NOVEMBER 4, 2013

KING'S WOMEN'S SOCCER MAKING FIRST-EVER PLAYOFF APPEARANCE TUESDAY AT WILKES

WILKES-BARRE — It may have taken 21 years, but the 2013 King's College women's soccer team will play its first-ever post-season tournament game. After finishing third in the regular-season standings, the Lady Monarchs will make its MAC Freedom Conference Tournament debut Tuesday with a 2:30 p.m. Matchup against second-seeded crosstown rival Wilkes University at the Ralston Athletic Complex.

Tickets, as set by the Middle Atlantic Conferences Office, are listed as $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, and $2 for students. Children under age-six shall be admitted free. No passes or season tickets will be accepted.

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King's will enter the contest with a 9-7-1 record while Wilkes stands at 9-7-3, including a 1-0 double-overtime win over King's on October 23 in a game the Lady Colonels won on a goal with 2:13 left in the second extra session.

The Lady Monarchs are making their first post-season tournament appearance since the program was founded in 1992 and gained membership in the MAC in 1993.  Success has been a long time coming as the team posted the program's first winning record since the 1997 squad finished 12-8.  Since then the program suffered through 15 straight seasons of 10 or more losses.  

The culture at King's began to change in 2010 when King's hired Frank Carrozza as the team's new head coach.  Although the wins and losses did not show change, King's did show improvement. The 2010 squad finished 1-17-1 while the 2011 team improved to 4-15. Last season Carrozza brought in a large freshmen class and it became quickly evident the Lady Monarchs were a team of the future.  While the 2012 squad finished 4-12-1, but lost eight games by one goal and played five overtime contests. With the team playing a large number of freshmen it was a matter of time before the program broke through.

The 2013 campaign proved to be that season.  With the influx of another solid freshmen class, the Lady Monarchs were still young but far more talented that the program had been in years. The team jumped out to a 3-0 start and matched last year's victory total of four in just its sixth game of the year to stand at 4-2 on September 18.

King's showed it would emerge as a contender on October 5 when the Lady Monarchs upset perennial league contender FDU-Florham 3-1 in Madison, NJ in the Freedom Conference opener for both teams. It marked the program's first-ever win over FDU since the Lady Monarchs joined the MAC.

Defense has carried the team this season by allowing only 26 goals in 17 games.   Sophomore goalie Jessica Natale has posted a solid 1.22 goals against average while making 76 saves and posting six shutouts, one shy of the school-record. Sophomores Sarah Borajkiewicz and Shaina Dougherty also anchor the defense.

Offensively, King's is still evolving and does not have a single standout scorer but has received contributions from several players. Sophomore  Ivy Nulton tops the squad with six goals while freshman Alexandra Garrett follows with three goals while sophomore Lindsey Humanik and freshman Gabrielle Murphy have two each. A total of 12 different players have tallied at least one point.

Should King's emerge victorious, the team will play the inner of the other Freedom Conference semi-final between defending champion and top-seeded Misericordia and fourth-seeded FDU. The title game will played at the site of the highest remaining seed.