Recently in Women's Soccer Category

The 2009 Eastern Connecticut State University women's soccer team staged its year-ending team banquet Sunday afternoon at the Betty Tipton Room on the Eastern campus.

At the banquet, the team's regional and conference award-winners were cited.In photo at left are the team's Little East Conference season-ending all-conference awardwinners. Standing, from left: Lauren Hickey, Christine Lemieux, Daniela Marchitto and Sarah Swann. Kneeling in front: Taylor MacDonald and Kim Church. In back is head coach Chris D'Ambrosio. Swann was additonally honored as the conference's Offensive Player-of-the-Year, Hickey the Defensive Player-of-the-Year and Marchitto the Rookie-of-the-Year.

In photo at left, are the team's eight qualifiers  to the Little East Conference Fall All-Academic Team. Standing from left: Lauren Greeney, Lauren Hickey, Sam Konopka, Jo-Ann Merheb, and Sarah Swann. Kneeling in front: Kim Church, Stephanie Norell and Katelyn Vaughan. Church and Swann were members of the all-academic team in each of their three years of eligiblity and Hickey and Norell have qualified in both of their season of eligibility.

Eastern qualified for its fourth NCAA tournament last fall by defeating top-seeded and host Keene State College in the conference championship game and finished the season with a record of 12-6-3.

Current Eastern Connecticut State University head women's soccer coach Chris D'Ambrosio (at center in ltop photo) and former Eastern men's lacrosse coach Rick McCarthy (at center in bottom photo) were honored Sunday with induction into a Hall of Fame. D'Ambrosio was recognized by the Connecticut Girls' Soccer Coaches Assocation (CGSCA) during ceremonies as the Aqua Turf Club in Plantsville. McCarthy, who coached the first seven seasons of the Eastern men's lacrosse program from 1996 through 2002, was enshrined by the  Connecticut Lacrosse Foundation Hall of Fame at the Commons at Woolsey Hall on the campus of Yale University. Both D'Ambrosio and McCarthy are the winningest coaches in the history of their respective Eastern programs. McCarthy was inducted into the Eastern E-Club Hall of Fame in the fall of 2008. Helping D'Ambrosio celebrate his induction were Joe Erardi (far left) and Beth Regan (far right) -- two of the three previous coaches in women's soccer program history. Regan, the program founder who coached the program through the first six yeaers, currently serves as chairman of the NSCAA Region I All-America Committee, while Erardi was a founding member of the CGSCA and past president. Joining McCarthy at Yale were four of his former players. From left: Christopher Strycharz, Ryan Cavanaugh, Thierry Francois and Ryan Rose.

                Successful women's soccer coach to be enshrined January 10

Ticket information: Contact Patrick Collet at collet@coxnet

Audio.wav  (8 min., 15 sec.)

Below: Chris D'Ambrosio

WILLIMANTIC, Conn. - Chris D'Ambrosio, a winner of more than 100 matches as a head women's soccer coach on both the high school and collegiate levels, has been chosen for induction into the Connecticut Girls Soccer Coaches Association (CGSCA) Hall of Fame.

D'Ambrosio is the winningest head coach in the 24-year history of the Eastern Connecticut State University program, having compiled a 119-60-16 record (.651) over the last ten years. In an 11-year span as head coach at Coventry High School between 1987 and 1997, D'Ambrosio was 108-64-25 (.612).

The CGSCA induction ceremony is held in conjunction with the CGSCA All-State banquet and is scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 10 at noon at the Aqua Turf Club in Southington.

At Eastern, D'Ambrosio's teams have won over 65 percent of their matches, captured three Little East Conference playoff titles, and have qualified for three NCAA and three ECAC tournaments.

After serving as goalkeeper coach at Eastern for two years, D'Ambrosio was promoted to the head coaching position prior to the 2000 season. Since compiling an 8-9-1 record in his first season, D'Ambrosio has not won less than 58 percent of his matches nor less than ten matches in any of the last nine seasons. In those nine years, the Warriors are 50-8-5 in regular-season conference play -- having compiled the most regular-season conference wins of all eight LEC teams in that stretch. In that stretch, the Warriors have never finishes lower than second in the final conference regular-season standings. Since D'Ambrosio led the team to its first LEC post-season tournament title in 2003, no conference team has won more than the Warriors' three playoff championships.

D'Ambrosio is the fourth permanent head coach in program history. D'Ambrosio has won more than twice as many matches as any head coach in program history, and has coached nearly half of the program all-time total of 427 matches.

Beth Regan, who coached the Eastern women's soccer program through its first six seasons between 1986 and 1991, was a prominent member of the CGSCA throughout her successful tenure as girls' soccer coach at Tolland High School.

"It is especially rewarding to acknowledge Chris' induction into the hall of fame," said Regan. "We are not only former colleagues and competitors on the high school level, but we share history with the Eastern program, and have always been united in our passion for the game. I offer him special congratulations."

For 11 years through 1997, D'Ambrosio was the head girls's coach at his alma mater, leading Coventry to Class "S" state tournament championship game berths in both his first and last seasons and into the state semifinals twice in-between. He was named the Connecticut Coach-of-the-Year in his first season.

In 21 years as head coach at the college and high school levels, D'Ambrosio has compiled a record of 227-124-41 for a .631 winning percentage.

First-team repeater Fantl becomes first three-time selection for men

WILLIMANTIC, Conn. - Senior forward Maxim Fantl (West Hartford) has become the first player in men's soccer history to earn a spot on the National Soccer Coaches' Association of America (NSCAA) Division III all-region team as many as three times.

Above: Fantl, Boretti, Smiles

Fantl was one of three Eastern men's players honored as an All-New England West team selection by the NSCAA. Fantl was joined on the men's elite team by fellow senior co-captain Nicholas Boretti (Marshfield, MA) and by sophomore teammate Aaron Smiles (Bedford, MA). Both were first-time picks. Boretti was named second team midfield  and Smiles second-team defense

On the women's side, senior midfielder Sarah Swann (Oxford) was a third-team All-New England selection and junior defender Lauren Hickey (Southwick, MA) was voted to the fourth team. Swann, the Little East Conference Offensive Player-of-the-Year, and Hickey, the LEC Defensive Player-of-the-Year, were both honored by the NSCAA for the first time.

Fantl headlines men's team

 Fantl repeated as a first-team pick after gaining third-team honors as a sophomore in 2007. He was the only first-team selection from a public university and one of only two on the West's first or second team. Fantl repeated as the Little East Conference Offensive Player-of-the-Year this season and become the program's first four-time all-conference honoree. He was additionally recognized as the ECAC New England Division III Offensive Player-of-the-Year and a first-team All-ECAC selection.

Fantl led the Warriors in goals and points for the fourth time in his career, repeated as the Little East Conference goals champion and was second this year in the conference in points after topping that category as a junior. He set a personal season mark this year with 17 goals and matched his personal season best from a year ago with 40 points. He concluded his career ranked third all-time in program history in scoring (49-20-118).

A three-time all-conference selection, Boretti started all 22 matches this year and was second to Fantl with 20 points and eight goals. He averaged just over 80 minutes per match - the most among midfielders and fourth-most on the team. Three of his goals were game-winners - two coming in each of the team's conference tournament victories over Rhode Island College (2-0) and UMass Dartmouth (1-0).

An all-conference in both of his seasons, Smiles started all 21 matches in which he appeared this year - missing one - and led the conference this year with ten assists. Averaging just under 82 minutes per game, Smiles was the only starting returning defender this season and helped the Warriors post the lowest goals-against average (0.92) in the conference. In 43 career games, Smiles has 18 assists.

It marks the first time that as many as three Eastern players have been named to the all-region men's team in one season. First and second All-New England East and All-New England West teams were named this season, the first time that the New England region was divided into two sections. Twenty-two players were named in the West and 22 in the East.

Eastern qualified for post-season play for the third time in three years under third-year head coach Greg DeVito. The Warriors equaled the 40-year-old season record for victories with a 16-5-1 overall mark.

Swann, Hickey led offense and defense, respectively

Below: Swann, Hickey

The selections of Swann and Hickey give the Warriors ten all-region selections in as many years under head coach Chris D'Ambrosio. In addition to all-region accolades, Swann was previously named first-team All-New England by the ECAC. Both Swann and Hickey repeated as all-conference picks this year, both earning first-team honors to go along with their major awards as offensive and defensive players-of-the-year.

Swann becomes only the third all-region midfielder under D'Ambrosio, following  Pam Neff in 2000 and Jen Ferrari in 2002. This year, she led      the conference in game-winning goals (6) and was third  in points (33) and goals (14) this season. During the year, she scored both goals in a 2-1 road win over three-time defending conference champion Western Connecticut.and recorded her first career hat trick Oct. 10 in a 6-1 home win over the University of Southern Maine. She scored the only goal of the match in a win at top-seeded Keene State College that gave the Warriors the conference championship and bid to the NCAA Division III tournament.

The 5-foot-2 inch Swann's goal total this year is the sixth-highest in a season in program history and her point total equals the sixth-highest mark. She ranks in a tie for third all-time with 32 goals and 11 game-winning goals, and fifth all-time with 79 points.

A three-year starter, Hickey appeared in all 21 matches this year - starting 20 - and leading the club by averaging over 90 minutes per game. From her position in the middle of the field, Hickey directed Eastern to nine shutouts in 21 starts, five of them coming in one seven-game stretch in the second half of the season. With Hickey, the Warriors shared the conference lead in least goals allowed (20) and was second in goals-against average (0.91)

A total of 44 players were named to the all-region team: 11 players on each of the first, second, third and fourth teams.

The Eastern women finished with a 12-6-3 record and qualified for their 11th post-season tournament. They captured the conference tournament for the third time in seven years and won double-digit games for the ninth straight time under D'Ambrosio.

Fantl selected as New England Offensive Player-of-the-Year

WILLIMANTIC, Conn. - Eastern Connecticut State University's two Little East Conference Offensive Player-of-the-Year recipients in men's and women's soccer have been honored by the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) with season-ending awards.

At right: Maxim Fantl

Senior forward Maxim Fantl (West Hartford) headlined the ECAC New England Division III All-Star Team as its men's Offensive Player-of-the-Year and as a first-team all-star, while senior midfielder Sarah Swann (Oxford) was named as a first-team all-star to the women's ECAC New England Division III All-Star Team. Each was earlier named as their respective Little East Conference's men's and women's Offensive Player-of-the-Year.

It marks the first time that an Eastern soccer player has been selected for ECAC all-star honors.

Both Eastern soccer teams qualified for the NCAA tournament by winning their respective conference tournaments by 1-0 scores as the No. 2 seeds. The men downed fourth-seeded Massachusetts Dartmouth at Mansfield and the women avenged a regular-season loss to top-seeded Keene State College in the title tilt at Keene, NH..

A total of 22 players  -- 11 to the first team and 11 to the second team -- were voted to the ECAC men's and women's all-star teams. Each team was comprised of four forwards, three midfielders, three defenders and a goalkeeper. Swann was the only Little East Conference player to be named to the women's  first team, while Fantl was one of only two conference players named to the men's  first team.  

Swann led  the conference in game-winning goals (6) and was third  in points (33) and goals (14), and scored nine goals and added three assists  in seven conference matches (5-1-1 record). She scored both goals in a 2-1 road win over three-time defending conference champion Western Connecticut.and recorded her first career hat trick Oct. 10 in a 6-1 home win over the University of Southern Maine. She scored the only goal of the match in a win at top-seeded Keene State College that gave the Warriors the conference championship and bid to the NCAA Division III tournament

At left: Sarah Swann

Swann's goal total this year is the sixth-highest in a season in program history and her point total equals the sixth-highest mark. She ranks in a tie for third all-time with 32 goals and 11 game-winning goals, and fifth all-time with 79 points.

The Eastern women finished with a 12-6-3 record and qualified for their 11th post-season tournament. They captured the conference tournament for the third time in seven years and won double-digit games for the ninth straight time in ten years under head coach Chris D'Ambrosio.

Fantl repeated as the conference's Offensive Player-of-the-Year this year and his selection to the first team made him the program's first four-time all-conference pick in the 21-year history of all-conference balloting.

Fantl led the Warriors in goals and points for the fourth time in his career, repeated as the Little East Conference goals champion and was second this year in the conference in points after topping that category as a junior. He set a personal season mark this year with 17 goals and matched his personal season best from a year ago with 40 points. He concluded his career ranked third all-time in program history in scoring (49-20-118).

Eastern qualified for post-season play for the third time in three years under third-year head coach Greg DeVito. The Warriors equaled the 40-year-old season record for victories with a 16-5-1 overall mark.

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(Coach Chris D'Ambrosio)

AMHERST, Mass. - Amherst College  scored twice in 59 seconds in the opening minutes of the second half to take command of a scoreless game and went on to a 3-0 victory over women's soccer in an opening game of the NCAA Division III tournament at Hitchcock Field on the Amherst campus Saturday afternoon.

At left: Rachel Cutler battles Amherst's Kathryn Nathan.

Despite being hindered by injuries to key players entering the tournament, Eastern (12-6-3) played Amherst (13-3-1) to a scoreless opening 45 minutes. Amherst came out sharp in the second half, however, getting goals from freshmen Hannah Cooper and Kathryn Nathan less than a minute apart to take control. The Lord Jeffs added an insurance marker midway through the half and went on to its second shutout of Eastern this season in a match played in mild but rainy conditions.

With the win, Amherst advances to Sunday's 1 p.m. regional championship game against The College of New Jersey, which blanked Plattsburgh State, 2-0, in Saturday's second semfinal. The Lions are rated third in the South Atlantic Region.

The Warriors were coming off consecutive Little East Conference shutout wins to qualify for NCAA tournament play for the fourth time in program history. Amherst, which has advanced to the national quarterfinals or farther six times, had a seven-game unbeaten streak snapped in a 1-0 loss to Middlebury in the semifinals of last Saturday's New England Small College Athletic Conference tournament, but was awarded an at-large bid to its tenth NCAA tournament.

Below: Senior Taylor MacDonald outmuscles Meg Murphy of Amherst to win the ball.

The Warriors were outshot 11-3 by Amherst in the first half Saturday, but Eastern's defense had allowed the Lord Jeffs to penetrate inside the box on only a few occasions over the first 45 minutes. The Warriors did not allow an Amherst corner kick until 20 minutes remained in the first half and the first difficult save by senior keeper Kim Church (Farmington) did not occur until 18 minutes remained in the first half when she dove to the right post to haul in an Amherst bid.

Both teams had their best chances to score in the final minute of the first half. The Warriors nearly broke the scoreless tie when a shot was redirected by an Amherst defender and missed just wide right with one minute to play. The Jeffs responded with a late corner kick and got a nice shot from freshman Bridget Keller, but  Church was there to make the save with seven seconds left.

Amherst snapped the tie less than three minutes into the second half came just 2:57 into when Keller played a nice cross from the right side to the head of Cooper, who sent the ball into the side netting for her sixth score of the season.

Less than a minute later, Amherst's had a shot  blocked by the Eastern defense, but Nathan was there to clean up the rebound and hammer it past Church from the middle of the box.

Trailing 3-0, Eastern broke through  with 17 minutes to play, but Amherst sophomore keeper Allie Horwitz came up with her best save of the afternoon. Sophomore midfielder Sam Konopka (Hebron) lined up for a free kick from 20 yards out and sent a beautiful ball over a wall of Lord Jeff defenders. Her shot was headed straight for the back of the net, but Horwitz leaped up and punched the ball over the goal with her right hand for one of her nicest saves of the season.

At right: Lauren Hickey (at right) and Sarah Swann embrace following Saturday's loss.

Due to injuries, five key Eastern players saw limited or no time. Senior midfielder Sarah Swann (Oxford) and sophomore forward Lauren Greeney (Bethel) missed the match, while sophomore defender Laura Violette (Wallingford) and top freshmen playmakers Kelly Wallace (South Windsor) and Taylor Buchanan (Enfield) had their play limited. Swann, the 2009 Little East Conference Offensive Player-of-the-Year, sustained a concussion in Saturday's conference championship win over Keene State. Greeney had returned to action to see limited minutes in each of the last three games, but was unable to play against Amherst. Violette, Wallace and Buchanan all saw minutes against Amherst, but were limited by various injuries.

Freshman forward Daniela Marchitto (Orange), the LEC Rookie-of-the-Year and the team's third-leading scorer, spent most of the afternoon dueling with Amherst sophomore back Jill Kochanek as the Warriors' principle offensive target. Without her usual supporting cast, however, Marchitto had few options and was limited to one shot by Kochanek, who had had significant height and weight advantages.

Amherst College 3, Eastern Conn. 0

Eastern Conn. (12-6-3)        0 0 -- 0
Amherst (13-3-1)                0 3 -- 3

Scoring: Hannah Cooper (Bridget Keller) 47:57; Kathryn Nathan 48:55; Maureen Griffin (Kyla Woodhouse) 66:43.
Shots: E-9, A-22; Saves: E-Kim Church 7, A-Allie Horwitz 5.
Corner kicks: E-2, A-6.

Each program features three major award-winners and six all-LEC picks

Below: Maxim Fantl, repeats as top offensive player

NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. - The Little East Conference playoff champion men's and women's soccer teams have dominated the balloting for major award-winners and all-conference selections.

Each Eastern soccer team featured three major awards and six all-conference selections. The women's team, which captured its third playoff title last weekend as the No. 2 seed, had the Offensive, Defensive and Rookie-of-the-Year while the men's squad claimed the Offensive and Rookie-of-the-Year and was also named recipient of the inaugural Team Sportsmanship Award

The Eastern women's volleyball team was also represented with a first-team all-conference selection in sophomore middle hitter Kristianna Ibsen (Shelton), while the field hockey team matched the men's soccer team by earning the Team Sportsmanship Award.

Each conference coach voted in the selection for the all-conference teams and major award. Balloting is completed prior to the start of the conference tournaments.

 Swann, Hickey and Marchitto major awardees for w-soccer

Below: Sarah Swann

Senior midfielder Sarah Swann (Oxford), junior back Lauren Hickey (Southwick, MA) and freshman forward Daniela Marchitto (Orange) were recipients of major awards. The trio was joined on the all-conference first team by senior back Christine Lemieux (South Windsor). Senior goalkeeper Kim Church (Farmington) and senior forward Taylor MacDonald (Oak Bluffs, MA) were second-team selections.

Swann becomes the program's second Offensive Player-of-the-Year, while Hickey becomes the program's third Defensive Player-of-the-Year (in four years). Marchitto is the program's third Rookie-of-the-Year. All-conference balloting began with the 1990 season.

A total of 12 players were named to the all-conference first team and 12 to the second team. Prior to the 2002 season, only one player-of-the-year was selected.

Swann and Lemieux repeated first-team all-conference honors while MacDonald was a second-team selection for the third time in four years and Church a second team pick for the second straight season Hickey was a second-team selection last year.

Through the conference tournament, Swann was leading the conference in game-winning goals (6) and was second in points (33). More importantly, Swann scored nine goals and added three assists  in seven conference matches (5-1-1 record). She scored both goals in a 2-1 road win over three-time defending conference champion Western Connecticut.and recorded her first career hat trick Oct. 10 in a 6-1 home win over the University of Southern Maine. Last Saturday, she scored the only goal of the match in a win at top-seeded Keene State College that gave the Warriors the conference championship and bid to the NCAA Division III tournament Swann's goal total this year is the sixth-highest in a season in program history and her point total equals the sixth-highest mark.

A three-year starter, Hickey started 19 of the team's 20 matches this year and is the team-leader in minutes (1,841) and minutes per game (92.1). She also contributed seven points. Behind Hickey, Lemieux, Church, and junior defender Stephanie Norell (Stratford), the Warriors surrendered a conference-low 17 goals in 20 matches (0.85 per game), giving up less than two goals 16 times.

Marchitto, one of only two freshmen among the 24 all-conference and the only first-team first-year player. Marchitto is second on the team in goals (8) game-winning goals (3) and third in points (17). Only seven players in the conference managed more than Marchitto's goal total.

Lemieux was named LEC Defensive Player-of-the-Year last year, becoming the first player in program history to win that award outright. This year, she started all 19 matches in which she appeared and added four assists.

A two-year starter in goal, Church started all 20 matches this season. Nine of her starts resulted in shutouts, posting four full-match shutouts in all. In the LEC title game she stopped six shots to preserve the shutout win. Church cuttently leads the conference in goals-against averaged (0.86) and is second in shutouts and among starting keepers, is second with a .789 save percentage.

Along with Swann, and Norell, MacDonald started all 20 matches, averaging over 70 minutes per match and contributing a goal and five assists. She is also a three-time all-conference pick and two-time conference Defensive Player-of-the-Year in lacrosse.

 Both Eastern and regular-season conference champion Keene State had six all-conference selections (four first-teamers each).

Ranked in a tie for tenth in New England, Eastern (12-5-3) visits Amherst College
Saturday at 11 a.m. in its NCAA tournament opener.

Fantl program's first four-time all-conference selection

Senior forward Maxim Fantl (West Hartford) repeated as the conference's Offensive Player-of-the-Year and his selection to the first team made him the program's first four-time all-conference pick in the 21-year history of all-conference balloting.

The major award was the first of three for Eastern. Freshman back Bradley Fletcher (Middletown) became the program's fourth Rookie-of-the-Year - first since Fantl in 2006. As a team, the Warriors were selected as recipients of the inaugural Team Sportsmanship Award.

Joining Fantl on the all-conference first team was fellow senior co-captain Nicholas Boretti (Marshfield, MA) and sophomores Aaron Smiles (Bedford, MA), a back, and goalkeeper Carl Appel (West Windsor, NJ).

Second-team selections from Eastern included Fletcher and senior midfielder Chris Bourdeau (Thompson).

The all-conference selection was the third in the career of Boretti, who re-gained the first-time recognition that he was awarded as a sophomore. Smiles and Bourdeau moved up from the second-team laurels each received a year ago. Appel was named to the all-conference team for the first time.

Fantl and Boretti are the top scorers this season for Eastern, ranked third in New England and No. 20 nationally. After leading the conference in scoring as a junior, Fantl brings a conference-leading total of  40 points into post-season play, with his 17 goals one behind  Plymouth State senior Semir Mehmedovic, who took over the conference lead in an ECAC tournament season-ending loss to Daniel Webster College Wednesday. In seven regular-season conference matches, Fantl collected six goals (two of them game-winners) and 15 points and added one goal in a 2-0 LEC tournament semifinal-round victory over Rhode Island College.

Fletcher  was one of three freshman starting defenders this year, joining classmates Dan Fish (Marlborough) and Jon DeCasanova (Glastonbury) and Smiles in front of Appel. The Warriors lead the conference in goals-against average (0.92) and share the conference lead with nine shutouts and in least average goals allowed (0.95).

Fletcher has started all 21 matches to date and leads all players in total minutes (1,769) and minutes per game (104.1). Smiles has started all 20 matches in which he has appeared and leads the conference in assists, with 10. He assist total is the highest at Eastern since Alex Patino recorded 12 in 1992. Appel is the LEC leader in goals-against average (0.94), the co-leader in complete-match shutouts (5) and is second in save percentage (.814). All of Appel's shutouts came in conference competition, the final two coming in the conference tournament, when he made five saves in each.

Boretti has  scored all eight of his goals and registered 18 of his 20 points in the team's last 13 matches. In seven regular-season conference matches, he had four goals (one game-winner) and 11 points, then earned LEC playoff MVP honors by scoring the game-winning goals in victories over Rhode Island College and UMass Dartmouth. His goal against UMass Dartmouth was the only one of the game and provided the Warriors with their second title in three years.

Bourdeau has copped all-conference honors and started every possible match in each of his two seasons at Eastern after transferring from the Division II level. Two of his three goals came on the opening weekend of the season and helped account for victories over top New England tournament contenders MIT and Babson College at the Babson Invitational.

The Warriors' selection for the Team Sportsmanship Award was due in large part to its low foul and yellow card warning totals this season. In 21 games, Eastern had the least number of fouls and yellow cards of any of the conference's eight clubs. The Warriors averaged less than seven fouls per game - five fewer per game than their nearest competitor - and were assessed only six yellow cards. The yellow card total was eight less than their nearest competitior and 35 fewer than the conference leader.

Below: Kristianna Ibsen

Both Eastern and regular-season conference champion Keene State College had six all-conference selections (four first-teamers each) on the squad, which consisted of 12 first-teamers and 12 second-teamers

Having equaled the 40-year program record for wins in a season, Eastern (16-4-1) opens play in its 15th post-season tournament Saturday at Troy, N.Y. against host RPI.

Ibsen volleyball first-teamer

Ibsen was named the program's first first-team selection in three years when she was one of six players named to the first team, which represented five of the conference's eight teams. The second team also consisted of six players. Players received votes regardless of position.

Theh 5-foot-10 inch Ibsen was one of five middle hitters chosen to the first team, which was rounded out by outside hitter Kate McWhorter of regular-season and playoff champion Massachusetts Boston. The second team was comprised of three setters, two outside hitters and a middle hitter.

Through the conference playoffs, Ibsen was ranked fourth in the conference in kills per game (3.44), fifth in points per game (4.04), and sixth in attack percentage (.297). In seven regular-season conference matches, Ibsen attacked at .319 and totaled 12 blocks and 30 digs.

In 12 years of conference volleyball, Eastern has had 33 all-conference selections, four Player-of-the-Year and one Rookie-of-the-Year selections and six conference tournament Most Outstanding Player picks.

A four-time conference regular-season and seven-time LEC tournament champion, Eastern (12-20) finished sixth this season and was eliminated in the opening round of the conference tournament.

Field hockey team recognized

Despite losing all 11 of its conference matches and finishing 3-15 overall, the Warriors were the top vote-getter for the inaugural Team Sportsmanship Award.

little east conference
FALL ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS

WOMEN'S SOCCER
Lauren Hickey   Jr. B First Team
Christine Lemieux  Sr. B First Team
Daniela Marchitto  Fr. F First Team
Sarah Swann   Sr. MF First Team
Kim Church   Sr. GK Second Team
Taylor MacDonald  Sr. F Second Team

Offensive Player-of-the-Year
Sarah Swann
Defensive Player-of-the-Year
Lauren Hickey
Rookie-of-the-Year
Daniela Marchitto

MEN'S SOCCER
Carl Appel   So. GK First Team
Nicholas Boretti  Sr. MF First Team
Maxim Fantl   Sr. F First Team
Aaron Smiles   So. B First Team
Chris Bourdeau  Sr. MF Second Team
Bradley Fletcher  Fr. B Second Team

Offensive Player-of-the-Year
Maxim Fantl
Rookie-of-the-Year
Bradley Fletcher
Team Sportsmanship Award
Eastern Conn.

WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Kristianna Ibsen  So. MH First Team

FIELD HOCKEY

Team Sportsmanship Award
Eastern Conn.

In regionals, women are at Amherst and men travel to RPI

WILLIMANTIC, Conn. - The women's and men's soccer teams  will open play in their respective  2009 NCAA Division III tournaments Saturday against host institutions.

In the 63-team women's field, the Warriors will visit Amherst College (12-3-1) and will play the host Lord Jeffs at 11 a.m. at Hitchcock Field. In the 59-team men's field, the Warriors will visit RPI (13-2-2) and take on the host Engineers at 1:30 p.m. at Renwyck Field. In the other regional first-round game at Amherst in the women's tournament, The College of New Jersey faces

Plattsburgh State Saturday at 1:30 p.m.. In the other regional first-round game at RPI in the men's tournament, Williams College faces Husson University at 11 a.m.

Both  regional  tournament finals are scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m.

Both Eastern teams qualified automatically for the tournament by winning 1-0 decisions in the Little East Conference finals Saturday. The second-seeded women downed top-seeded host Keene State College and the second-seeded men eliminated visiting fourth seed Massachusetts Dartmouth.

In the women's field, New Jersey was an automatic qualifier out of the New Jersey Athletic Conference, while Amherst and Plattsburgh each received an at-large invitation. Iin the men's field, Williams was an automatic qualifier out of the New England Small College Athletic Conference, while RPI and Husson were selected on an at-large basis.

Women making fourth NCAA appearance

Below: From left: Hickey, MacDonald (background) and Church

The Eastern women (12-5-3) are making their fourth appearance in the NCAA tournament, third as the automatic qualifier from the Little East Conference. The Warriors are looking for their first NCAA victory, having dropped a 2-0 decision to Bates in their last appearance in 2005.

Eastern finished on the short end of a 2-0 home decision to Amherst Oct. 15 and is 3-8-3 all-time against the Lord Jeffs. In this week's NCAA New England Region rankings through Sunday, the Warriors were not ranked among the 12 ranked teams while Amherst is rated third. New Jersey was the third-ranked team in the South Atlantic Region and Plattsburgh was seventh in the East Region.

Amherst is the last New England team to defeat Eastern this season. Since losing to Amherst three weeks ago, Eastern has won six of seven overall, with two of the victories coming in the conference playoffs. In those six wins, the team has given up just one goal.

Under tenth-year head coach Chris D'Ambrosio, the Warriors won their third conference playoff  title Saturday and have now won at least ten matches in each of the last nine years.

Behind senior goalie Kim Church (Farmington) and starting senior defender Christine Lemieux (South Windsor), and juniors Lauren Hickey (Southwick, MA), and Stephanie Norell (Stratford), Eastern has allowed less than a goal per game and has given up more than one only four times in 20 matches. Senior Sarah Swann (Oxford) and freshmen Daniela Marchitto (Orange) and Kelly Wallace (South Windsor) are the team's top offensive threats, with senior Taylor MacDonald (Oak Bluffs, MA) and sophomore Jo-Ann Merheb (Bethel) two of the top playmakers.

Swann has a conference-leading 14 goals (six game-winners) and 33 points and has recorded at least one point in seven of the last ten matches. She scored the only goal of the match against Keene State Saturday.Wallace has four goals and a freshman-record ten assists and Marchitto has eight goals (three game-winners) and an assist. Church, the MVP of the conference playoffs, has started every match in net, with nine of them resulting in shutouts. She has a 0.86 goals-against average and .789 save percentage.

The Lord Jeffs are making their tenth NCAA appeaerance, having progressed to the national quarters or further six times, including last season.  In 16 matches this year, Amherst allowed only one team to score more than a goal, that coming in a 3-0 home loss Oct. 3 to Williams College, ranked first in the NCAA New England Region through games of Sunday.  All three of their losses are to teams ranked regionally.  Sophomore keeper Allie Horwitz ranks fifth nationally in save percentage (.911) to go along with a 0.48 goals-against average. Senior Meg Murphy, the 2008  conference Player-of-the-Year, leads a balanced aback with a team-high 16 points, junior Jackie Hirsch adding 15.

In addition to playing Amherst, Eastern played one other team which qualified for the NCAA tournament, losing 4-1 at Williams Sept. 13.

A total of ten teams from New England will participate in the tournament. Seven were automatic qualifiers and three received at-large bids.

Men in 15th post-season tournament

Eastern (16-4-1) is competing in post-season tournament play for the third time in as many years under third-year head coach Greg DeVito. It is the Warriors' second NCAA showing in the last three years, and 15th tournament appearance in program history. In DeVito's first year in 2007, Eastern won its first conference playoff title and was eliminated in its first-ever NCAA tournament game, 2-0, by Williams. Last year, the Warriors were seeded first in the ECAC New England Division III tournament and won two games before dropping a 1-0 decision to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.

Eastern is ranked ninth among 11 teams in the NCAA New England Region poll through games of Sunday. RPI  is third in the East, Williams first in New England and Husson is unranked. Eastern and RPI have never met in men's soccer.

The  1-0 win over Massachusetts Dartmouth Saturday in the conference championship game allowed the Warriors to tie the program record for victories in a season, set by the 1969 NAIA New England champions. Eastern has won eight straight overall and 11 in a row against New England opponents. In 15 of 21 matches, Eastern's opponent has scored less than two goals, with four Eastern keepers combining on a total of nine shutouts.

Below: Chris Bourdeau

Seven freshmen and sophomores have comprised the bulk of the team's starting lineup, which has been anchored by seniors Chris Bourdeau (Thompson), Nicholas Boretti (Marshfield, MA) and Maxim Fantl (West Hartford). The team's starting forwards, Fantl and Boretti have combined for more than half (25) of the team's 49 goals and have also combined for ten assists. Fantl has accumulated a conference-leading 17 goals (four game-winners) and 40 points, with Boretti adding eight goals (three game-winners) and 20 points. First-year sophomore Matt Furman (Montville) has chipped in seven goals (four game-winners) and five assists and sophomore defender Aaron Smiles (Bedford, MA) a conference-leading ten assists. For Boretti, the MVP of the conference playoffs, two of his game-winning goals came in the conference tournament.

A returning first-team All-New England Region pick, Fantl ranks third all-time at Eastern in points (49-20-118), with this year's goal total the most in a season since Jason Brasher in 1991 (no player has score more than 17 since All-America Glenn Judge had 22 in 1987). In 19 starts this year, sophomore keeper Carl Appel (West Windsor, NJ) has posted five full shutouts with a 0.94 goals-against average and .814 save percentage.

As a team, the Warriors have collected better than 100 more shots than their opponents, nearly twice as many corner kicks, and have commited half as many fouls.

Last Wednesday, Liberty League regular-season champion RPI had six-game unbeaten streak halted with a 3-2 overtime loss to Union College in the semifinal round of the league tournament. Union is the only team to have beaten RPI this year, as it also claimed a 1-0 win a month ago at Troy, NY. For the Engineers in net, first-team all-league junior keeper Alex Penny has started 16 of 17 matches with a 0.54 goals-against average and  .871 save percentage - marks which rank him among the national Top Ten. He also has nine full shutouts. Behind Penny, RPI opened its season with seven straight shutouts (6-0-1 record) and until the tournament loss to Union, had never surrendered more than one goal in a match.

The NCAA appearance is the second straight and sixth overall for RPI, which is under the direction of eighth-year head coach Adam Clinton.

While Eastern has featured an extremely young team this year, RPI has succeeded with a veteran unit as all but two of its starters are either seniors or juniors. Eight of the team's players were named to the all-league team last week.

The Warriors won two and lost one against teams which were named to the tournament. They shut out Salem State College, 3-0, at home Sept. 29 and blanked Babson College, 1-0, at Wellesley, MA Sept. 6 and lost at Montclair State University, 2-1 in double overtime, Oct. 4. All three of those teams were automatic qualifiers to the NCAA tournament.

Keene State College is the only common opponent this year between Eastern and RPI  Eastern lost at home to Keene, 4-1, Sept. 16, while RPI downed the Owls, 1-0, Oct. 14. at home.

A total of ten teams from New England will participate in the tournament. Seven were automatic qualifiers and three received at-large bids.

NCAA Division III
Women's Soccer Tournament
at Amherst, MA

Saturday, Nov. 14

EASTERN CONN. (12-5-3) vs. Amherst College (12-3-1), 11 a.m.
The College of New Jersey (14-2-1) vs. Plattsburgh State College (10-5-3)

Sunday, Nov. 15

Final, 1 p.m.

NCAA Division III
Men's Soccer Tournament
at Troy, NY

                                                     Saturday, Nov. 14

Williams College (14-2-1) vs. Husson U. (10-8-2), 11 a.m.

EASTERN CONN. (16-4-1) vs. RPI (13-2-2), 1:30 p.m.

                                                 Sunday, Nov. 15

Final, 1 p.m.

 Both teams emerge with 1-0 victories in Little East Conference title games

Audio:  Boretti.wav       Appel.wav  

 For only the third time in the 11-year history of the Little East Conference soccer championship, the men's and women's teams from the same institution have hoisted playoff championship flags in the same season.

One  Eastern soccer team performed a road upset, while the other fended off the spirited bid of an underdog visiting squad. as both Eastern teams qualified for this coming week's NCAA Division III tournament with 1-0 triumphs in the championship games of their respective 2009 tournaments.

Audio: Chris D'Ambrosio (at right), women's coach.wav

The women's team captured its third flag in the last seven seasons by upending top-seeded Keene State College, while the men corralled their second LEC playoff championship by withstanding the charge of fourth-seeded University of Massachusetts Boston.

Making the titles sweeter is the fact that neither Eastern team was operating a full efficiency, with a number of important cogs in both team's engines sidelines by either injury or sickness.
It  marks only the third time in the history of the championship that the same institution has won both championships in the same year. Eastern becomes the first institution to win both in the same year without either the men's or women's team being the No. 1 seed.

Men withstand UMass's upset bid

Utilizing only three substitutes -- two of them backup  goalkeepers -- due to sickness and injury, men's soccer persevered to win its second title in three years - both coming at home. In 2007, current assistant coach Jay Barney stopped two penalty kicks when Eastern posted its first-ever title with the shootout win over Keene State College. The teams had played 110 scoreless minutes before the Warriors prevailed in the PK session. Saturday's shutout gives the Eastern defense 200 scoreless minutes in two championship matches.

Saturday, senior co-captain Nicholas Boretti (Marshfield, MA) scored his eighth goal of the season midway through the second on assists from freshmen Cory Tobler (Portland) and Jon DeCasanova (Glastonbury) and sophomore keeper Carl Appel (West Windsor, NJ) made two standout saves in the second half for the team's second LEC title in as many championship game appearances.

DeCasanova sent a pass to the left flank to Tobler, who sent a low shot through the box to the far post, where Boretti found space and one-timed it home.

Boretti was named the tournament Most Outstanding Player after scoring game-winning goals in each of the team's shutout wins in the playoffs. He scored the first goal Wednesday as the second-seeded Warriors blanked No. 3 seed Rhode Island College, 2-0, at the Mansfield Outdoor Complex

The win is Eastern's (16-4-1) eighth straight this year and tenth in a row against New England competition and ties the 40-year-old program record for wins in a season.The Warriors are ranked fifth in New England.

With a recent spate of injuries and illness, third-year head coach Greg DeVito had only three substitutes at his disposal, two of whom were backup keepers Tyler Edwardsen (Ledyard) and Jordan Munsell (Waterford), who combined for 51 minutes. The dearth of available reserves necessitated that seven starting field players logged all 90 minutes.

Among those unable to perform were forward/midfielders Sean Capezzone (Colchester) and Matt Furman (Montville). Capezzone re-injured his left knee against Rhode Island College Wednesday, while Furman, the team's second-leading scorer, woke up with the flu Saturday morning. Eight freshmen and sophomores were among the team's starting unit against the Corsairs.

The recent casualties forced DeVito to move sophomore Matt Esposito (East Haven) from midfield to back and inserte sophomore Matt Kalmin (Burlington) at midfield, where he was making his first start of the year.

Two of Appel's saves came early in the second half when he was forced to stretch full out at the left post to stop shots by Ebenezer Vicente and Kyle Lopes.  The Corsairs also had three ideal chances in the final 28 minutes. Alves put one over the crossbar with 28 minutes left, then had a free kick in the box sail wide right. A shot by Jason Couto from the top of the box shot also landed on top of the net with 13 minutes left.

Eastern scoring leader Maxim Fantl (West Hartford) was held scoreless on three shots (all coming in the first half), but was involved in a handful of first-half opportunities that nearly boosted the team into a halftime lead. Fantl, the LEC leader with 17 goals and 40 points, collected a cross from Tobler five minutes into play and hammered a shot of the right post. Ten minutes later, he traded places with Tobler, sending a pass ahead to the freshman, who unloaded a shot over the crossbar. Racing from left to right through the box midway through the stanza, Fantl then uncorked a line drive right at UMass freshman keeper Mike Phelan, who kept the game scoreless by pulling it into his body.. With eight minutes left in the half, Fantl took a pass from freshman midfielder Dan Fish (Marlborough) but volleyed it into the side of the net.

Seniors win first LEC playoff title

(Liz Cutler photo)

Senior Sarah Swann (Oxford) scored her conference-leading 14th goal of the year on an assist from sophomore Sam Konopka (Hebron) and senior Kim Church (Farmington) made six saves as second-seeded women's soccer won its third Little East Conference championship in seven years with a 1-0 win over top-seeded Keene State College Saturday.

With its fifth shutout victory in its last seven outings, Eastern (12-5-3) qualifies for its fourth NCAA tournament (third under tenth-year head coach Chris D'Ambrosio), which gets underway Thursday. Keene (14-6-2) had a three-game winning streak snapped and lost in the tourney final for the seventh time in nine appearances, falling to the Warriors for the third time in four tries in the clinching game.Eastern is 2-1 against Keene in finals played at Keene.

The title is the first for seniors Swann, Chuch, Taylor MacDonald (Oak Bluffs, MA), Christine Lemieux (South Windsor), who had lost in the title game to Western Connecticut the previous two years after being eliminated by Keene in the team's first conference tournament game in 2006.

Church, selected the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, made several game-saving saves among her six, with two coming in the first half and another in the second. In the first half, Church made hand saves on two consecutive Keene bids. First, she deflected a shot by Keene scoring leader Katie Bradford off the crossbar, then re-gained her feet to knock away the rebound.

Konopka, who played 67 minutes off the bench, set up Swann's game-winning goal in the 69th minute with a free kick for her second assist of the season -- both coming in the last three matches.

The Warriors pulled off their second championship game win on Keene's field in three tries despite getting little or not contributions from three injured players:sophomore back Laura Violette (Wallingford), sophomore forward Lauren Greeney (Bethel) and freshman forward/midfielder Kelly Wallace (South Windsor), the conference assist leader. Wallace was pulled from the starting lineup after only 23 minutes, while Greeney was limited to 33 minutes off the bench. Violette missed her sixth game of the season after re-injuring her ankle recently.

Since losing 2-1 in overtime at Keene State Sept. 26, Eastern is 8-2-2 in its last 12 matches. The Owls had gone unbeaten (6-0-1) in the conference regular-season in winning third  first LEC regular-season title since 2004

Men's Soccer
Eastern Conn. 1, Massachusetts Dartmouth 0

UMass Dartmouth (10-8-2)        0   0 --  0
Eastern Conn. (16-4-1)             0   1 --  1

Scoring: Nicholas Boretti (Jon DeCasanova, Cory Tobler) 65:21.
Shots: MD-13, E-7; Saves: MD-Mike Phelan 1, E-Carl Appel 5.
Corner kicks: MD-5, E-5.

Women's Soccer
Eastern Conn. 1, Keene State College 0

Eastern Conn. (12-5-3)       0    1 -- 1
Keene State (14-6-2)          0    0 -- 0

Scoring: E-Sarah Swann (Sam Konopka) 68:19.
Shots: E-4, K-15; Saves: E-Kim Church 6, K-Meghan Dempsey 2.
Corner kicks: E-1, K-3.

They face Keene in title game for fourth time with NCAA invite on line

Audio.wav

Chris D'Ambrosio, head coach

The women's soccer team has shut out Keene State College the last two years in order to reach the championship game of the Little East Conference playoffs.

On Saturday, the teams will meet in the LEC playoffs for  the eighth time in nine years. This season, it will be for all the marbles as the clubs meet in the championship game for the fourth time. The winner receives an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III tournament.

With an unbeaten 6-0-1 conference record this year, top-seeded Keene (14-5-2) claimed its first conference regular-season championship since 2004, when  the top-seeded Owls went on to win their second and last playoff title with a 3-0 home win over second-seeded Eastern.  After sharing last year's regular-season title, second-seeded Eastern (11-5-3) followed up with a 5-1-1 mark this season, sharing second place in the final conference regular-season standings with Massachusetts Boston.

Sandwiched around Keene's 2004 finals win over Eastern were Warrior triumphs over the Owls in the 2003 finale at Keene and in the 2005 title tilt at Thomas Nevers Field. Since the second-seeded Warriors downed Keene on penalty kicks in 2003, the top seed has captured each of the last five championships.

Either Eastern or Keene or both have appeared in all ten previous championship games, with each winning twice. The Warriors have finished second three times in the playoffs and the Owls have lost in the final game six times. In its most recent finals showing in 2006, Keene dropped a 4-2 decision to host Western Connecticut - the first of three straight titles for the Colonials.

The championship game between the two teams is the fourth, but the first since the teams met in those three consecutive seasons between 2003 and 2005. The Warriors have lost 2-1 decisions to Western Connecticut in each of the last two finals.

In Thursday's semifinals at home, Eastern swamped third-seeded UMass Boston, 4-0, and Keene ended the three-year reign of fourth-seeded Western, 2-0. Both of Saturday's finalists drew first-round byes.

Since losing at Keene, 2-1 in overtime Sept. 26, Eastern has posted a 7-2-2 record. The Warriors are 3-4-1 on their opponent's field this year. Ranked in a tie for tenth in New England, Keene is 10-2-3 in its last 15 and is 8-2-1 at home this season. The Owls have yet to give up more than one goal in a match this season. Eastern leads the LEC in least goals allowed this year (17) and in goals-against average (0.85), but is followed closely by Keene.

Keene junior Katie Bradford and Eastern senior Sarah Swann (Oxford) rank 2-3 in the conference in scoring and Eastern freshman Kelly Wallace (South Windsor) tops all conference players with ten assists.

In addition to Swann, Eastern seniors who will be involved in the final conference contests of their careers are goalkeeper Kim Church (Farmington), defender Christine Lemieux (South Windsor) and forward/midfielder Taylor MacDonald (Oak Bluffs, MA).

For a live video feed and live stats of the match, click on the Tournament Central link on the Little East Conference website.