Hislop Headlines List of Six All-Northeast-10 Selections for Franklin Pierce
Belfast, Northern Ireland, native earns program's fourth-straight Player of the Year award
RINDGE, N.H. (November 15, 2003) - Junior All-American Laura Hislop (Belfast, Northern Ireland) highlights a list of six Franklin Pierce women's soccer players to earn All-Northeast-10 Conference honors as she was named the Conference's Player of the Year for the first time. The teams and awards were announced by the Northeast-10 Conference office today.
Joining Hislop on the All-Northeast-10 Conference first team are senior midfielder Meghan Welcome (Haverhill, Mass./Haverhill), junior midfielder Sonya Hughes (Balbriggan, Ireland) and sophomore back Alex Scavo (Toronto, Ontario/Brother Andre). Earning second team accolades are senior midfielder Martta Makila (Vantaa, Finland) and sophomore back Mia Makarainen (Espoo, Finland).
Hislop, the reigning NCAA Division II National Player of the Year, earns the program's fourth-straight Conference Player of the Year award after Patricia Keeldar earned the award in 2001 and Welcome copped the honors each of the last two seasons.
Hislop leads the Northeast-10 in all three scoring categories so far this season with 30 goals, 14 assists and 74 points. Should she hold onto the Conference's scoring triple crown, it would mark the second-straight season she has accomplished the feat. In 2003, Hislop totaled 85 points with 31 goals and 23 assists. This season, Hislop has played a role in 44 of the Ravens 71 goals (62-percent), netted five match-winning goals and registered three hat tricks. Her point total is currently good for seventh on the program's single-season list, while her goals rank seventh.
Hislop ranks sixth in program history with 159 career points and 61 career goals, while her 37 career assists are good for eighth all-time in just 46 matches. In addition to earning National Player of the Year accolades in 2003, she earned first team All-America, All-New England Region and All-Northeast-10 Conference honors.
Welcome, a two-time NE-10 Player of the Year, earns first team All-Conference honors for the third-straight year after being named to the second team as a freshman to become the program's first four-time All-Northeast-10 honoree. She currently ranks second on the team to Hislop with 40 points (3rd NE-10) and 17 goals (3rd), while her six assists are third on the team.
Welcome has netted a team-best six match-winning goals this fall (2nd NE-10) to give her a program-record 27 over her four-year career which surpassed the previous program record of 26 winner set by former three-time All-American Pauliina Miettinen from 1995-98. Welcome has also moved into fourth-place on the College's all-time scoring list with 168 career points, while her 71 career goals are second all-time and her 26 assists rank 15th.
In addition to her four All-Conference awards, Welcome is a two-time All-American and All-New England selection in her career at the College.
Hughes has earned a spot on the All-Northeast-10 first team after receiving second team accolades in 2003. She ranks third on the team with 34 points (5th NE-10) and 11 goals (7th), while her 12 assists are second to Hislop on the team and in the NE-10. Hughes has also tallied four match-winning goals for the Ravens.
Hughes ranks 21st in program history with 69 career points, while her 31 career assists are good for 11th all-time. Hughes came within an assist of matching the NCAA Tournament record of five in that category while earning All-Tournament honors at the 2003 NCAA Championships and also earn All-Region honors. Already this fall, she has been named to the inaugural Northeast-10 All-Academic Team and earned CoSIDA District I Academic All-America first team accolades.
Scavo is a first time All-Conference selection after moving to the Ravens defensive unit this season after a freshman season which saw play both as a forward and midfielder. This fall, she has backboned a Ravens defensive unit which ranks first in the Northeast-10 in goals allowed (12) and goals against average (0.57). Franklin Pierce has also posted 11 shutouts, which ranks second in the Conference.
Scavo has also stepped into the offensive flow to total five goals and three assists for 13 points, which ranks fourth on the team. She has also netted two match-winning goals and registered a hat trick in a win over American International this season. Scavo was named Tournament MVP in helping the Ravens claim a fifth-straight NE-10 Tournament title earlier this month.
Makila picks up her third-straight All-Conference award with a spot on the second team for the second time. She has also earned NE-10 All-Academic team honors and CoSIDA District I Academic All-America first team accolades this fall. Makila has played a significant role in a Ravens defensive unit, which ranks first in the Northeast-10 in goals allowed (12) and goals against average (0.57). Franklin Pierce has also posted 11 shutouts, which ranks second in the Conference. Makila has also chipped in on offense with two goals and two assists for six points.
Makila has played 89 of a possible 90 matches over her four-year career at the College and been a part of a Ravens defensive unit, which has allowed just 0.73 goals per match with 42 shutouts over her career. Makila, a two-time All-NCAA Tournament and All-Region selection, has also totaled 13 goals and eight assists for 34 career points.
Makarainen earns her first All-Conference award while also playing a significant role on a Ravens defensive unit which ranks first in the Northeast-10 in goals allowed (12) and goals against average (0.57). Franklin Pierce has also posted 11 shutouts, which ranks second in the Conference. Makarainen, an NE-10 All-Academic and CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree this season, has also chipped in with two assists for the Ravens.
Over her two seasons with the Ravens, Makarainen has been a part of a defensive unit, which has yielded just 0.72 goals per match with 20 shutouts in 36 matches. Makarainen has also dished five career assists.
Franklin Pierce (20-1, 13-1 NE-10), ranked No. 4 in the NSCAA/adidas Division II women's soccer final regular season poll, is participating in its record 13th-straight NCAA Tournament and advanced to the quarterfinal round with a 5-2 victory over No. 21 Assumption College on Sunday. The Ravens will travel to No. 8 Adelphi University on Saturday for a match at 12:30 p.m. A victory would earn them a record 13th-straight Final Four bid and a shot at a record sixth National Championship.