WOMEN’S SOCCER TOPS ANNA MARIA ON SENIOR DAY

BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College Women's Soccer Team put together a 7-0 win over Anna Maria College on senior day and amidst Emmanuel's family weekend on Saturday afternoon.  The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) game was the opener in a conference double-header played on Roberto Clemente Field.  The victory moved the Saints into double figures in the win column, boosting Emmanuel to 10-5-1 overall and 6-3-1 in league play.  Anna Maria fell to 1-12 on the season and 0-10 in the GNAC.

The eight seniors on the Saints' squad including, Hillary Rouse (Hagaman, N.Y.), Jackie Murray (Saugus, Mass.), Emily Abelson (Northford, Conn.), Lauren Foley (North Andover, Mass.), Taylor Whitehill (Newburyport, Mass.), Brittany Ridge (Portland, Me.), Meghan Zerba (Cumberland, R.I.) and Jessica D'Ottavio (Pawling, N.Y.), were honored prior to the start of the contest.  Over the past four years, these seniors have played in five GNAC Tournament games, advancing to the GNAC Finals in 2009 and to the GNAC Semifinals in 2010.  Together, they have combined for 44 total wins and a 27-11-3 mark in GNAC games.

The Saints scored their first goal of Saturday's game just five minutes into the action and it was a senior who would put the Saints on the board.  Senior forward Hillary Rouse (Hagaman, N.Y.) one-timed it into the top left corner of the AMcats net for her first goal of the year and the Saints took a 1-0 lead.  Emmanuel upped it to a two-goal edge later in the half.  Freshman midfielder Katelyn Fink (Sanford, Me.) got a nice pass from sophomore forward Kelsie Dumas (Dalton, Mass.) and netted her fourth goal of her rookie season, scoring at 32:03

Dumas put the Saints up again in the 40^th minute.  After a scramble in front of the Anna Maria goal, Dumas found the back of the net for her fourth goal of the year.  Freshman midfielder Hannah Konicki (Milford, Conn.) was credited with the assist on the play.  The Saints would score once more before the break with Konicki drilling a shot from outside the box over the outstretched hands of Anna Maria keeper Sarah Benvenuti (Southbridge, Mass.).  Emmanuel took a 4-0 advantage into the break at halftime.

The AMcats, who have struggled with their roster size all season, traveled with just ten players to Saturday's game.  In a solid showing of sportsmanship, the Saints played even numbers with Anna Maria all afternoon, including dropping to an 8 vs. 8 situation in the second half.

Four seniors were involved in the two Emmanuel goals that opened the second frame. Jackie Murray (Saugus, Mass.) netted her second goal of the season, with the marker coming off an assist from Meghan Zerba (Cumberland, R.I.).  Jessica D'Ottavio (Pawling, N.Y.) scored her first career goal off an assist from Emily Abelson and the Saints led, 6-0.

Freshman forward Jess Dasilva (North Attleboro, Mass.) scored unassisted in the 71^st minute to cap the scoring for the Saints and Emmanuel came away with the 7-0 win.

Three freshman goalies, Jenna Marcello (Hopedale, Mass.), Brenna Smith (Wantagh, N.Y.) and Abaigeal Thivierge (Bennington, Vt.), combined for the team shutout for the Saints.  Benvenuti took the loss for Anna Maria, but made 13 saves in the full 90-minute effort.

Emmanuel plays next on Wednesday night, when the Saints host the Raiders of Rivier University on Clemente Field in a 7:00 PM start. This will be Emmanuel's final home game of the regular season.  Anna Maria will also play on Wednesday night, when the AMcats host the Gators of Pine Manor College in a non-conference game beginning at 6:30 PM.

The following is a portion of the script from Saturday's pre-game senior day ceremony:

Hillary Rouse … has been a two-year player for the Saints. Hillary played soccer at Emmanuel as a freshman, then transferred. She came back this year and has played in a career total of 27 games over her two years with the Saints and has scored 2 goals.

Jackie Murray …. has been a four-year player for the Saints, playing in multiple games both as a goalkeeper and a field player.  In 2009, Jackie received the Coaches Appreciation Award as a freshman.  She currently has the highest shooting percentage on the team, scoring 1 goal in 3 shots this year.  Jackie is also the starting centerfielder on the Emmanuel Softball Team.

Emily Abelson … has been a four-year player and two-year starter for the Saints, playing in 71 games and starting in 41 of them. Emily is a strong and physical defender, who usually marks the other teams' best attackers.

Taylor Whitehill … has been a four-year player and four-year starter as the Saints' central defender. Taylor has played in 66 games and started in 57 of them.  She was a huge factor in Emmanuel's 19 shutouts over her four-year career.  Taylor is a two-time winner of the soccer team's Academic Achievement Award and is a three-time GNAC Academic All-Conference selection.

Lauren Foley … has been a four year player and three-year starter for the Saints. She played in 59 games and started in 38 of them, but suffered a season-ending knee injury earlier this season.  Lauren received the Coaches Appreciation Award in 2011.  She is a three-time GNAC Academic All-Conference selection.

Brittany Ridge … has been a four-year starter for the Saints, playing in 77 total games with 75 career starts.  Brittany is currently ranked 6th all-time in total games played and 4th in games started.  She has scored a total of 9 goals and dished out 11 assists for a total of 29 points over her career.  Brittany is a two-time team captain.  She has been named the team's MVP for the past two seasons and is a two-time GNAC All-Conference selection.

Meghan Zerba … has been a four-year starter as a forward for the Saints. She has played in 76 games and started in 65 of them.  Zerba is ranked 7th all-time in both games played and games started.  She has scored a career total of 21 goals and dished out 16 assists.  She is Emmanuel's 9th all-time leading scorer and is ranked 6th among the program's assist leaders.  Meghan is also tied for 5th all-time in game-winning goals.  She is one of the team's tri-captains this year.

Jess D'Ottavio … has been the Saints' starting goalkeeper for the past four years. She has more games played, starts and minutes than ANY other goalie in Emmanuel program history, with 67 games played and 65 starts.  Jess has a four-year record of 37 wins, 25 losses and 3 ties with a school-record 15 career shutouts.  She is Emmanuel's 2nd all-time leader in career saves with a current total of 401 saves.  Jess is a two-time team captain and has been named to the GNAC Weekly Honor Roll 3 times and the GNAC Goalkeeper of the Week 3 times during her career.