New Haven, Conn. – Fresh off a 7-0 thumping of CCNY to end the regular season, the Albertus Magnus College women's soccer team is preparing to take part in the 2015 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament.
The Falcons finished the year with a 9-8-2 overall record and earned the No. 6 seed in the GNAC Tournament thanks to a 6-5-0 mark in league play. The team opens post-season play on Saturday, October 31, traveling to the Bay State to square off with Emmanuel in the opening round of league tournament. The tilt gets underway at 1:00 pm as the Falcons look to avenge a 1-0 loss on the road versus the Saints earlier this autumn. The winner of the GNAC Tournament will determine the league's automatic qualifier for the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament.
In the first meeting between the two conference foes, Emmanuel senior captain Katelyn Fink scored the game's lone goal in the 74th minute to lift the Saints past Albertus Magnus at Clemente Field. The hosts held a 17-5 advantage in shots in the contest and AMC senior goalkeeper Maria Case (West Haven, Conn.) kept the Falcons in the game with eight saves in a losing effort.
In total, the women's soccer team is making its ninth overall and seventh straight appearance in the GNAC Tournament. In search of the first conference tilt in program history, the Falcons will look to win in the opening round for the second year in a row. Albertus Magnus is 0-1 all-time against Emmanuel in the league tournament.
Offensively, the Falcons are led by junior midfielder Danielle Polvan (East Haven, Conn.) with a team-high eight goals, four assists, 20 points and 39 shots on goal. During the year Polvan has been a force in GNAC action, scoring five goals and registering three assists in league play. She is tied for the team-lead in game-winning goals with classmate Kaitlyn Fedumenti (Stratford, Conn.) and senior forward Acacia Nelson (Bridgeport, Conn.) as all three have netted two apiece. Both Fedumenti and Nelson have recorded 13 points on five markers and three helpers this autumn. Sophomore midfielder Victoria Lavery (West Haven, Conn.) has also emerged as a scoring threat this fall, tallying five goals to go along with a pair of assists.
Defensively, juniors Alexis Mack (Meriden, Conn.), Taylor Rotella (Milford, Conn.) and Bridget Judd (Branford, Conn.) along with sophomores Angelina Piccirillo (Naugatuck, Conn.) and Nikki Kern (Wallingford, Conn.) have anchored the Falcon backline this year. As a unit, the team is allowing just over one goal per contest this season and has registered six clean sheets. The defenders have also contributed on the offensive end as well, with Rotella and Piccirillo combining for five goals and four assists.
In net, it has been a record-setting year for Case. In 2015, she has become the program's all-time leader in shutouts (17), wins (31) and saves (305 and counting). In 18 starts this season, Case has gone 8-8-2 with four shutouts, a 1.29 goals-against average, 74 saves and a .763 save percentage. Freshman goalkeeper Lexi Fenn (Oakville, Conn.) won her only start of the year, recording a shutout while not facing any shots versus in-state rival Mitchell.
