Link to 2009 Skyline Conference Women's Soccer All-Star Team

Troy, NY----The Sage Colleges women's soccer team was rewarded for the player's successful season with the announcement of the 2009 Skyline Conference Women's Soccer All-Star Team. For the first time in program history, Sage had four players named to the First Team. Sage stands at 9-8-1 on the season and continues their season with competition this weekend in the 2009 Eastern College Athletic Conference Upstate Division III Tournament.

Over the course of the season, Sage would rack up a 5-4 record in conference play, while earning a spot in the league's post-season tournament. The Gators tallied the program's first post-season win as they beat Mt. St. Mary College in the quarterfinals, before bowing from the tournament in the semifinals. The Gators received a second post-season bid with the announcement of the 2009 ECAC Upstate Division III Tournament field. Sage earned the No. 3 seed and will face fourth seeded Medaille College on November 14 on the campus of Brockport State. The semifinal winners will meet for the championship title on November 15 at noon. The Gators bring a record of 9-8-1 into the tournament.

Headlining the selections for the Gators were junior goalie Brittany McDonald (Schenectady, NY/Schalmont), junior back Samantha DeFoe (Galway, NY/Galway),  junior midfielder Ashley Allain (Stillwater, NY/Stillwater),  and sophomore forward Rebecca Marszalek (Adams, MA/Hoosac Valley).

Over the course of the season, Sage would rack up a 5-4 record in conference play, while earning a spot in the league's post-season tournament. The Gators tallied the program's first post-season win as they beat Mt. St. Mary College in the quarterfinals, before bowing from the tournament in the semifinals. The Gators received a second post-season bid with the announcement of the 2009 Eastern College Athletic Conference Upstate Division III Tournament field. Sage earned the No. 3 seed and will face fourth seeded Medaille College on November 14 on the campus of Brockport State. The semifinal winners will meet for the championship title on November 15 at noon. The Gators bring a record of 9-8-1 into the tournament.

In her first season with Sage, McDonald has been outstanding in net. She would collect six solo shutouts and one shared shutout this fall. She leads the Skyline Conference with her shutouts (0.33) and ranks second in the league with her .861 saves percentage, third in saves with 136, and fifth in goals against average (1.26). She earned player of the week honors from both the Skyline Conference and the ECAC this fall as well.

DeFoe would connect the game-winning goal in the Skyline Tournament as she converted a corner kick for a score to lift the Gators past Mt. St. Mary, 1-0. The goal was the third of the year for DeFoe, who has played in all 18 games now and sports seven points from her defensive position.

A team tri-captain for the Gators, Allain leads the team and the league with her 0.62 assists per game average.  Allain has four goals, 10 assists and 18 points this fall, which is second best on the 2009 squad and leads the conference in assists per game as well. The selection to the First Team is a repeat honor for Allain who was also chosen in 2008 after connecting on 11 points with her three goals and five assists. As a rookie, she was named to the Second Team in 2007, Sage's first season in the Skyline Conference after connecting on 17 points off five goals with seven assists. Allain now has 12 career goals with 22 assists, good enough for 46 career points in her three campaigns with Sage.

Rounding out the team's first-team picks is the team's leading scorer this fall, Marszalek. She has racked up a personal-best 32 points on 15 goals and two assists. She surpassed her totals from her rookie season (14g, 3 a, 31 pts.) and now has 29 goals, five assists and 63 points. She currently ranks third all-time with her career goals and is f ourth on the career point list as well in just 36 games played as a Gator. Marszalek ranks third in the conference with her 1.78 points per game average, while her 0.83 goals per game ranks third highest amongst the players in the conference this fall. She leads the league with her five game-winning goals (0.28 per game).

-30-