Since its inception in 1981, the Ithaca College women’s soccer program has established a winning tradition, featuring a pair of national titles (1990 and 1991), 30 NCAA playoff invitations and a streak of four straight NCAA semifinals visits. In 42 years of competition, the Bombers are 569-185-96 (.726).
Since 1994, the Bombers’ success has been directed by coach Mindy Quigg. In her first year at the helm, Ithaca won its sixth state championship in seven years and earned a spot in the NCAA playoffs. Tanya Koning capped her career with first-team All-America honors.
In 1995, the Bombers finished 11-4-4, but missed the NCAA playoffs for the first time in nine years. The following year All-Americans Amanda Mabee and Melanie Jones helped Ithaca to a 16-4 record and a trip to the NCAA quarterfinals. Mabee joined the hall of fame in 2007.
In 1997, the Bombers made their 10th NCAA playoff trip. A year later, Ithaca returned to the NCAA semifinals, hosting the event for the first time. Back Erin DeMarco, the second Bomber sophomore to earn All-America honors, led Ithaca to a 15-4-2 record. DeMarco again earned All-America honors in 1999 and 2000; she was inducted into the school’s hall of fame in 2011. In 2003, Becca Berry helped the Bombers to their 14th NCAA playoff appearance en route to tying Maureen Nolan’s career scoring record, and Ithaca returned the next year, reaching the second round both years.
Nine more NCAA berths, including trips to the quarterfinal round in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011’s final four run, raised the program’s total to a Division III-record 23. The recent tenure in the NCAA Tournament came behind All-Americans Chelsey Feldman, who became the program’s career scoring leader as a junior, Amy Scheffer and 2013 graduate Rachael Palladino. Palladino, one of three three-time All-Americans in program history, broke Feldman’s career points and goals school records in 2012. Teammate Julie Winn also snapped Feldman’s assists record with 29.
The 2012 team finished with a 19-1-3 record, tying a program-best 19 wins, also recorded in 1991 and 2007. They also matched a program-low one loss, one of four one-loss seasons (1984, 1989, 1993, 2012) since the inception of the program in 1981.
In 2015, Quigg became just the 14th active coach to have won 300 games after the Bombers blanked Alfred, 6-0, on September 23, 2015 en route to a 13-5-2 mark and their 13th straight NCAA appearance after receiving one of 20 at-large bids.
During the 2021 season, the Bombers returned to the NCAA Championship for the first time since 2018. In the season opening 5-1 victory over Elmira College, Quigg won her 350th game as a head coach and coached forward Alex Epifani to three All-American selections over her career at Ithaca; the fourth three-time All-American in program history. The 2022 campaign saw Ithaca finish with a 13-4-4 overall record where they won the 2022 Liberty League Conference Championship, defeating William Smith in penalty kicks. The Bombers also made their 29th appearance in the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament where they won their first round matchup against Capital University but fell to Case Western Reserve University in the second round.
The 2023 season saw the Bombers fell to RIT in the semifinals of the Liberty League Tournament as they finished with a 10-3-4 and placed seven on the All-Liberty League teams with defender Allison Heft with attacker Sarah Sninnot and goalkeeper Grace Hickey each earned All-Liberty League First Team honors, while Ally Stanton placed on the Second Team with Julia Cascone, Ali Amari and Clare Sunderland each earned a spot on the Honorable Mention team. In addition, Allison Heft garnered All-Region III First Team for the second-straight season as did Kaelyn Fernandez who landed a spot on the All-Region III Third Team. During the spring of 2024, the program took its fifth international trip in over 20 years spending their spring break in Portugal.
Mindy Quigg became the 12th coach in NCAA Division III women’s soccer history to reach 400 career wins with a 1-0 victory over No. 22 Penn State Behrend during the 2024 season, and is also just the third female coach in Division III history to achieve this milestone. The Bombers captured the program’s second Liberty League Championship, prevailing 3–2 in penalty kicks over William Smith, and made their 30th appearance in the NCAA Division III Soccer Championship. In addition to earning eight All-Liberty League selections, Quigg and her assistant coaching staff—Javi Mejia, Tom Keane, Andy Byrne, and Camryn Hart—were named the Liberty League Coaching Staff of the Year. They guided the Bombers to a 7-2 record in league play and a 14-3-4 overall mark.
Quigg took over for coach Pat Farmer, a 1998 inductee into Ithaca’s Athletic Hall of Fame who spearheaded Ithaca’s rise to national prominence following his hire in 1987. A 2-0 playoff loss to Scranton that year marked Ithaca’s first NCAA appearance. Ithaca won the NYSWCAA title in 1988 and returned to the NCAA playoffs. The Bombers advanced to the semifinals before losing, 2-0, in triple overtime to UC-San Diego. The 1989 team placed first in the NYSWCAA tournament and again reached the NCAA semifinals. This time all-American Tracy Deyle’s two goals led Ithaca to a 2-0 semifinal win over Methodist before UC-San Diego beat the Bombers in the championship game, 3-2, in a third overtime period.
A stingy defense was the key in the 1990 and 1991 postseasons; the Bombers did not yield a goal in eight playoff games. Goalkeeper Beth Howland was in net for seven of those shutouts and set an NCAA record for lowest career goals-against average in playoff games (0.15). The Bombers earned their first title in 1990 with a shoot-out win over Cortland and won the 1991 championship by downing Rochester, 2-0. In 1998, Howland joined Deyle in the Ithaca College Athletic Hall of Fame.
In 1992, the Bombers won the NYSWCAA championship and participated in the NCAA postseason. Back Cathy Moss, who was inducted into the hall of fame in 2004, earned all-America honors in 1990 and 1992. The 1993 team won the NYSWCAA crown and advanced to the NCAA New York regional finals before falling in overtime, 1-0, to William Smith. Back Megan Collins and midfielder Kristin Kaupang earned all-America honors; both are inductees into the hall of fame, and Collins was named to the NCAA’s Women’s Soccer 25th Anniversary Team. The 1993 season was the last at Ithaca for Farmer, who was hired to direct Penn State’s first-year program.
Linda Buettner, Ithaca’s first head coach, posted a 53-24-5 mark in five years. Nolan, who became the school’s all-time leading scorer; Leslie Murphy, who set the Bombers’ career assist record; and goalkeeper Laura Slagle, the program’s career save leader were among the team’s top players in the early years.
In 1983, the Bombers won the New York State Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (NYSAIAW) championship. One season later, Ithaca downed Geneseo, 2-1, to claim the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) title. In Buettner’s last season, Ithaca defended its ECAC title by edging Hartwick, 2-1, on an overtime goal by all-American Tracey Marullo. Marullo was voted into the Ithaca College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001; Buettner joined her in 2008.
Christine Pritchard guided the program in 1986 and led Ithaca to a state championship, thanks in part to the play of first-team All-American Terri Cilento.
7/21/2025
