Stevens Women's Soccer Draws William Paterson In First Round Of The NCAA Tournament
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (November 8, 2010) – After capturing their first-ever Empire 8 title, the Stevens Institute of Technology women’s soccer team will make its sixth appearance in the NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Championship. The Ducks, who will be making their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since the 2006 season, will square off with William Paterson University on Saturday, November 13 at 1:30 p.m. in an opening round match-up hosted by Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pa.
“We’re excited be back in the NCAA Tournament,” said head coach Jeff Parker. “We’re going to do our best to represent our conference well. We’re fortunate to be a part of such a competitive league. We’re sending two teams to the tournament and Nazareth just missed getting in (as well). We have a tough opponent in William Paterson from the New Jersey Athletic Conference and Dickinson and Centenary are teams we’ve seen before. We’re familiar with all three programs (in our pod) and we’re looking forward to the opportunity to put our best foot forward and hopefully we’ll be at our best next weekend.”
Ranked as high as 17th on the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/HendrickCars.com top-25 poll, the Ducks have enjoyed a stellar season on the Hudson, posting a 16-3-1 overall mark on the year with a 5-3-0 record against Empire 8 opponents. Stevens raced out to a 7-0-0 start in 2010– their best since the 2004 campaign.
After suffering their first loss of the season against then-No. 16 Ithaca College, the Ducks rattled off three-consecutive victories before earning a 0-0 double-overtime draw with then-No. 2 The College of New Jersey. Stevens closed out the regular season with a 4-2-0 mark to earn a berth in the Empire 8 Tournament.
The Ducks then avenged their loss to the Bombers with a 2-0 victory over Ithaca in the league semifinal – snapping the Bombers’ streak of three-straight appearances in the conference championship match – before defeating host Nazareth College 2-1 to secure their first-ever Empire 8 crown. Prior to this season, Ithaca and Nazareth had combined to win every league championship since 2002.
Six student-athletes earned all-conference honors for their efforts this season, led by freshman Bridgette Barden and junior Kathleen Schuckers. Schuckers, a first-team all-league pick, currently leads the team in points (26) on nine goals and eight assists – having scored a marker in each of the Ducks’ conference tournament matches.
Barden, also a first-team selection and the league’s Rookie of the Year, has made an immediate impact in her first full season at Castle Point, tallying 16 points on six goals and four assists. Also earning all-conference recognition were sophomore back Paige Allen, junior midfielder Sarah Lehman, senior forward Mary Chew, and junior goalkeeper Kaitlin McClymont.
Chew, a second-team honoree, scored the squad’s championship-clinching goal over Nazareth with just over 30 seconds remaining in regulation, upping her tally to a career-best eight goals this season. Lehman has also enjoyed a breakout year, recording five goals and five assists en route to second-team all-Empire 8 honors.
A staple on the Ducks’ backline since donning the Cardinal and Gray a year ago, Allen, another second-team awardee, helped solidify a Stevens defense that posted nine shutouts on the season – holding the high powered Ithaca and Nazareth offenses to just one goal in a pair of tournament games.
Rounding out the list of all-conference performers is McClymont who earned honorable mention accolades after posting a 14-3-1 mark this season with a 0.72 goals-against-average and six shutouts.
As a team Stevens currently ranks tied for first in the Empire 8 in goals (47), while sitting second in points (131), assists (37), goals against (7), and goals-against-average (0.82). Twelve Ducks have scored goals to helped power a balanced Stevens’ offense this season, with six student-athletes tallying at least five markers.
William Paterson enters its showdown with the Ducks sporting an 11-4-5 overall mark, earning an at-large bid after falling to No. 13 TCNJ, 2-0, in the NJAC Championship match. Beginning the year 0-2-1, the Pioneers reeled off a 14 match unbeaten streak, going 11-0-3 during that span to help earn a conference tournament berth.
Sophomore Michelle Marabondo (Kenvil, N.J.), a first-team all-NJAC selection, leads the Pioneers in points (33) on 13 goals and seven assists, while sophomore Laela Brock (Paramus, N.J.), a second-team all-league pick, and freshman Sheray Anthony (Cherry Hill, N.J.) have each tallied nine points on the season.
With help from NJAC Defensive Player of the year Ali Ruddy (Wayne, N.J.), freshman Alyssa Falduto (Nutley, N.J.) posted a 0.84 goals-against average, a .792 save percentage, and nine shutouts en route to 2010 NJAC Goalkeeper of the Year honors.
Having last met during the 2005 season – a 6-0 win for the Ducks – Stevens and William Paterson have split four matches since 2002, going 2-2 during that span. The Ducks boast an 8-1-1 record against common opponents this season, while the Pioneers went 4-3-2 against those same programs. In their last tournament appearance in 2006, Stevens dropped an opening round match to Worcester State College, 2-0.
With a victory over William Paterson, Stevens would advance to the second round, facing the winner of the pod’s other match-up between host Dickinson College (15-3-1) of the Centennial Conference and Centenary College (13-7-2) of the Colonial States Athletic Conference.