Hitting the Links - August 19

The summer months without any America East sports are officially over.

Excited?

Yeah, you should be.

Joe Spallina

The spring lacrosse season is more than six months out but news from the sport highlights a busy week on the 'links.' Stony Brook's women's lacrosse program hired a new head coach back in June when it brought in Joe Spallina to take the reins.  Spallina compiled a 73-2, yes 73-2, record and three straight Division II National Championships in four seasons at Adelphi University.  Now, a number of his former players are following him to Stony Brook.  Not just any former players: Division II Attacker of the Year Claire Peterson, Midfielder of the Year Demmianne Cook, and Goalie of the Year Frankie Caridi, among others.  If Spallina has anywhere near the same success at Stony Brook as he did at Adelphi, the Seawolves are going to have to expand the trophy case because some serious hardware could be coming in.

There has been some tremendous international flavor to the summer for America East schools. The Stony Brook men's basketball team has gone 3-1 in its five-game, 11-day tour of Europe.  

The UAlbany men's basketball team embarked on its tour of the True North when it departed for Canada yesterday.  The Danes will play 5 games in Canada while getting to know each quite a bit.  Bill Herrion will lead his New Hampshire Wildcat men's basketball squad to Canada next week, while the women's programs at Boston U. and Hartford will venture to Spain and France, respectively, for some international preseason tune-ups.  AExtra will continue its coverage of those teams next week.


UAlbany is also doing more than playing basketball on foreign soil.  Four students are teaching, building playgrounds, schools, orphanages, and raising money for villages in Uganda.  The students were awarded first prize in the Newman’s Own Foundation national campus community service challenge which provided them with this opportunity. 

Meanwhile, back on domestic ground, more basketball non-conference schedules have been released.  Both the men's and women's squads at Binghamton unveiled the calender, with the UAlbany men and Stony Brook women following suit.

UMaine baseball seems to be getting stronger and stronger since winning the America East title back in May.  Heavy hitting twins, Justin and Ian Leisenheimer,  were able to lock down scholarships for their final season in Orono and second-team All-Conference shortstop Michael Fransoso will not require more surgery on his once-operated hip.     

The fall season starts today, believe it or not, so the conference office has been busy this week releasing the preseason coaches' polls.  Boston U. received some love from opposing coaches being selected to win conference glory in men's soccer, women's soccer and field hockey.  UAlbany and UMBC were tabbed the preseason favorites to battle for the volleyball championship.  

Stony Brook's Dominique Adamo

2010 America East Defender of Year, Boston U.'s Colin Henry was one of several men's soccer player making news this week.  Henry was featured in a Boston Globe story in which he was dubbed an 'Ironman' on the pitch.  His teammate Michael Bustamante and UMBC's Andrew Bulls were named to the College Soccer News preseason All-American third team.  Both also find their names on the Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Watch List.  The national player of the year will be chosen from that list. 

Games on tap today are all women's soccer contests.  Binghamton hosts Buffalo, UMBC pays a visit to American University, Stony Brook is at Siena, Hartford is on the road at Old Dominion and the game of the afternoon is the crosstown matchup between #4 B.C. and Boston U.

Volleyball: Who to Watch

 It's fast paced.  It's high intensity.  It's bump-set-spike...

It's another season of America East Volleyball and it's at our doorstep.

The conference released the annual preseason poll today with reigning conference champion UAlbany tied with conference finalist UMBC atop the coaces' poll, each receiving three first-place votes.  Binghamton tallied the final first-place vote and sits in third-place.

Some big names are set to have even bigger impacts for their teams in 2011 so let's take a gander at some notable returners. 

Albany graduated 2011 Player of the Year Teresa Coppiellie, but will have a former conference player of the year returning to the court as Brooke Stanley makes her way back from a knee injury that cost her almost the entire 2010 season.  Stanley earned the conference's top prize in 2009 to go along with Setter of the Year honors that same season.  The Great Danes also boast a 2010 first-team all-conference middle blocker Casey Wright to go along with the conference's three-time Defensive Specialist of the Year Laurie Gonzalez.  Tabbed a preseason All-American, Gonzalez could become the first player in conference history to earn an individual honor four consecutive years if she continues her stellar defensive play in 2011. 

UMBC's senior tandem of middle blocker Iman Kennedy and setter Allie Spaay have played in the America East championship tournament their first three seasons in Baltimore.  Kennedy finished second in the conference in blocks and Spaay distributed the ball nicely to the tune of 9.45 assists per set.  Expect big things from those two on a very young Retriever squad.  

Binghamton's Julie Chambers dished out a league leading 9.82 assists per set in 2010 and will lead a squad in Vestal looking to make its eighth straight appearance in the conference tourney.  

Pay attention to 2010 Rookie of the Year Evann Slaughter who, in addition to having the best name for a volleyball player in the conference, lived up to her name last year blasting 173 kills in her first season with the Seawolves.  New Hampshire's Destiny Tolliver joined Slaughter on the All-Rookie squad and should have a breakout season in Durham for the Wildcats. 

Hartford broke Albany's 26-match conference winning streak last year and should be much improved again with Kami Nethersole, second-team selection in 2010, hitting away from the outside.  

And despite playing on a squad that struggled some last year in its first year in the conference, Providence's Lauren Fletcher should be a huge threat for opposing defenses.  She notched almost four kills per set on her way to a second-team all-conference nod.

The 2011 season opens up on Aug. 26 with all seven teams in action across the country.

Great Danes Head to Canada

The University at Albany men’s basketball team won 16 games last season.  The Great Danes won seven the year before.  That nine game swing makes the team’s upcoming jaunt to Canada all the more exciting. 

UAlbany will take the court against five Canadian universities on its tour of the Quebec and Ontario provinces.

The Great Danes made an international trip in 2007 and now in accordance with NCAA guidelines which allow for a foreign tour every four years, they will be on the road again. 

“I think our kids are really looking forward to the trip and the coaching staff is really excited about the opportunity to be able to practice for 10 days,” head coach Will Brown said in a recent conversation with AExtra.  “The biggest thing, though, is that we have the opportunity for team building exercises and experiences.”

UAlbany Head Coach Will Brown

The team will open in Montreal taking on the University of Quebec at Montreal, McGill University and Dawson College the first couple of days of the trip.  Ontario will see the conclusion of the Great Danes’ trip with games against the University of Ottawa and Carleton University. 

Traveling to a foreign country is nothing new for several members of the team who hail from the land down under.  Hopefully, for Albany’s sake, getting to Canada will be a lot less eventful for Aussies LukeDevlin, Peter Hooley and Sam Rowley.  Gerardo Suero gives some more international flair to squad as he calls the Dominican Republic home.   

Before bowing out to Stony Brook in the America East Conference tournament, UAlbany had a rebound year in 2010-2011.  Coach Brown wants to set the foundation of an attitude and mentality during this trip that he believes will be the key to an even better season.

“We want to establish a work ethic that we feel needs to be consistent and contagious for us to be successful,” he said. 

Mike Black

Coach Brown also explained that this trip will be a great chance for the coaching staff to learn about the new players on the roster.  In fact, he admitted that his newcomers would see considerably more minutes than his returners on this trip with the goal of understanding his players even before the academic year starts.

“That’s what is really neat about these trips is that you can learn so much about your group and the personalities of that group before anything really starts,” Brown said. 

Understanding will also be a major theme off the court during the trip.  The players will receive an exercise in journalism and public speaking in an effort to learn about their teammates and coaches.   According to Coach Brown, each player will be paired with either another player or coach and they will have to interview each other before giving the entire team a 2-3 minute oral presentation about their partner. 

That means discussing more than just favorite foods.

“We’ll film [the presentations] and then I might say to Blake Metcalf, ‘Hey Blake, what’d you learn about Peter Hooley the other day?” Brown explained.  “I think the closer we become as a group, the more we know about each other, the better chemistry we’ll have and the better we will be as a program and as a team.” 

The Great Danes depart for the True North today.    

Men's Soccer: Who to Watch

If UMBC’s upset win over Princeton in the 2010 NCAA Tournament was any indication of what 2011 would bring, then we are in for an exciting fall in the America East.

The summer is winding down as the men’s soccer preseason poll was released today. Boston University edged out defending champion UMBC for the top spot while last year’s runner-up, UNH, was picked third.

Here are some names you ought to pay attention to this fall.

UMBC's Andrew Bulls

Boston U. senior Ben Berube tallied eight goals a year ago, tying him for second among league leaders only behind MLS draftee Levi Houapeu of UMBC. The Retrievers will be without the graduated Houapeu but return an America East record-setter from last year in Midfielder of the Year of Andrew Bulls. Tabbed a preseason third-team All-American by College Soccer News this season, he notched 15 helpers on his way to a second all-conference nod a year ago. It didn’t hurt that Houapeu was on the finishing end of most of those assists.

There will be no more America East goalkeeper of the year between the pipes for UNH with Colin O’Donnell graduating. Keep an eye out for the Wildcats’ Steve Palumbo, now in his sophomore season, to build on a rookie campaign that saw him find the back of the ‘ole onion bag six times. That’s one goal fewer than Stony Brook junior Rafael Abreu, who notched seven for the Seawolves a year ago.

Lastly, Binghamton’s Chris Hayen tallied four clean sheets for the Bearcats as a freshman in 2010 and is fit for a big year anchoring the back line in Vestal.

The Conference also welcomes three new head coaches for the fall. Stonty Brook will be under the direction of Ryan Anatol while Tom Poitras will take the reins at Hartford and Trevor Gorman will look to get Albany out of the America East cellar where it has dwelled for the last two seasons.

To add even more excitement to the fall, FOX Soccer will broadcast the regular season rematch of last year’s conference championship game when UMBC hosts New Hampshire in Baltimore on Oct. 14.

I think the only way the soccer season could get any better is if the America East brought in Ian Darke to call its soccer games.

That would be too cool.

Field Hockey: Who to Watch

Last year's America East field hockey season was one of the best in recent memory, as told by the following stats:

• America East finished fourth out of 11 Division I conferences in the NCAA's final 2010 RPI data. The only three conference's ahead of America East? BCS leagues ACC, Big Ten and Big East.
• The league recorded seven wins against the three BCS conferences ranked 1-2-3 in the RPI rankings, including five against the Big East. America East teams also earned seven wins against the CAA, a perennially tough league which ended the season ranked fifth behind America East.
• The conference finished third in Division I with a .5642 winning percentage.
• America East also ranked third overall in road success with a .4819 winning percentage in away games.
• The top four teams were mainstays in the NFHCA Top 20 poll and on the coaches' ballots. Albany (#15) and Boston U. (#20) were both still ranked in the year's final Division I poll.

The most eye-popping stat of all? 18 of 22 first and second-team all-conference selections from a year ago were underclassmen who will be returning this year, including all five major award-winners.

With all those talented players and teams with that much more experience under their belts, what kind of success is in store for this season?

We're taking a look at some of those talented players and making our picks for Players to Watch for the upcoming 2011 America East field hockey season. In no particular order, here they are...

Maine's Kelly Newton

Kelly Newton, Sr., Forward, Maine
Has been a first-team all-conference pick in each of her first three years as a Black Bear, was the 2008 Rookie of the Year, and the 2010 Offensive Player of the Year... The first America East 100-point scorer since Vermont's Danielle Collins in 2007, currently stands as the school record-holder with 112 career points, including a program-record 45 points last season... Ended last season with an eight-game points streak and a seven-game goal-scoring streak.

Jacinda McLeod, Jr., Back, Boston U.
One of two New Zealanders on this list, immediately made an impact for the Terriers in 2009 and continued in 2010 as the America East Defensive Player of the Year... Has 37 career points and five game-winning goals with a dangerous penalty corner shot... Uses her height (5' 11") and strength as an advantage on the last line of defense in the backfield. 

Taylor Luke, Jr., Back, Albany
Another talented defensive player and a unanimous first-team all-conference player... Made a conference-high seven defensive saves... Has played a significant role in Albany's scoring defense which has ranked near the top of Division I over the last two years.

Nicole van Oosterom, Jr., Midfield, Boston U.
The reigning America East Midfielder of the Year is another New Zealander who is back for the Terriers in 2011... Has started every game since joining the Boston U. team two years ago and takes a ton of shots... Led the Terriers a year ago with 48 shots, including 30 on goal, and finished third on the team with 14 points (5 g, 4 a).

Christina Patrick, Sr., Forward, Albany
Another returning first-team all-conference member, Patrick doubled her career goals during her junior year... She led the Great Danes with 16 goals last year, second in the conference only to Newton... Has 10 game-winning goals over the last two seasons, including the overtime goal against Rider in the 2010 NCAA Play-In game to send Albany to the NCAA Tournament.

Whitney Frates, Sr., Forward, New Hampshire
Frates is an All-American who had her best season in 2010...  Led the regular-season champion Wildcats with 11 goals, and finished with 30 points... Frates has proved to be a clutch player, scoring three game-winning goals last season while also factoring into all three of UNH's goals in the America East Championship semifinal game.

Marit Westenberg, Sr., Forward, Fairfield
Westenberg is a native of the Netherlands who has a great deal of skill and speed... She finished 2010 among league leaders with 11 goals and six assists for 28 points and earned her first career all-conference accolade on the second team.

Stephanie Gardiner, Sr., Midfield, Maine
Gardiner is another one of Maine's Canadian assets... Playing in the center of the field, Gardiner is one of the strongest players in the league and has an eye for distributing the ball... While other teams are busy trying to stop the Black Bear forwards, Gardiner steps up as a major scoring threat, finishing fourth in America East with 13 goals and seven assists.

Kristi Troch, Jr., Goalie, Albany

Albany's Kristi Troch

The 2010 Goalkeeper of the Year, Troch set the America East standard last year with a 1.17 GAA and also had a stellar .805 save percentage... She has split time in net with teammate Christine Hoffman and combined to secure 17 shutouts in two years, but it has been Troch that has evolved into the best goalkeeper in the league.

Kendall Deck, Sr., Back, New Hampshire
In addition to her role on the defense, Deck is a member of both Wildcat penalty corner units... She finished second on the team last year with 11 assists, second in the conference, and was named to the All-Conference Second Team.

Brittany Fleck, Sr., Goalie, Maine
Fleck is a three-year starter who received second-team all-conference honors last year... Ranked first in the league and second in the nation with a .807 save percentage in 2010... Went 13-5 last season with a 1.33 GAA.

Alana Izzo, Sr., Midfield, Vermont
Making the move from back to midfield in 2010, Izzo earned a spot on the All-Conference Second Team... She notched her first career points as a junior, leading the team with four assists to go along with one goal... Izzo also made two defensive saves.

Lelia Sacré, Sr., Back, Maine
A very talented defender who arguably has the hardest hit ball in the league... The British Columbian started her collegiate career at Syracuse and transferred to Maine for the 2009 season, where she was tabbed a member of the All-Northeast Region First Team and a unanimous America East First-Team selection... Had to sit out last year due to health reasons, but could make a huge impact if she is ready to return.

Transfers to Watch:

Tabi Hatch, Boston U. (Towson)
Spent two seasons in the CAA as a member of the Towson program and will have two seasons of eligibility remaining... As a forward, scored seven goals and dished out four assists last season to finish second on the team with 18 points... If her scoring touch continues, could be a valuable asset to the Terriers' offense.

Chantae Miller, Albany (Michigan State)
Highly-touted recruit out of East Amherst, N.Y. who spent her first two years at Michigan State and earned All-Big Ten Conference second-team honors... Is the only player in U.S. high school field hockey history to score 100 goals and record 100 assists (126 g, 117 a), and can do a lot of damage in the score book at the collegiate level as well... Amassed 58 career points at Michigan State on 20 goals and 18 assists.

Whitlee Burghardt, Vermont (Syracuse)
A native of Vestal, N.Y., Burghardt will play in the Catamounts' midfield after transferring from the Orange... Played one year in Syracuse, giving her three years of eligibility in Burlington... Has post-season experience with a Syracuse team that advanced to the second round of the NCAAs.

Women's Soccer: Who to Watch

This is day one of the preseason polls and today we feature women’s soccer on AExtra.

A unanimous selection to repeat as America East champions, Boston U. finds itself in the top spot. This should come as no surprise to any America East soccer fans. The Terriers have won four straight conference titles and return the 2010 America East Striker of the Year, Midfielder of the Year, Goalkeeper of the Year and Rookie of the Year. Not too shabby.

Senior Jessica Luscinski, the Striker of the Year, highlights that group of talent. Luscinski tallied 31 points last year and will be back to lead an offense that outscored opponents 50-12 in 2010. That was also in large part due to a defense that didn’t surrender a goal in 13 consecutive games, a span of almost 1300 minutes. Boston U. can thank the goalkeeping duo of Alice Binns and Kelly King, both of whom will be back for another year between the posts.

But don’t be surprised to see other top league performers lead their squads to conference glory. Stony Brook’s Dominique Adamo was a first-team All-America East midfielder in 2010 who ranked sixth in scoring in the conference. The Seawolves received the only other first-place vote in the preseason poll.

Keep an eye out for Albany’s Rebecca Lee who leads the Great Dane attack which features 21 letterwinners from a team that notched the programs most wins since the 1988 season. Maine, meanwhile, boasts a junior goalkeeper with 32 caps under her belt in the form of Meagan Price-Leibenzeder. She led Maine to the America East championship game as the No. 6 seed last year.

New Hampshire boasts a number of all-conference honorees and will bring back five of its six top scorers. Chelsea Kuss, who ranked fourth in the conference in assists, and Monique Lamotte could be dangerous for the Wildcats.

The America East welcomes one new head coach to the league in University of Vermont’s Kristi Lefebvre. She inherits a Catamount team that went 1-7-0 in conference play, but also brings back all-rookie team member Haley Marks.

It’s going to take something magical to knock Boston U. off its throne so stay tuned to AmericaEast.com and to the AExtra blog for all the soccer action this fall.