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Aug. 25, 2007
The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference women's soccer coaches have named West Chester as the favorite in the Eastern Division while IUP is the choice in the West for the 2007 season. The Golden Rams have qualified for NCAA play each of the last four seasons, advancing to the Division II semifinals a year ago. West Chester posted a 23-1-0 overall record, 12-0-0 in PSAC East play and won the conference tournament for the first time in the program's history. For the first time in four years, the Golden Rams find themselves without three-time PSAC Eastern Division Player of the Year Casey McKinney. Brittany Yetter (38 pts - 3rd PSAC; 12 goals - T4th PSAC; 14 asts. - 1st PSAC), Lauren Ginnona and Lauren Boyer return as the team's leaders and were first-team All-PSAC East selections a year ago. Junior goalkeeper Hilary Smart returns after leading the league in goals against average last season, allowing 13 goals in 24 games (1911:29 minutes). IUP is the coaches' top choice in the Western Division. The Crimson Hawks are led by sophomore Sarah Romasco, who earned both the Western Division Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year honors in 2006. She is one of six starters who return for IUP from a squad that won its second PSAC West title and advanced to NCAA play to win its first-ever postseason game in the Northeast Region semifinals. Romasco finished first in the league in goals and points, with 21 and 55, respectively. She also finished second in assists (13). Ray Schreiner (13 goals, 3 assists) and Brittany Pikur (10 goals, 5 assists) along with defensive standout Janel Paffie will compliment Romasco. Picked to finish second in the East, Bloomsburg features a young squad for the second year in a row as 11 freshmen from a year ago return, including first-team All-PSAC selections Kelly Modes and Eileen Alexander. A midfielder, Modes was the team's leading scorer (6 goals, 2 assists) while Alexander anchored a defense that finished third in the PSAC in goals against average (1.21). Senior goalkeeper Brittany will also help anchor the defense while juniors Lauren Hess and Ashley Brucker, two of the team's top five scorers, are among the upperclassmen on offense. Slippery finishes as the second pick in the West. The Rock returns a solid core of experienced upperclassmen, led by Danielle Cooper. The junior forward led the team in points (24), goals (9) and assists (6) while finishing in the league's top 10 for both points and assists. Midfielders Meghan McGrath and Mallory Neubert return as the team's second and third leading goal scorers, respectively. Sophomore goalkeeper Lauren McManus will anchor a Rock defense that finished second in the league in goals allowed (22). McManus finished with the conference's second-best GAA (1.11) and third-best save percentage (83.5). Goalkeeper Jen McCormick also is a threat between the pipes, posting the nation's best save percentage in 2005. Kutztown is the coaches' third pick in the East, led by seniors Kim Kelty and Becky Worley. Kelty is a three-time All-PSAC East First Team selection and the Eastern Division's Rookie of the Year in 2004. She led the Golden Bears in scoring last year with five goals and four assists. Worley anchors the defense, starting all 21 games last season, as Kutztown posted the league's fourth-best goals against average (1.35). Sophomores Angela Corrado and Raven Chiara return as the team's second- and third-leading goal scorers, respectively while All-PSAC East Second Team honoree Alex Butler will assist Worley on defense. Edinboro enters the 2007 campaign with a solid mix of experienced starters that include a range of upperclassmen and underclassmen. The Fighting Scots finished third in the league with 1.82 goals per game while allowing the fourth-lowest goals per game (1.53). Senior Angie de Almeida leads the Fighting Scots offense, as she ranked ninth in the conference in goals (10) while sophomore Maria Dembrow returns as the team's assist leader (7). Shippensburg is the fourth pick in the East, followed by East Stroudsburg, Millersville and Mansfield. In the West, Lock Haven, California and Clarion round out the poll. PSAC East Women's Soccer 1. West Chester* (12-0-0 | 23-1-0) 2. Bloomsburg (4-5-3 | 5-9-4) 3. Kutztown (7-3-2 | 10-8-3) 4. Shippensburg (6-4-2 | 9-9-2) 5. East Stroudsburg (3-9-0 | 7-11-2) 6. Millersville (2-9-1 | 3-13-2) 7. Mansfield (3-7-2 | 5-11-2) PSAC West Women's Soccer 1. IUP (9-1-0 | 15-7-0) 2. Slippery Rock (8-2-0 | 12-7-1) 3. Edinboro (4-6-0 | 10-7-0) 4. Lock Haven (4-5-1 | 8-11-1) 5. California (3-6-1 | 7-11-1) 6. Clarion (1-9-0 | 6-13-0) (2006 league record | overall record) * 2006 PSAC Tournament Champion |
