Three Ravens Earn Academic All-District Honors
Makila, Kibsgaard named to first team, Allen selected to second team 

RINDGE, N.H. (November 6, 2003) – Three members of the Franklin Pierce women’s soccer team have been named to the 2003 Academic All-America District I College Division Women’s Soccer Teams as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

            Senior goalkeeper Aase Kibsgaard (Korgen, Norway) and junior back Martta Makila (Vantaa, Finland) have been named to the Academic All-District I first team, while sophomore midfielder Elizabeth Allen (Durham, N.H./Oyster River) has earned a spot on the second team. By earning first team spots, Kibsgaard and Makila are now eligible for Academic All-America honors, which will be announced on Tuesday, November 25.

            The three are among 22 student-athletes selected to the two teams from a ballot of 98 individuals from Division II and III institutions throughout New England and New York. Franklin Pierce, which earned the Northeast-10 Conference Academic Achievement Award for 2002-2003, placed two student-athletes on the women’s soccer first team for the first time since 1998.            

Kibsgaard has recorded a 3.72 cumulative grade point average while majoring in child development and education at Franklin Pierce. Kibsgaard leads the Northeast-10 Conference with a 0.58 goals against average (13^th in Division II) to go with a .824 save percentage and seven shutouts in 16 starts. She earned NE-10 Goalkeeper of the Week honors on Monday after posting a pair of shutouts.

            Kibsgaard, a two-year starter for the Ravens since transferring from Champlain College prior to the 2002 season, ranks third in program history with a 0.60 career goals against average, while her .806 career save percentage and 15 career shutouts both rank fifth all-time.

            Kibsgaard was an All-New England and All-Northeast-10 selection in 2002 when she led the Northeast-10 with a 0.61 GAA (12^th in Division II) to help the Ravens to a record 11^th consecutive NCAA Division II Final Four appearance. She was an NE-10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll Bronze Scholar in 2002-2003 and has been named to the Dean’s List every semester since transferring to the College. She was also a Dean’s List student at Champlain College in 2001-2002.            

Makila earns her second Academic All-District honor after earning a spot on the third team in 2002 and is the program’s first repeat honoree since Pauliina Miettinen and Pauliina Auveri earned first team honors in 1997 and 1998. Makila has recorded a 3.73 cumulative grade point average while majoring in mass communication at the College with a minor in advertising. One of the top defenders in all of Division II, Makila anchors a Franklin Pierce back line which leads the Northeast-10 Conference with a 0.61 team goals against average (11^th in Division II) with nine shutouts this fall. The 2003 co-captain has also stepped into the offensive flow and totaled nine points with three goals (one match-winner) and three assists.

            Makila earned second team All-New England and All-Northeast-10 accolades as a sophomore and was also named to the NCAA All-Tournament team. She led all Franklin Pierce players with six points in NCAA Tournament play with three goals from the back as the Ravens advanced to a record 11^th consecutive Final Four. Makila has played and started 62 of a possible 63 matches since joining the team in 2001 and totaled 28 points with 11 goals and six assists over her career.

            Makila was a Northeast-10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll Silver Scholar in 2002-2003 and is a Dean’s Honor List student at the College. A member of Finland’s U-20 National Team, Makila is a Pierce Pride member and coaches the ConVal Soccer Club’s U-11 team in Peterborough, N.H.            

Allen has earned a 3.93 cumulative grade point average while majoring in sports management at the College. She is a two-year starter as a defensive midfielder for the Ravens and has dished two assists this season for two points while starting all 19 matches this fall. One of her assists came on the match-winning goal at Southern New Hampshire University on October 25.

            Allen has totaled four career points with a goal and four assists while starting 31 of the 34 matches she has played over her first two seasons at Franklin Pierce. Her lone career goal was a match-winner her freshman season at Pace University.

            Allen was a Northeast-10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll Gold Scholar in 2002-2003 and a Dean’s Honor List student every semester at the College. She posted a remarkable 4.0 GPA in her first semester at College while also helping the Ravens to their record 11^th consecutive NCAA Division II Final Four berth.

            Franklin Pierce (17-2, 13-1 NE-10), ranked No. 7 in this week’s National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas Division II poll, claimed its third-straight NE-10 Regular Season title this fall – marking the program’s ninth regular-season Conference title over the last ten seasons. The top-seeded Ravens will host second-seeded and No. 11-ranked Merrimack College on Sunday (1 p.m.) in search of a record fourth-consecutive NE-10 Tournament title.