Oct. 12, 2009

Center Valley, Pa.--After sweeping its weekend games, American finds itself alone atop the Patriot League standings. The Eagles are 3-0-0 after disposing of Holy Cross and Army. Navy sits close behind at 2-1-1 after the Mids picked up back-to-back shutouts over Army and Holy Cross.

Patriot League Weekly Release 10.12.09

BRINE Offensive Player of the Week (10.5.09-10.11.09)
Christa Matlack, Bucknell Jr., F, South Williamsport, Pa.
Matlack enjoyed a five-point weekend, helping Bucknell to a pair of victories. She scored both goals in the Bison's 2-0 win over Lafayette. She then assisted the game-winning goal in Bucknell's 3-1 triumph over Lehigh. Matlack now has 21 career goals, tying her for eighth on Bucknell's career list.

BRINE Defensive Player of the Week (10.5.09-10.11.09)
Shelly Moeller, Navy Sr., D, Milford, Ohio
Moeller played every minute of Navy's two shutout victories. She anchored the Mids' defense, which allowed a total six shots on goal. She led a defensive effort that held Holy Cross to just one shot on goal. She has guided the Navy defensive unit to 10 shutouts this season.

BRINE Goalkeeper of the Week (10.5.09-10.11.09)
Beth Reed, Navy Sr., GK, Indianapolis, Ind.
Reed recorded back-to-back shutout victories against Army and Holy Cross. She now has four straight shutouts and has not allowed a goal in her past 380 minutes of competition. She has eight solo shutouts this season. Reed lowered her League-leading GAA to 0.46 and improved her save percentage to .901.

BRINE Rookie of the Week (10.5.09-10.11.09)
Kristin Piorun, American Fr., F, Simsbury, Conn.
Piorun provided the Eagles with key minutes off the bench in American's Patriot League victories over Holy Cross and Army. She assisted the Eagles' first goal in American's 2-1 win over the Black Knights.

Honorable Mention Performances Last Week

Lindsey Farthing, American
Jr., GK, New Hope, Pa.
Made 11 saves in American's 2-1 win over Army. Played all 90 minutes while making her first career start.

Kelly McLaughlin, American
Sr., D, West Windsor, N.J.
Scored her first career goal, the game-winner, in American's 2-1 win over Army. Also helped American's defense hold Holy Cross scoreless in the Eagles' 2-0 win over the Crusaders.

Brooke Sheppard, American
Jr., M, Wilmington, Del.
Registered a four-point weekend in a pair of American victories. Notched a goal and an assist in the Eagles' 2-0 win over Holy Cross. Added an assist in American's 2-1 triumph over Army.

Kathryn Sutton, Bucknell
Sr., GK, Coatesville, Pa.
Posted a 2-0 record with one shutout and a .923 save percentage in two games. Made three saves in a 2-0 win over Lafayette before stopping nine shots in a 3-1 win against Lehigh.

Danielle Wessler, Colgate
So., M, Port Republic, N.J.
Scored the lone goal in the Raiders' 1-0 win over Lafayette, giving Colgate its first Patriot League win of the season.

Liz Carlos, Lehigh
Sr., F, Southbury, Conn.
Recorded four points in Lehigh's two contests over the weekend. Produced two assists in the Mountain Hawks' 4-1 win over Colgate. Added a goal in Lehigh's 3-1 loss to Bucknell.

Patriot League Notebook

The Week In Review
Home teams won seven of the week's eight Patriot League games. The lone exception was Lehigh's 4-1 win at Colgate. The Raiders won their other home contest, however, a 1-0 decision over Lafayette. American, Navy and Bucknell notched two home wins apiece in Patriot League action. American remains the only team without a loss or tie in League play. The Eagles topped Holy Cross and Army to move to 3-0. The only other squad without a loss in Patriot League competition is Navy. The Mids moved to 2-0-1 with shutout wins over Army and Holy Cross.

On Deck
Each will play just one Patriot League contest this week. All four games will be played on Saturday. First-place American will travel to Colgate. A key battle between second-place Navy and third-place Bucknell will be take place in Lewisburg. Lehigh and Holy Cross will each be looking for win No. 2 in Worcester. Army and Lafayette will each be chasing their first Patriot League win when they meet in West Point. Also on this week's agenda are three non-League games. On Wednesday, Lehigh welcomes Princeton to Bethlehem, while Holy Cross will host Yale. On Thursday, Army will wrap up its five-game road trip against Manhattan.

Shutout or Bust
Through 12 Patriot League contests, shutouts have been a prevailing theme. After five teams recorded shutouts during the first weekend of Patriot League competition, five more shutouts were registered during the most recent weekend of League play. Eight of 12 Patriot League games have ended with at least one team notching a shutout, including two scoreless ties. Seven of the League's eight teams have recorded a shutout during League play.

Offensive Explosion
After defense ruled the first weekend of Patriot League play, the League's offensive units came to life on Friday and Saturday. In the League's first four games, the eight teams combined to score just five goals, an average of 1.25 combined goals per game. A total of 21 goals were scored in eight games during the most recent weekend of Patriot League action for a more robust average of 2.63 combined goals per contest.

Defend Your Turf
Of the 12 Patriot League games that have been played so far, only two have been lost by the home team. The home squad is currently 8-2-2 in League contests. Colgate, which lost to Lehigh in Hamilton on Friday, became just the second home team to lose a League game this season. Lafayette, which dropped a home contest to Holy Cross, is the only other home squad to lose a Patriot League game this season. All four home teams won on Sunday.

Class of Classes
Navy's 2-0 win over Holy Cross on Sunday ensured that seniors Beth Reed, Jen Grijalva, Shelly Moeller and Brittany White will leave the Naval Academy as the winningest senior class in program history with at least 61 wins. Since the arrival of its four-member senior class, Navy has won more than 78 percent of its contests and owns a 61-13-10 mark.

Betterbed a Finalist for Lowe's Senior CLASS Award
Army senior midfielder Elizabeth Betterbed is one of 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in the women's soccer division. A nationwide voting process begins immediately and fans can vote online beginning today and ending November 13 at www.seniorclassaward.com.To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - classroom, character, community and competition.

Keep Track Of The Patriot League Through Social Media
In addition to visiting www.patriotleague.org, League fans and followers have plenty of new ways to stay updated and involved during the 2009 season and beyond. The Patriot League has accounts on Facebook and Twitter, and has now started a blog to give more information on the action on the field. All three accounts are accessible through the multimedia link at the right-hand sidebar on the front page of www.patriotleague.org.

Patriot League Tournament
The 2009 Patriot League Tournament will be held Friday and Sunday, November 6 and 8 at the site of the highest seed. The teams with the top four regular-season records will qualify for the Patriot League tourney.

Team Notebooks
American leads the Patriot League after jumping out to its second 3-0 start in the past three seasons. The Eagles recorded a 2-0 win over Holy Cross before topping Army by a 2-1 margin. Brooke Sheppard registered a goal and an assist in the win over the Crusaders, while Kelly McLaughlin scored the game-winning goal against Army. American will attempt to maintain its unblemished mark on Saturday at Colgate, the Eagles' first road game in Patriot League play.

Army suffered back-to-back defeats to fall to 0-2-1 in Patriot League action. The Black Knights were dealt a 2-0 loss by rival Navy on Friday before falling to American by a 2-1 count. The defending Patriot League champion will attempt a late-season climb with three of its final four League games against teams in the bottom half of the standings. Army will close its five-game road swing with a Thursday game at Manhattan.

Bucknell won two games over the weekend to ascend to third place in the Patriot League standings. The Bison outscored Lafayette and Lehigh by a combined margin of 5-1. Kelliann Doherty and Clesea McGorry both had assists against Lafayette. Each added a goal against Lehigh. McGorry's goal was her first of the season. Bucknell will attempt to continue its upward swing with a Saturday battle against Navy.

Colgate split its weekend contests against Lehigh and Lafayette. The Raiders were handed a 4-1 defeat by Lehigh before rebounding to claim a 1-0 win over Lafayette. Sarah Henderson and Danielle Wessler combined to produce the game-winner against the Leopards, as Henderson fed Wessler for the deciding goal. Ashley Walsh made five saves against Lafayette for her fifth shutout win of the season. Colgate will square off against League-leading American on Saturday.

Holy Cross dropped consecutive League games, falling to Navy and American. The Crusaders were beaten by a 2-0 count in both contests. Despite being held scoreless last week, Shelby Stand enters the week leading the League with 0.50 goals per game. Holy Cross will play its first home Patriot League game on Saturday when it hosts Lehigh for a critical League match-up.

Lafayette was handed back-to-back shutout defeats on the road in League play. The Leopards fell to Bucknell by a 2-0 margin before dropping a 1-0 decision to Colgate. The Leopards, now 0-3, are the only Patriot League team without a point in League play. Lafayette will aim to change that on Saturday when they meet Army in West Point.

Lehigh scored a resounding 4-1 win over Colgate on Friday before dropping a 3-1 decision at Bucknell on Sunday. The Mountain Hawks' win in Hamilton gave Lehigh one more win than it achieved all of last season. Liz Carlos, who had a four-point weekend, leads the team in assists (5) and points (11). She is tied for the team lead in goals with three. Lehigh will be on the road on Saturday for a crucial League game against Holy Cross.

Navy extended its Patriot League unbeaten streak to 16 matches with shutout victories over Army and Holy Cross. The Mids have not lost a regular season League game since Oct. 19, 2006. Navy is 11-0-5 in that span. Dating back to 2007, Navy has won 28 straight games when scoring first. Navy will hit the road for the first time in League play when meeting Bucknell on Saturday.