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News Release

Stony Brook, Hartford on Tap for Women’s Soccer This Week

10/7/2009


Freshman Aly Gazarek

BALTIMORE—The UMBC women’s soccer team (1-9-1, 0-2-0 AE) continues its America East slate with a pair of conference games this week. The Retrievers travel to Stony Brook (3-7-2, 2-0-1 AE) on Thursday for a 7 p.m. kickoff, then return home to host Hartford (4-6-2, 0-1-1 AE) Sunday at 1 p.m. at UMBC Soccer Stadium.

Last Time Out: Coming off their first win of the season, a 4-1 decision at Delaware State on Friday, the Retrievers’ offense came out hungry Sunday against Vermont, but the Catamounts prevailed, 6-5. Junior midfielder Sandra Vacarino (Mantua, N.J./Clearview Regional) tallied back-to-back goals to give UMBC an early 2-0 lead, and she also added an assist on the final goal of the game. Junior back Christine Sadowski (Baltimore, Md./Kenwood), sophomore midfielder Danielle Kell (Willards, Md./Parkside) and freshman midfielder Sarah Purdum (West Fenwick Island, Del./Indian River) also scored for the Retrievers.

On The Seawolves: Stony Brook, the 2008 America East runner-up, started the season 1-7-1 but is unbeaten in its last three games, opening its America East schedule 2-0-1… The Seawolves are coming off a 2-1 victory over Binghamton on Sunday… Freshman forward Meghan Gilley leads the Seawolves with three goals and six points on the season, while freshman midfielder Sa’sha Kershaw also has six points on two goals and two assists… Senior goalkeeper Marisa Viola, the 2008 America East Goalkeeper of the Year, has played the majority of minutes between the pipes, recording a league-best 79 saves and a .790 save percentage… Viola tied Stony Brook’s career shutout record on Oct. 1.

The Series: UMBC trails Stony Brook in the all-time series, 3-6-1, The Retrievers’ last win occurred on Oct. 2, 2005, a 3-0 decision at the Seawolves’ Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium. Last season, Stony Brook won, 2-1, in Baltimore.

On The Hawks: Hartford is coming off a 2-1 loss to America East rival New Hampshire on Sunday and will face Binghamton on Thursday before heading to Baltimore… Eight players have scored at least one goal for the Hawks, led by freshman forward Alex Uscilla with four goals and two assists for 10 points… She ranks second in the America East in goals and third in points… Junior forward Mary Beth Hamilton is tied for the league lead with four assists… Sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Brodeur has played every minute, recording 68 saves and boasting a .791 save percentage… Hartford ranks second in the America East with 1.25 goals per game this season.

The Series: The Retrievers trail Hartford, 1-4-0, in the all-time series with their single win occurring on Oct. 6, 2005, a 1-0 victory in Baltimore. Last season, the Hawks picked up a 3-1 win in Hartford.

Offensive Outburst: After scoring just two goals through the first eight games of the season, the Retrievers have tallied nine in the last two contests to give them 11 on the year, surpassing last season’s total. It is the most goals UMBC has scored in two games since tallying 13 from Sept. 20-22, 2002 with a 1-0 win over Delaware and a 12-0 victory over Delaware State, while the five goals against Vermont are the most the Retrievers have scored in one game since a 5-1 victory over Howard on Sept. 30, 2005.

Kell Collects: Kell tallied two goals and two assists against Delaware State and Vermont last week to give her a team-best six points on the season, surpassing her totals from 2008, when she posted one goal and four points. She posted three points on a goal and an assist in each game. Kell had the helper on the game-winner against the Hornets, then cleaned up a rebound for the Retrievers’ fourth goal of the game. Two days later against Vermont, she gave UMBC a 4-3 lead early in the second half, then picked up an assist on the Retrievers’ last goal of the game.

Vacarino Vanquishes: Vacarino scored the first two goals of the game against the Catamounts on Sunday, then added an assist on the final tally to finish with five points. It was the first multi-goal game for a Retriever since Morgan Warrington scored twice at Albany on Oct. 26, 2008, and the first five-point game by a Retriever since Lori Quintavalle posted six at Mount St. Mary’s on Oct. 25, 2002. Vacarino’s totals against Vermont matched her career totals from her first two seasons at UMBC.

First Time for Everything: A number of Retrievers picked up their first career goals last week. Freshman back Aly Gazarek’s (Manassas, Va./Freedom/South Florida) game-winner against Delaware State was her first career tally, while junior midfielders Elyse Bilardo (Aston, Pa./Sun Valley) and Megan McDonald (Wyoming, Pa./Dallas) also found the back of the net for the first time against the Hornets. In addition, Purdum notched her first career goal against Vermont.

Spreading the Wealth: Seven different players scored for UMBC last week. Overall, eight different players have found the back of the net this season and 10 have tallied at least one point, led by Kell’s two goals and six points.

Saving the Day: Sophomore goalie Mo Van Vlerah (Ijamsville, Md./Northwest) ranks third in the America East with 6.73 saves per game this season and fourth with 74 saves. She stopped a career-high 14 shots at George Mason on Sept. 22, besting her 10-save effort in the previous game against George Washington. Van Vlerah has played every minute between the pipes for the Retrievers.

Extra, Extra: The Retrievers’ double-overtime tie with George Washington on Sept. 18 was their first overtime game since Oct. 7, 2007, at Maine, and their first tie since Sept. 21, 2007, at Sacred Heart. UMBC then went to extra time with VMI on Sept. 24 for its second game of more than 90 minutes this season after not playing one for nearly two years.

Underclassmen on Top: Thirty of UMBC’s 38 goals since 2007 have been scored by underclassmen, including 20 by freshmen. However, this season juniors are leading the way, tallying five of the Retrievers’ 11 goals in 2009.

Up Next: The Retrievers conclude their brief two-game homestand against America East rival Albany (5-6-1, 0-1-1 AE) on Thursday, Oct. 15, at 3:30 p.m. at UMBC Soccer Stadium.

Follow the Retrievers: UMBC fans can now keep up with their favorite teams in a number of new ways, as UMBC Athletics is now on social networking sites Facebook and Twitter.