Soccer
Witham, McKenna, Rutledge, Briglia honored by GNAC
WEST HARTFORD, Conn., Nov. 9, 2009 – Four Saint Joseph College soccer players were named to the GNAC All-Conference teams it was announced by the league today.
Senior goalkeeper Cait Witham (Prospect, Conn.) and senior defender Susie McKenna (Southbury, Conn.) were named to the First Team. Junior forward Paige Briglia (Watertown, Conn.) and junior midfielder Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) were named Second Team selections.
McKenna is the first Saint Joseph College soccer player to be named All-GNAC first team three times. She anchored a defense which improved throughout the season and was a key to the Blue Jays allowing only two goals in their final eight games.
Witham played every minute of the team’s 20 games. She led the GNAC with 138 saves, nine shutouts and a 0.96 goals against average.
Rutledge led the Blue Jays with 11 goals and 23 points. She led the GNAC with six game-winning goals and had a stretch of four game-winners in four games from Oct. 10-20. Briglia tied for second on the team with five goals and shared the team lead with four assists.
Saint Joseph finished 11-6-3 overall and reached the semifinal round of the GNAC tournament. Witham and junior forward Eva Peart (Bloomfield, Conn.) were named to the All-Tournament team.
Blue Jays lose GNAC Semifinal, 1-0
BOSTON, Mass., Wed. Nov. 4, 2009 – Amber DiNucci (Assonet, Mass.) scored on a breakaway 26:08 into the game as second-seeded Emmanuel defeated No. 6 St. Joseph 1-0 in a GNAC semifinal in Boston.
The loss ended the season for the Blue Jays, who finished 11-6-3. Emmanuel (14-5-1) will host No. 5 Simmons Saturday for the GNAC Championship and an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Emmanuel outshot St. Joseph 13-7 and had more shots on goal, 10-4 and corner kicks, 5-3. Senior Cait Witham (Prospect, Conn.) made nine saves for the Blue Jays, all in the second half.
Blue Jays Win GNAC Tournament Game; Semifinal Next
NEWTON, Mass., Nov. 1, 2009 – Junior forward Eva Peart (Bloomfield, Conn.) drilled home a rebound with 10:10 remaining as sixth-seeded St. Joseph College defeated No. 3 Lasell 1-0 Sunday in a GNAC quarterfinal game.
St. Joseph advances to Wednesday’s semifinal, when it plays at No. 2 Emmanuel at 7 p.m.
Lasell outshot St. Joseph 25-13 and had a 15-8 advantage in shots on goal, but St. Joseph senior Cait Witham (Prospect, Conn.) made 15 saves for her fourth consecutive shutout, sixth in her past seven games and ninth of the season.
“We had our backs up against it at times, but the back four and Cait were great,” St. Joseph coach Chris LeGates said. “When we got the opportunity, Eva pounced on a loose ball. I’m excited about moving on to the next round. That’s a good team we beat today.”
On the winning goal, Melissa Maddaloni (Cheshire, Conn.) made a free kick into the penalty area and Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) had her shot deflected by Lasell goalkeeper Elizabeth Stickley. But Peart booted in the rebound down the middle of the goal from four yards.
St. Joseph is 11-5-3 and advances to a GNAC semifinal for the second consecutive year. The Blue Jays have gone 6-0-2 in their past eight games. Lasell finished 10-7-2.
Blue Jays battle Simmons to scoreless tie
BOSTON, Mass., Oct. 25, 2009 -- Senior Cait Witham (Prospect, Conn.) made seven saves for her eighth shutout of the season, but St. Joseph College was also kept off the scoreboard as the Blue Jays played to a scoreless tie against Simmons Sunday. 
St. Joseph finished the regular season 10-5-3 overall and 7-3-2 in GNAC and will await word on its league playoff opponent. Simmons is 9-5-3 overall and 7-2-3 in the league.
Simmons outshot St. Joseph 23-13, but the Blue Jays had more quality shots, holding an 8-7 advantage in shots on goal. St. Joseph also had more corner kicks, 6-3.
Witham earned her third consecutive shutout, fifth in the past six games and had her GNAC-leading goals against average drop to 1.01.
"Simmons is a good team and that's a tough place to play," St. Joseph coach Chris LeGates said. "To come out with a tie is a fair result."
St. Joseph wins again with strong finish
WEST HARTFORD, Conn., Oct. 20, 2009 – Sophomore Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) scored her team-leading 11th goal and junior Paige Briglia (Watertown, Conn.) had her fifth, both in the second half, as St. Joseph College defeated Norwich University, 2-0 Tuesday in a GNAC game at St. Joseph.
St. Joseph improved to 10-5-2 overall and 7-3-1 in the GNAC. Norwich is 7-8-1, 4-5-1. St. Joseph reached the 10-win mark for the fourth time in the past five years and fifth time in its 15-year history. The Blue Jays are 8-0-1 at home this season.
"Every time we play Norwich, it's a hard, close game," St. Joseph coach Chris LeGates said. "We did the little things to win and I'm proud of the entire team."
Rutledge scored from point-blank range, 5:07 into the second half after taking a cross from the left side from Alyssa Papotto (Meriden, Conn.). St. Joseph junior Eva Peart (Bloomfield, Conn.) was taken down in the box and Briglia converted a penalty kick with 26:49 to play.
Blue Jays senior Cait Witham (Prospect, Conn.) made 14 saves for her seventh shutout of the season.
Norwich outshot St. Joseph, 19-18. Norwich junior Nicki Hunsaker (Emmaus, Pa.) made 13 saves. Freshman Brittany Casey (Pointe-Claire, Que.) took eight shots for the Cadets and junior Nikki Szczepanski (Auburn, N.Y.) had five.
St. Joseph plays its final regular-season game Sat. Oct. 24 at Simmons at 1 p.m. Norwich hosts Rivier, Saturday at 1 p.m.
Blue Jays win on Senior Day
WEST HARTFORD, Conn., Oct 17, 2009 – Sophomore Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) and junior Paige Briglia (Watertown, Conn.) scored second-half goals to lead St. Joseph College to a 2-0 victory Saturday over Pine Manor.
Seniors Emily Johnson (Avon, Conn.), Amanda Coutu (Lebanon, Conn.), Cait Witham (Prospect, Conn.), Susie McKenna (Southbury, Conn.) and Joanna White (Granby, Mass.) were all honored before playing in their final regular-season weekend home game.
Witham, who has played every minute of the Blue Jays' 16 games in goal, needed to make just one save for her sixth shutout of the season and third in the past four games. St. Joseph (9-5-2 overall, 6-3-1 GNAC) is 4-0-1 in its past five games. Pine Manor is 3-10-1, 0-10.
Rutledge scored in the 64th minute off a corner kick from Briglia, who scored an unassisted goal from 12 yards in the 81st minute. St. Joseph outshot Pine Manor 26-1 and had a 15-0 advantage in corner kicks.
St. Joseph hosts Norwich Tue. Oct. 20 in its final regular-season home game.
Rutledge scores twice in win
East Providence, R.I., Oct. 12, 2009 – Sophomore Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) scored two second-half goals -- her team-leading eighth and ninth of the season -- to lead Saint Joseph to a 2-1 victory against Johnson & Wales University Monday in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference contest at Pierce Field.
Johnson & Wales got on the board first when junior Colleen Marasco scored 10:16 into the contest and the Wildcats took the one-goal lead into halftime.
The visiting Blue Jays struck early in the second half when Rutledge collected a loose ball in the box and buried a shot into the lower right corner of the net to tie the score 1-1 at the 46:02 mark. The two teams then battled for the next 25 minutes with both teams having solid scoring chances. Saint Joseph was awarded a kick at the 82:55 mark and sophomore Melissa Maddaloni (Cheshire, Conn.) fed a pass to Rutledge who then scored her second goal of the game to give Saint Joseph the 2-1 victory.
Saint Joseph improved to 8-5-2, 5-3-1 in league play. Johnson & Wales is 8-4 overall and 5-3 in the GNAC.
The Blue Jays host Pine Manor Sat. Oct. 17 at 1 p.m.
Balanced offense, tight defense in GNAC win
NASHUA, N.H., Oct. 10, 2009 – Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) was the first of four goal scorers, 9:18 into the game and St. Joseph College held Rivier to two shots on goal as the Blue Jays defeated Rivier 4-0 Saturday in a league game.
St. Joseph improved to 7-5-2 overall and 4-3-1 in the GNAC. Rivier is 3-6-1 and 1-6-1.
Amber White (Bristol, Conn.) scored with 2:35 remaining in the half to give the Blue Jays a 2-0 lead at intermission. Eva Peart (Bloomfield, Conn.) and Alyssa Papotto (Meriden, Conn.) scored second-half goal for St. Joseph.
St. Joseph next plays Monday, Oct. 12 at Johnson & Wales (4 p.m.) and its next home game is Sat. Oct. 17 against Pine Manor at 1 p.m.
Defense rules in scoreless tie
CHICOPEE, Mass., Oct. 8, 2009 – St. Joseph College senior goalkeeper Cait Witham (Prospect, Conn.) made seven saves over two scoreless halves and a pair of overtimes periods as Saint Joseph College and Elms College battled to a 0-0 stalemate in Thursday night’s non-conference game at Leary Field.
Saint Joseph is 6-5-2 overall; Elms is 4-7-1.
St. Joseph outshot Elms, 20-15 and Elms freshman Molly Corse (Bernardston, MA) made eight saves. Blue Jays sophomore Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) took six shots, while junior Eva Peart (Bloomfield, Conn.) followed with five.
St. Joseph next plays Sat. Oct. 10 at Rivier and has its next home game Sat. Oct. 17 against Pine Manor at 1 p.m.
Quick overtime goal gives Blue Jays 2-1 win
WEST HARTFORD, Conn., Oct. 3, 2009 – Senior Emily Johnson (Avon, Conn.) scored 10 seconds after the overtime kickoff as St. Joseph defeated Mount Ida, 2-1 Saturday in a GNAC game at St. Joseph College.
Paige Brigilia (Watertown, Conn.) took the kickoff from Eva Peart (Bloomfield, Conn.) and played a ball outside to Johnson, who scored the winner from 15 yards. St. Joseph improved to 6-5-1 overall and 3-3-1 in the conference.
St. Joseph sophomore Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) scored in the first half to give the Blue Jays a 1-0 lead, but Mount Ida (2-7-1, 0-6) tied the score on a goal from Katie Lorenco with 6:28 to play in regualtion.
The game was played after St. Joseph's first alumni game, which attracted 25 former players.
"It's a good win, and exciting win," St. Joseph coach Chris LeGates said. "To do it in front of the alumni was rewarding. Plus it's a conference win, which is always big."
St. Joseph next plays at Elms, Thursday October 8 at 7 p.m. The Blue Jays next home game is Sat. Oct. 17 against Pine Manor at 1 p.m.
Late goal moves Lasell past St. Joseph, 2-1
NEWTON, MASS., Sept. 29, 2009 – Reegan Brackett (Scarborough, Maine) scored from 25 yards with seven seconds remaining to break a 1-all tie as Lasell defeated St. Joseph Tuesday in a GNAC game.
After a scoreless first half, St. Joseph scored in the 58th minute to lead 1-0. Kelley Downey (East Hampton, Conn.) began the path to the Blue Jays go-ahead goal when she broke away from defenders and dished the ball to Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) who tipped the ball in the net from just outside the six-yard box.
Lasell freshman Alexis Vumbaco (Meriden, Conn.) stepped up to a loose ball at 77:31, and sent a bullet from long distance which soared just out of reach of St. Joseph's keeper Cait Witham (South Windsor, Conn.) to tie the score, 1-1. Witham made 11 saves for the Blue Jays.
"I thought we played our best 75 minutes of the year," St. Joseph coach Chris LeGates said. "The problem is the game is 90 minutes. We need to find a way to play better in the last 15 minutes of games."
St. Joseph hosts Mount Ida, Saturday Oct. 3 at 1 p.m.
Blue Jays Dominate Bay Path for First Win of 2009 Campaign
WEST HARTFORD, Conn., September 8, 2009 – Saint Joseph College sophomore Holly Mirabella (Seymour, Conn.) notched the game-winner in the 18th minute of play as the Blue Jays defeated visiting Bay Path College in non-conference action this afternoon on campus in West Hartford.
The Blue Jays improve to 1-2 with the victory while the Wildcats fall to 0-2 on the year.
Mirabella scored with just over 27 minutes to play in the opening half on a feed from Jessie Krol (Milford, Conn.) and sophomore Stacey Rutledge (Meriden, Conn.) added a second goal of the half just 12 minutes later; Kelley Downey (East Hampton, Conn.) was credited with the assist.
SJC sophomore Krista Watts (Wolcott, Conn.) found the back of the net just 18 seconds into the second half and junior Eva Peart (Bloomfield, Conn.) made it a 4-0 final in the 81st minute.
The Blue Jays dominated the contest out-shooting the Wildcats 47-3 including 23-1 in shots-on-goal. Samantha Gunseth (Swanzey, N.H.) turned away 19 attempts as she was peppered with shots all game long.
The Blue Jays are back in action on Thursday at home against UMass Boston at 4:00 p.m.
RPI Too Much for Women's Soccer; Engineers Shut Down Blue Jays, 4-0
TROY, N.Y. – Rookie forward Shannon Maguire (Randolph, NJ/Randoph) scored a goal in each half to propel the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) women’s soccer team to a 4-0 victory over Saint Joseph College in the final game of the 2009 RPI Classic on Sunday. The Engineers improve to 2-1 on the season while the Blue Jays drop to 0-2.
Maguire opened the scoring in the first half, pushing the homestanding Engineers ahead just 9:21 into the contest. Picking up a loose ball off a deflection at the top of the penalty box, Maguire sent a shot sailing into the top right corner of the net.
Rensselaer moved ahead by a two-goal margin less than five minutes later as freshman Nikki Goodsell (Danbury, CT/Danbury), a midfielder, drove a cross from junior Tracy Breslin (Latham, NY/Shaker) past Blue Jays goalie Cait Witham (Prospect, CT/Woodland) at 9:21.
Mid-way through the first half, senior captain Jacquelyn Garlasco (Paramus, NJ/Immaculate Heart Academy) gave RPI a 3-0 lead after she converted a corner by Goodsell into the upper right corner of the net at 29:32.
The Engineers dominated ball control in the second half of action, holding a 13-1 advantage in shots and a 4-0 edge in corner kicks.
The final scoring of the game came off the foot of Maguire, who ducked around a defender and sent a hard shot into the bottom right corner past a diving Witham at 76:58.
Senior Jaclyn Henry (West Warwick, RI/West Warwick), who was forced to make just one save on the afternoon, earned her second victory of the season for the Engineers. Witham stopped 13 shots in the Blue Jays goal.
Rensselaer held the advantage in shots for the game, 22-5, and led in corner kicks, 5-0.
The Engineers return to action on Wednesday when it travels to Bard College for a 7pm contest. Saint Joseph is back on the pitch on Tuesday when it hosts Bay Path College at 4pm.
Blue Jays Fall to Union, 4-0, in Season Opener; Witham Stops Nine in Loss
TROY, N.Y. – Sophomore Jessica Strang scored two goals and senior Allison Cuozzo had two assists to lead the Union College women’s soccer team to a 4-0 victory over Saint Joseph College in the first game of the 2009 RPI Classic at Renwyck Field. The game was the season opener for both teams.
Strang (Rotterdam, NY) and Cuozzo (Norfolk, MA) worked together on the second and fourth goals of the game, while two goalkeepers shared the shutout for the Dutchwomen.
Union took the lead at 14:02 when junior Catilin O'Donnell (Hampden, MA) scored off a corner by Katie Weinstein (Marblehead, MA). Cuozzo set up the second goal when she gathered the ball and dribbled down the right side to the goal line in the box. She passed back to Strang, who sent a shot in from near the penalty line at 26:45.
Senior Bianca Germain (Albany, NY) made it 3-0 for Union early in the second half when she scored into an open net as Saint Joseph goalie Cait Witham (Prospect, CT) came out to play the ball on a cross. Junior Katie McLean (Newton, MA) was credited with the assist.
Strang’s second goal of the game finished the scoring at 54:13. Cuozzo carried the ball to midfield and sent a long pass to Strang, who sprinted past a defender, corralled the ball and went in alone on Witham, shooting it past her right side.
Abby Stohler (West Hartford, CT) started the game for the Dutchwomen, making one save in the first half. Melissa McDonald (Lynnfield, MA) stopped two shots in the second half. Witham finished with nine saves for the Blue Jays, who were outshot 23-6.
The RPI Classic continues on Sunday as Union plays Plattsburgh State at 11am while Saint Joseph takes on the host, Rensselaer, at 1pm. All tournament games feature live statistics at http://sidearmstats.com/rpi/wsoc/.
Soccer Picked Third in GNAC Pre-Season Poll
BOSTON, August 28, 2009 -- The Saint Joseph College soccer team has been picked to finish third overall in the 14-school Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) pre-season coaches' poll as announced by the conference this week. The Blue Jays received 67 total points in the voting including one first place vote. SJC was third in the voting behind St. Joseph's of Maine with 81 points and Emmanuel College with 80 points; five different institutions received first place votes.
The Blue Jays finished the 2008 campaign with a 14-5-3 overall record and made their second appearance in school history in the ECAC Tournament. In 2009, the Blue Jays set over 12 school records including stifling opposing offenses with a school-record 13 shut-outs. SJC finished the conference season with a record of 8-2-2 overall but were ousted from the GNAC Tournament when Norwich advanced to the finals on penalty-kicks.
SJC returns its top five scorers from a year ago including junior Paige Briglia (Watertown, Conn.) who owns the school-record for goals in a season with 17 in 2009. Junior striker Eva Peart (Bloomfield, Conn.) is another key returner on the offensive side of the ball as she scored 10 goals last year with a team-high seven assists.
On defense, the Blue Jays return All-New England selection Susie McKenna (Southbury, Conn.) while First-Team All-Conference goalkeeper Cait Witham (Prospect, Conn.) will be the last line of defense in net. Head coach, Chris LeGates, now entering his 13th season stands just four wins shy of the 100th for his career.
The Blue Jays will kick off the 2009 season with an exhibition match at Eastern Conn. State University on Sunday (August 30) night on the road before the first official match against Union College (at RPI) on Saturday, September 5 in Troy, N.Y.
Blue Jays Announce 2009 Schedule
Saint Joseph College head soccer coach Chris LeGates has announced his squad's schedule for the fall of 2009. The Blue Jays are coming off a historic season in which they won a school-record 14 games and set more than 12 school records. The Blue Jays will open up the year with a pair of games at the RPI Tournament in Troy, N.Y. on Labor Day weekend and will open up at home against Emmanuel College on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 1:00 p.m. See Complete Schedule here.
