#7
Franklin Pierce Set to Face
Franklin Pierce (21-2), ranked No. 7 in the final regular
season National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas
Division II poll, will face No. 3-ranked UC San Diego (18-2-1) on
Thursday at 8 p.m. No. 2-ranked Kennesaw State (Ga.) University (23-1)
will face unranked University of Nebraska-Omaha (17-3-2) to kickoff
the Final Four on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
The winners of the two matches will battle for the National
Championship on Saturday, December 6, at 6 p.m.
Franklin Pierce advanced to its record 12th-consecutive
Final Four with a 2-1 victory over No. 4-ranked Adelphi University on
Sunday, November 23. UC San Diego reached its 14th Final
Four (Division II & III combined) with a 3-2 victory over
top-ranked Metro State (Colo.) University that afternoon as well. The
two programs have combined to win11 National Championships since 1994.
Franklin Pierce has won five Division II titles (1994-97 & ’99),
while UCSD won four Division III crowns (1995-97 & ’99) before
winning back-to-back titles in its first two seasons at the Division
II level (2000 & 2001). The Titans and Ravens rank second and
third, respectively, in the world of NCAA women’s soccer in total
Final Four appearances only to Division I power North Carolina, which
is participating in its 22nd Final Four this weekend. Thursday will mark the second meeting all-time between the two programs, with both coming in the NCAA semifinals. UC San Diego posted a 2-1 overtime victory over the then defending National Champions from Franklin Pierce in 2000 in Miami Shores, Fla. The Tritons scored first that day as Cindy Dostelak netted a goal just 5:45 into the match. Former Franklin Pierce All-American Minna Mustonen sent the match to overtime with a score in the 88th minute, but UCSD got the winner 4:34 into the first overtime as Erika Alfredson scored after assisting on the Tritons first goal.
Franklin
Pierce is led by the offensive duo of junior All-American and two-time
Northeast-10 Conference Player of the Year Meghan Welcome
(Haverhill, Mass./Haverhill) and sophomore Laura Hislop
(Belfast, Northern Ireland). The pair have accounted for 146
of the team’s points this season, including 57 of their 84 goals
scored on the season. They have also netted 17 of the Ravens 21
match-winning goals.
Hislop leads Division II with 83 points and 23 assists, while
her 30 goals rank second in the nation. Her 83 points is the
seventh-highest single-season total in NCAA Division II history and is
already good for 13th on the College’s career scoring
list. Hislop’s 23 assists are just one shy of former Raven
All-American Angela Verdoes’ single-season record of 24 set in 1999
and is tied for the fifth-highest single-season total in Division II
history.
The first-team All-Northeast-10 Conference selection has
stepped up her game in the postseason, totaling 25 points on 11 goals
(four match-winners) and three assists through six postseason matches
(includes Conference tournament). Hislop has totaled nine points with
four goals and an assist in the Ravens three NCAA Tournament games so
far. She has also totaled 16 points with six goals and four assists in
six games against ranked opponents.
Welcome ranks second only to Hislop among Conference leaders
with 63 points and 27 goals, while her nine assists rank third on the
team. Her ten match-winning strikes lead the Ravens. Welcome has set nearly every scoring record at the College for US-born players as her point and goal totals from this season have surpassed her record totals of 46 points and 20 markers in 2002. She ranks sixth in program history with 128 career points and 54 career goals, both of which are highest in program history for American players.
Welcome
has totaled 16 points with five goals (two match-winners) and six
helpers in five postseason games this season, including a goal and
assist for three points in the NCAA Tournament. Against ranked teams
this fall, she has totaled seven goals (three winners) and an assist
for 15 points.
The quarterback of the Ravens offense all season long has been
sophomore midfielder Sonya Hughes (Balbriggan, Ireland).
She has totaled 32 points this fall with seven goals and 18 assists,
which ranks second only to Hislop in the NE-10 and is tied for the 15th-highest
single-season total in Division II history.
Hughes has also been a major postseason contributor with 14
points on four goals and six assists, including three goals and three
assists for nine points in three NCAA Tournament matches. The
second-team All-Conference pick has registered two goals and six
assists for ten points against ranked teams. Rounding out the Ravens offensive leaders is freshman Alex Scavo (Markham, Ontario/Brother Andre) with 18 points on seven goals (two match-winners) and four assists. However, the three-time NE-10 Freshman of the Week has not registered a point since her winning goal at Bryant on October 8 - a string of 11 matches.
The
backbone of the Ravens defense, which is tops in the Northeast-10 this
season, is senior goalkeeper Aase Kibsgaard (Korgen, Norway)
who boasts a 0.77 goals against average and .792 save percentage with
seven shutouts this season. The two-time All-Conference selection
ranks third in program history with a 0.69 career goals against
average, while her 15 career shutouts are good for fifth all-time.
Also spearheading the Ravens defense is junior co-captain Martta
Makila (Vantaa, Finland), an All-NCAA Tournament selection
last year, who has also totaled nine points with three goals and three
assists this year. She teams with senior Alison Considine
(Needham, Mass./Needham), an All-NE-10 pick this fall, and
freshmen Kristen Lake (Marshfield, Mass./Marshfield) and
Mia Makarainen (Espoo, Finland).
UC San Diego, in search of its seventh National Championship
overall, features a balanced offensive attack. Eight Tritons have
totaled ten or more points on the season and the team is yielding just
0.89 goals per contest, while scoring at a 2.98 goals per match rate.
Senior Kristen Jones (Oceanside, Calif./Oceanside)
leads the UCSD offense with 31 points, ten goals and 11 assists.
Freshman Kelly Cochran (Westlake Village, Calif./Westlake)
has made an immediate impact with 22 points on eight goals and six
assists, while senior Kristen Conahan (Encinitas, Calif./La
Costa Canyon) has added 20 points with nine goals and two
assists. Conahan also leads the team with four match-winning goals
this season.
Senior goalkeeper Kami Poma (Redlands, Calif./Redlands)
has seen the majority of minutes in goal this season and has posted a
0.85 goals against average and .836 save percentage with four
shutouts.
2003
NCAA DIVISION II WOMEN’S SOCCER FINAL FOUR Semifinals Championship |
