2013 DIII Women's Soccer Bracket
Weekend Program
ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College women's soccer team (16-2-0) has been selected for the NCAA playoffs. The Bombers received the Empire 8's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and will play host to a four-team regional on Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 16-17. Ithaca takes on Penn State-Behrend (15-5-1) in a regional semifinal match Saturday at 11 a.m., while Skidmore (12-3-2) will face Rowan (16-3-0) at 1:30 p.m. The regional final will be played Sunday at 1:30 p.m. between the winners of the two first-round matches.
*Admission each day is $6 for adults, $3 for students and senior citizens and $2 children.
Participants
Ithaca (16-2-0) - Rosters - Schedule - Statistics
Penn State-Behrend (15-5-1) - Rosters - Schedule - Statistics
Skidmore (12-3-2) - Rosters - Schedule - Statistics
Rowan (16-3-0) - Rosters - Schedule - Statistics
First Round/Game One: Ithaca vs. Penn State-Behrend | Boxscore |
* Update - The Bombers defeated Penn State-Behrend, 3-0, to advance to the NCAA Second Round*
The Bombers enter the NCAA Playoffs with a record of 16-2-0. They are led offensively by sophomore Kelsey, who paces Ithaca with 12 goals and 25 points. Senior Ellyn Grant-Keane ranks second on the team with 15 points, coming on five goals and five assists. Grant-Keane recorded her 30th career assist in a 6-2 victory over St. John Fisher in the Empire 8 Tournament, to make her Ithaca's all-time assist leader. Sophomore Beth Coppolecchia has started every game in goal this season for the Bombers, earning a record of 16-2-0 on the year. Coppolecchia carries an impressive .46 goals-against average, and ranks as one of the best in the country with a .901 save percentage. She has recorded seven solo shutouts this season, and helped the Bombers 12 total shutouts this season. As a team, Ithaca has scored 39 goals this season, and has allowed just eight against in 18 games. Ithaca ranks fifth in the nation with a .905 team save percentage. Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year Anna Gray anchors the Bomber defense.
Penn State-Behrend
The Lions (15-5-1) earned the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference's (AMCC) automatic bid into the 64-team tournament after winning their third consecutive title and ninth conference crown. Behrend repeated as AMCC regular-season champions after finishing with a 9-0 conference record, before defeating Franciscan 4-2 in the conference semifinals and then posting a 2-1 decision over Pitt-Bradford for the championship. Seven members of the Penn State Behrend women's soccer team were selected to the All-Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Team, while head coach Patrick O'Driscoll was named Co-Coach of the Year and senior Rachel Mueller was chosen Defender of the Year. Mueller was also named to the All-AMCC first team in addition to freshman Alex Bilka and Sam Vast. Mueller repeats on the first team after leading the defense to eight shutouts and holding opponents to just 23 goals on the season. Bilka appears on the first team in her inaugural season. Her 30 points led the team and her 13 goals ranked fourth in the conference. Bilka also dished out four assists and netted three game-winning goals, while going 2-for-2 on penalty kicks.
First Round/Game Two: Skidmore vs. Rowan | Boxscore |
* Update - Rowan pulled out a 1-0 decision over Skidmore, advancing to the NCAA Second Round*
Rowan has a 16-3-0 record and received an at-large bid from Pool C to the national tournament. It is the Profs' 10th appearance and ninth straight in the postseason. Last year, Rowan defeated Virginia Wesleyan College, 1-0 in the first round and lost to Johns Hopkins University, 4-2 in the second. The Profs have a 7-7-2 record in the NCAAs. Rowan had six players that received New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) All-Conference honors. Forward Erika Suhl was named the conference's Offensive Player of the Year. Suhl was joined on the NJAC All-Conference first team by forward Tiffany Kelly and back Miranda Donnian. Midfielder Dayna Sakalsky and back Kayla Leahey were selected to the NJAC second team and back Deandra Turchi received All-Conference honorable mention. Suhl is the Profs' leading scorer with 45 points. She has scored 17 goals and assisted on 11. In the conference, she is first in points, goals and assists. This season, Suhl was named the NJAC Offensive Player of the Week four times. She was a member of the NJAC All-Conference first team last year.
The 12-3-2 Thoroughbreds will face Rowan University (16-3) at Ithaca College on Nov. 16 at 1:30 p.m. It will the first meeting between the teams. Skidmore gets in as an at-large selection after the team lost to RIT in the Liberty League semifinals. The Thoroughbreds opened the season with a 12-game unbeaten streak after winning only four games in 2012. The team defense allowed more than one goal only once this season, a 2-0 loss to William Smith. Arena Manning leads the team in scoring with five goals and one assist for 11 points. Christine Bellotti has five goals, while Emily Saliterman has four goals. Jen Wardyga has two goals and a team-high three assists. Goalie Gab Lawrence has had an outstanding season with a 12-3-2 record that includes nine shutouts and a 0.48 goals against average and .869 save percentage. Skidmore will be making its first NCAA appearance since 2011 when the team advanced to the round of 32 for the first time in program history.
Second Round Game: Ithaca vs. Rowan| Boxscore |
* Update - Ithaca defeated Rowan by a score of 1-0, advancing to the NCAA Third Round.*
