Vermont Green FC women’s team always knew they could be one of the last two teams standing in the USL W even in its debut season. The Green relied on their contingent of Boston College players which includes starters Olivia Shippee, Emily Mara, Sophie Reale, and Tess Barrett in the national semifinals.
That quartet did the heavy leg work as Vermont Green punched its ticket to the USL W national final with a 1-0 win over Asheville City SC on Saturday, July 11 in front of a sold-out Virtue Field. The USL W final will take place on Saturday, July 18.
“From the beginning, we knew this team was going to be very strong,” Mara said. “We didn’t want it to end … and wanted to keep winning to stay together.”
The teams played to a draw in the first half with both goalies, Shippee and Asheville’s Lillian Heaslet, swarming up every loose ball. The tide turned for the Green in the second half. Shippee and Mara both raved postgame about how the Green is a second half team and it showed on the field in the club’s biggest game to date.
“That locker room was buzzing at halftime ready to get the win,” Shippee said.
Early in the second half, Emily Mara provided the offensive fireworks. Mara received the ball in front of the on-field seats weaved her way through multiple Asheville defenders. She fired a shot through traffic and the ball sailed past Asheville’s goalie for the game’s first score.
Mara has been a force in the playoffs scoring her third goal in three games for Vermont.
Mara’s goal was all the offense Vermont Green (9-0-4) needed to extend the team’s season to the final week in its debut year. The women’s team’s success comes off the backs of the men’s team capturing the 2025 USL League 2 title. (The Vermont Green men’s team will be hosting playoff games on July 17 and 19.)
“The players we recruited are here because they want to bleed green and play for the badge,” Green head coach Abby Carchio said.
Vermont Green mission is all about attracting the top players in the country and with Boston College the closest Power 4 team, it was an easy decision for six Boston College players to spend their summer with the Green. That chemistry as college teammates has translated to the success of the Green.
“Our core BC kids, we work so well off each other and we are trying to build that engine around us and incorporate everyone else,” Shippee said. “Me and Emily Mara and me and Tess Barrett are all on a string, we know where we are at all times.”
Behind the Boston College contingent, the women’s team is playing their best soccer at the right time. Shippee and the rest of the backline have not conceded a goal since June 22, a four-game stretch.
The women have outscored opponents 9-0 over the last four games. Additionally, Shippee made a crucial save in the final seconds of regular time jumping up to a catch a ball on Asheville City’s last corner kick of the game.
When the whistle blew, the Green got to celebrate on Virtue Field one last time with many of the players jumping up into the supporters section singing chants. Whatever the result of the USL W Final, the women’s team’s inaugural season has been a smashing success.
“This isn’t going to be the last you hear of Vermont Green,” Carchio said.
Contact Judith Altneu at JAltneu@usatodayco.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter: @Judith_Altneu.
This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Vermont Green FC women’s team advances to USL W final in debut season
