’s all-time assists record in her final year of collegiate soccer, the Terriers attack looks far different from last season. Burke says their playmaking approach is “by committee.”
“We have eight goal scorers across the board, and we don’t have one star on the team. Everyone can step up in big moments, which is really promising,” Slott says.
Leading the team in goals with four, Slott says she’s making an effort to be more of a leader in her senior season and pass down the team’s culture of “respect and relentlessness.”
A player who embodies that culture is Helene Tyburczy (ENG ’27), the reigning Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) and this year’s preseason DPOY. Burke says Tyburczy’s steadying presence in the defense is essential to the team’s success.
“Having her in that space has been really, really helpful for us defensively,” Burke says. “She’s a great communicator and leader in the back. Very direct, very organized.”
For her part, Slott believes the growing pains of a tough nonconference slate have set the Terriers up well for the run ahead.
“All of the games that we’ve played have been gritty matches, and we’ve shown great success connecting the ball, creating great opportunities,” Slott says. “We’re hungry, and we’re going to come out really strong when Patriot League play begins.”
The BU women’s soccer team hosts Navy in their Patriot League opener on Saturday, September 19, at noon on Nickerson Field. All soccer games can be streamed live on ESPN+. Admission is free for all home games.