University of Massachusets Athletics
Atlantic 10 Announces Women's Soccer All-Conference Teams
November 02, 2005 | Women's Soccer
Nov. 2, 2005
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Rhode Island senior forward Melanie Kasparek and junior midfielder Courtney Hulcer of Saint Louis have been named the 2005 Atlantic 10 women`s soccer Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively, in voting conducted among the Conference's head coaches.
In that same vote, Nikki Dumencich of Charlotte was named Rookie of the Year and Rhode Island's Zac Shaw was selected as Coach of the Year. In a vote of the A-10's sports information directors, Kasparek was selected as Student-Athlete of the Year.
Kasparek garners her second A-10 Offensive Player of the Year award in three seasons after leading the Conference in goals (13) and points (31). The Trumbull, CT, resident has dished out five assists and tallied three game-winning goals for Rhode Island, which enters this week's A-10 Championship as the No. 2 seed after finishing the regular season with a 6-1-1 league record (10-5-2 overall).
Hulcer anchors a Saint Louis defense that has allowed a league-low 14 goals en route to capturing the Atlantic 10 regular season title and No. 1 seed in this week's Championship with a perfect 8-0-0 Conference record (13-4-0 overall). A native of St. Louis, MO, the junior midfielder has recorded a school-record 15 assists, good for second in the A-10 and sixth nationally, along with a career-high 19 points.
With Dumencich anchoring the front line, Charlotte posted a 10-8 overall record and a 6-3-0 A-10 ledger as it enters this week's Atlantic 10 Championship as the No. 3 seed. The Greensboro, NC, resident started all 18 games for the 49ers and tallied a team-high nine goals - two of which were game-winners - to go along with a pair of assists for 20 points.
Hulcer and Melanie Kasparek are joined on the All-Conference first-team by Melanie's twin sister Megan; Saint Louis teammates Lachlyne Eastman, Kelly Ferguson, Tara Gresco and Maureen Hughes; Alicija Bedlo, Niki Reed and Reba Sedlacek of Dayton; Lindsey Beam of Charlotte; Emily Sedgwick of Duquesne; Kristin Walker of Massachusetts; Heather MacDougall of St. Bonaventure; and Hillary Prince of Richmond.
The second-team is comprised of Dumencich and forwards Audra Mathews of Duquesne, St. Bonaventure's Kerry O'Malley, and Alisha Paine of Saint Joseph's; midfielders Thorunn Jonsdottir of Rhode Island, Kimmy Leigh of Saint Joseph's, Dayton's Katie Lowstuter, Alexis Petrucci of La Salle, and George Washington's Kerry Philbin; and backs Kelsie Ormsby and Lindsey Palmiero of Charlotte, Jess Daugherty of Saint Joseph's, and George Washington's Shari Taylor. The second-team keepers are Ria Carroll of Rhode Island and Richmond's Kelly Kolker.
Dumencich headlines the All-Rookie team which consists of second-team member Philbin, Susan Boyer and Jessie Wolfe of Richmond; Sara Doutt of Xavier; Rhode Island's Dora Larusdottir; Lauren Olson of Saint Louis; Duquesne's Shannon Rengers; Katie Sanchez of Fordham; Charisma Wright of Temple; and Dayton's Stephenie Wurth.
Kasparek earns Student-Athlete of the Year laurels for posting a 3.97 grade point average as a psychology major. The Trumbull, CT, resident is a three-time Atlantic 10 All-Academic Team selection, a 2004 NSCAA/Adidas College Scholar All-America honoree, and a second-team ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America choice. On the field, Kasparek scored a league-leading 13 goals and added five assists en route to being named the Conference's Offensive Player of the Year for the second time in three seasons.
Kasparek is joined on the Academic All-Conference Team by twin sister Megan; Lindsey Beam, Nicole Labuda and Kelsie Ormsby of Charlotte; Kaelyn Caldwell and Amy Maffucci of Massachusetts; Kelly Ferguson and Courtney Hulcer of Saint Louis; Fordham's Leah Jerome; Kelly Kolker of Richmond; Megan Schutt of Saint Joseph's; and Temple's Stephanie Vietry.
In his first season at Rhode Island, Shaw led Rhode Island to a 6-1-1 record in Conference play and 10-5-2 overall. The Rams enter this week's A-10 Championship as the No. 2 seed in the Championship and boast the league's highest scoring offense with 45 goals scored. The 1992 Ithaca graduate is in his first season as a collegiate head coach after serving as an assistant coach at Florida in 2004.
