No. 1 FP
Women Begin Defense of NE-10 Tournament Title
Top-seeded Ravens host eighth-seeded Saint Michael’s Tuesday at 2 p.m.

RINDGE, N.H. (October 29, 2001) - The Franklin Pierce University
(17-0, 14-0 NE-10) women’s soccer team, ranked No. 1 in this week’s National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Division II poll, begins defense of its 2000 Northeast-10 Conference Tournament Championship when it hosts eighth-seeded Saint Michael’s College (10-8, 6-8 NE-10) in a quarterfinal match at Crystal Field on Tuesday at 2 p.m.

The Ravens regained the top spot in the NSCAA/adidas Division II poll after previously top-ranked Northern Kentucky University dropped a 1-0 decision to Mercyhurst College at home over the weekend. FP
returns to the No. 1 spot for the first time since September 2000.

FP
enters the postseason with 17-straight victories this season and has outscored its opposition by an 87-16 margin, 41-2 in the first half, and has yet to trail in a match this season. FP
has been tied just once (other than 0-0) and has scored an average of 4.5 goals before allowing the opposition to score this season.

Saint Michael’s holds the distinction of having kept the Ravens off the scoreboard the longest this season as FP
was held scoreless until the 71:06-mark before junior April Mann (Brisbane, Australia/Saint Thomas More) netted a goal. Patricia Keeldar (Amsterdam, Holland/Ter Leede) added the gamewinner just 2:25 later to push the Ravens lead to 2-0. Purple Knights senior Hannah Beggan netted their lone goal with just under ten-minutes remaining in regulation.

The match will also mark the second-straight season the two school’s will meet in the Conference Tournament after FP
picked up a 4-0 win at Crystal Field in last year’s quarterfinal round. The Ravens lead the all-time series, 7-2-2.

The Ravens hold the top three spots in this week’s NE-10 scoring leaders, led by Keeldar’s 59 points with 25 goals (six gamewinners) and nine assists. Junior Angela Verdoes (Katwijk Aan Zee, Holland/Ter Leede) is second in the Conference with 41 points, including a Conference-high 13 assists and 14 goals, while Mann is third with 38 points (14 gls, 10 asts).

Junior Anumari Ylesmaki (Vantaa, Finland/Makelanrinne) and senior Jen Petronis (Burnt Hills, N.Y./Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake) have each totaled 18 points, while Petronis enters the week just three-points shy of the 100-point milestone as her 97 career points is good for seventh in FP
history.

The goalkeeping tandem of grad student Kim Higgins (Rochester, N.H./Spaulding) and senior Kara Shemeth (Edgartown, Mass./Martha’s Vineyard) have combined to hold opponents to just 0.94 goals per game and seven shutouts. Higgins leads the NE-10 with a 0.53 goals against average and .778 save percentage with four shutouts in 674 minutes. Shemeth sports a 1.00 GAA and .679 save percentage with three shutouts in 807 minutes of play.

Saint Michael’s is led by sophomores Sara Pope and Niki Pelletier with 25 points apiece. Pope has netted a team-high 11 goals to go along with three assists, while Pelletier has added nine goals and a team-best seven assists. Beggan has chipped in 22 points with nine goals and four helpers.

Sophomore goalkeeper Tara McQuin has seen the majority of minutes on goal this season and has recorded a 1.52 goals against and .793 save percentage with two shutouts in 1,124 minutes.

The winner of tomorrow’s match will advance to the NE-10 semifinals, hosted by Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven, Conn. They will play the winner of tomorrow’s quarterfinal match between fourth-seeded Bryant College and fifth-seed Bentley College.

2001 NORTHEAST-10 CONFERENCE WOMEN’S SOCCER TOURNAMENT

Tuesday, October 30
NE-10 Quarterfinals
#8 Saint Michael’s College at #1 Franklin Pierce College, 2 p.m.
#5 Bentley College at #4 Bryant College, 2 p.m.
#7 Stonehill College at #2 Merrimack College, 2 p.m.

Wednesday, October 31
NE-10 Quarterfinals
#6 College of Saint Rose at #3 Southern Connecticut State University, 7 p.m.

Saturday, November 3
NE-10 Semifinals, hosted by Southern Connecticut State (New Haven, Conn.)
Bentley/Bryant winner vs. Saint Michael’s/Franklin Pierce winner, TBA
Stonehill/Merrimack winner vs. Saint Rose/Southern Conn. winner, TBA

Sunday, November 4
NE-10 Championship, hosted by Southern Connecticut State (New Haven, Conn.)
Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.