July 14, 2012

STANDISH, ME – The 2011 SJC women's soccer team enjoyed a productive season, going 7-5-5 overall and 6-3-4 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play under eighth-year Head Coach Michael Bolanz '00.

Although the Monks went through a youth movement last fall - the roster featured 20 freshmen and sophomores – the side fared well against some of the top-tier teams in the conference and managed to return to the GNAC Tournament after a one-year hiatus.

With the help of quality conference victories over the likes of Lasell College and Simmons College and stalemates versus Johnson & Wales University, Norwich University, and University of Saint Joseph (CT), St. Joe's was awarded the #8 seed in the 2011 GNAC tourney, but fell to top-seeded Lasell in the opening round.

The 2011 campaign began with a pair of non-conference road matches, as Saint Joseph's traveled to Husson University on September 1st and made the trip to Waterville for a tilt versus Thomas College seven days later. The Eagles defeated the Monks, 2-0, in what was the season-opener for both sides, but the Royal Blue rebounded with a 2-1 triumph over Thomas College a week later. Sophomores Kelsea Marchand (Boscawen, N.H.) and Emily Cocciardi (Middletown, Mass.) provided the SJC offense in the team's first win of the season.

Saint Joseph's hosted Norwich in the Monks' 2011 home/conference opener on September 10th and dueled to a 1-1 deadlock with the Cadets. Freshman Danielle Daigle (Dayton, Maine) recorded her first NCAA goal and sophomore keeper Jaci Lorenzen (Windham, Maine) produced six saves in the GNAC contest.

The St. Joe's offense came alive in a home game versus GNAC foe Suffolk University four days later. Trailing 1-0 at halftime, the Monks outscored the visiting Rams by a 6-1 margin in the second stanza en route to posting a convincing conference victory. Three freshmen – Kim Jordan (Bangor, Maine), Doe Leckie (Naples, Maine), and Catherine Murch (West Baldwin, Maine) – netted their first collegiate markers and Lorenzen made five saves in the triumph.

Following a 3-0 loss at the hands of Albertus Magnus College on September 17th, St. Joe's battled Emerson College to a scoreless stalemate to improve to 1-1-2 in GNAC play. Lorenzen was solid again, making five stops in her first shutout of the season.

As it turned out, the shutout win over Emerson was the first of four straight goose-egg efforts for the Monks as the Royal Blue succeeded in not allowing a score versus Pine Manor College, Simmons College, and Anna Maria College, improving the side's GNAC record to 4-1-2 in the process.

Saint Joseph's downed Pine Manor, 9-0, at Westerlea Way Field on September 25th as Leckie led the offense with two goals and an assist. The nine-goal effort was the most by an SJC team in nearly four years.

The shutout streak continued in a 3-0 victory over Simmons College three days later. Lorenzen posted a fine performance with eight saves and Daigle broke out with a pair of goals against the Sharks. The Monks opened the month of October with a convincing 8-0 victory over Anna Maria, a team that entered the GNAC last fall. Leckie netted her first NCAA hat trick and classmate Elizabeth Calnan (Westport, Mass.) scored twice in the lopsided match.

The Monks traveled to Boston for a GNAC contest versus Emmanuel College on October 4th and a goal by Jordan kept the Royal Blue in the lead until the 56th minute, when the Saints managed to knot the game and effectively end the Monks' 441-minute scoreless streak. The hosts would score again 14 minutes later to clinch a 2-1 triumph.

Four days later, St. Joe's showed its youth with a disappointing 2-1 loss at the hands of Rivier College. Junior back Casey Monaghan (Portland, Maine) netted her first NCAA goal in the losing effort.

The Monks would counter the only two-game losing streak of the year with some of the side's best play of the 2011 campaign. On October 10th, St. Joe's hosted Johnson & Wales, the eventual #2 seed in the GNAC Tournament, and came away with a 2-2 tie. Lorenzen was busy in goal, making 12 stops in the duel with the Wildcats, a team that had toppled the Royal Blue by a 6-1 margin just the year before.

The solid play continued when the team traveled to Lasell five days later. Celebrating their Homecoming Weekend, the Lasers entered the game as the only undefeated team in conference play, sporting a spotless 10-0 record versus GNAC opponents. None of this mattered for the upset-minded Monks, as Jordan broke a scoreless tie in the 67th minute with her third goal of the season and Lorenzen made a career-high 13 saves in the 1-0 win, a triumph Coach Bolanz hailed as "the best victory the women's soccer program has recorded in my eight years."

On October 22nd, Saint Joseph's hosted Saint Joseph (CT) in a crucial conference contest and managed to earn a 1-1 tie versus the Blue Jays. The Monks held a 1-0 cushion for the majority of play, but the visitors found the back of the net in the 83rd minute to tie the game and force overtime. Junior Katherine Chambers (Hampden, Maine) scored her fifth goal of the year and Lorenzen made seven stops in the deadlock.

Saint Joseph's capped the GNAC portion of the regular-season docket with a 3-0 win over Mount Ida College the next day. Freshmen led the way as Leckie, Calnan, and Jordan scored a goal apiece in the victory.

The Monks would close out the regular season with a home contest versus in-state rival University of Southern Maine on October 26th. After 110 minutes of mostly monotonous play the teams retired with a pair of zeroes on the scoreboard, giving the Royal Blue a pair of scoreless ties in the same season for the first time in five years.

St. Joe's narrowly missed the GNAC playoffs in 2010 but returned to postseason play, collecting the #8 seed after recording a 6-3-4 conference record last fall. With the seeding the Monks would face #1 Lasell in a GNAC quarterfinal in Newton, Mass. on October 29th. Seeking restitution for a loss at the hands of the Monks earlier in the year, the Lasers put Saint Joseph's on its heels by scoring three goals in the opening 25 minutes and held a daunting 4-0 cushion going into the break. Trailing 5-0 late in the game, senior Shannon Fitzgerald (Amesbury, Mass.) cut the Monks' deficit to four goals with an 83rd-minute tally to account for a 5-1 final.

The GNAC Tournament loss signaled the end of NCAA soccer for the Monks' three seniors: Fitzgerald, Katelyn Call (Portland, Maine/McAuley) and Caitlin Schrum (Littleton, N.H.). With this trio in the fold, St. Joe's posted a 39-25-9 (.609) overall record and a 29-12-8 (.707) mark in conference play since the beginning of the 2008 campaign.

NOTEWORTHY INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCES:

• Fitzgerald closed out her four years with a fine season as the backbone of the Monks' defense and was rewarded for the effort with the second First Team All-GNAC honor of her career. The 2009 GNAC Defensive Player of the Year and two-year team captain started all 17 games last fall and leaves the program having made 54 consecutive starts with 67 games played in her career.
• Lorenzen earned Second Team All-GNAC honors after recording six shutouts with 89 saves, a 1.19 goals against average, and a .809 save percentage in 1585 minutes of play between the pipes.
• Leckie paced the Royal Blue in goals (7) and points (16), becoming the first freshman to accomplish both feats since Mikayla Call '11 led the way with 15 goals and 36 points as a rookie in 2007.
• Daigle also enjoyed an impressive rookie season, as the first-year forward led the team in assists (3) and ranked second in the side in both goals (5) and points (13).
• Chambers tied career-highs in goals (5) and points (11) as a junior.
• Jordan netted four goals and an assist and Calnan tallied three markers last fall.