Tseros’ Down Under Success Carries into MAAC Play

By: Andrew Nowel, Sports Layout Editor

Chloe Tseros hasn’t been in the United States very long, but she is already making a name for herself between the pipes at Canisius. With MAAC play heating up as the Griffs travel the east coast, many will come to know the name of the Down Under-native freshman goalkeeper.

After growing up in Australia, Tseros found herself in Buffalo this summer, training with the Griffs as she was set to make her American collegiate debut. She had played for Pymble Ladies College located on the Upper North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. After lettering three times and winning two conference titles, Tseros was ready to make the step to soccer in the United States at the Division I level. “It’s been a hard transition, but the girls on the team and the coaching staff have been great,” Tseros said Monday. “The style of play is very different from back home, but the girls are helping to point me in the right direction.” Griffs Head Coach Ryan Louis saw the potential early on from Tseros and she won the starting job in their season opener against the Buffalo Bulls. Making nine saves in the 4–0 defeat was only a glimpse at what Tseros could do.

The rest of the non-conference schedule didn’t provide the results that the Griffs wanted as they turned their attention to MAAC play with a mark in the win column of non-conference play. Tseros had already tallied 21 saves in her first four games when the team headed to Manhattan to face the Jaspers. With the help of her teammates, Tseros only needed three saves to push her team to a 2–1 victory. A week later, the Griffs came back to the Demske to face the Merrimack Warriors, and Tseros recorded seven saves in the 4–2 victory.

With the 2–0 start in conference play, the confidence that the Griffs had felt behind the continued success of Tseros led the team into their third conference game on the road in New Jersey last weekend. At Rider University, Tseros only faced seven shot attempts while only needing to make two saves in what would end in her first collegiate shutout of her career. A 3–0 start to conference play was just as exciting as the 2–0 shutout, Tseros explained. “It felt really good to get a clean sheet. We’ve been working really hard as a team to get it. It’s gonna help us moving forward as it’s gonna give us more confidence,” she said.

The Griffs were able to aid Tseros in the shutout, as sophomore Azaria Fagan opened the scoring with her first of the season, followed by senior Lizzy Harkness scoring her first of the season and fifth of her collegiate career.

With her first collegiate shutout now in the books, Chloe Tseros looks to finish September on a high note as the Griffs host the Iona Gaels during family weekend on Saturday. Tseros has had big shoes to fill, replacing former Griff Jordan Spencer, but as Tseros climbs the leaderboards, there is no doubt that Canisius has found the missing piece in the championship puzzle.

Photo courtesy of Canisius Athletics