WILKES-BARRE, PA (August 30, 2018) – After a couple of seasons that ended without the King's College women's soccer team in the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom Tournament this year's squad is ready to prove the Preseason Coaches' Poll wrong. The Monarchs are poised to not only qualify for the postseason, but also make it back to the MAC Freedom Championship for the first time since 2013.

The team had a strong preseason and return a strong core from last year. Head coach Frank Carrozza brought in a group of eight freshman to join the 21 student-athletes he has back on the team from last year. The team has jelled nicely over the course of the past two weeks and is ready to compete.

The sophomores and juniors are looking to make the postseason for the first time in their career after just missing qualifying the past two years. The seniors are looking to finish their careers the same way they started it, with a postseason berth. The freshman are going to contribute right away to achieve the team's goal this year.

Carrozza believes this team is smart enough and talented enough to compete with everyone on their schedule this year. Despite being picked sixth in the preseason poll, the Monarchs fell like qualifying for the four-team conference tournament is very possible. Four points separated Eastern, FDU-Florham and King's from fourth to sixth in the poll. Those three teams have fought up to the last game of the season to decide the fourth and final qualifying spot each of the last two years. The Monarchs beat the team that was picked third, DeSales, last year 1-0 at McCarthy Stadium and the top two picks are local rivals and 2017 NCAA Tournament Qualifiers Wilkes and Misericordia.

Offensively, the Monarchs return four of their top five scorers from a season ago. Defensively, the Monarchs broke the school record for goals allowed in a season with 13. However, due to graduation the defense will see some new faces this year.

Forwards
King's returns leading scorer and All-MAC Freedom Second Teamer Danielle Putnam. The speedy junior had seven goals last season in 16 games. She will be aided by senior Allison Andrew who recorded two goals and three assists. The Lehighton Area grad has scored eight goals in her career and is poised for a breakout final season.

Juniors Sam Nogula and Sophia Sacknievich will add two years of playing experience to the Monarch attack. Nogula moved to the offensive side last year after playing 14 games as a defender her freshman season. Sacknievich had a strong season as a defender last year and was moved to forward this season.

The Monarchs will look for a pair of sophomores to have a more expanded role in the offense this year. Emily Harrington is one of them after scoring two game-winning goals as a freshman and Breaunna Colonna-Dotter is the other after recording one goal and one assist last season.

Fellow sophomores Emma Baumbusch, Lauren Geiger, and Melanie Matthews all gained valuable experience last year and each recorded a point. They will also add to a Monarch offense that will look to score a lot this year. Freshman Gillian Coar joins the team after a fantastic career at nearby Dunmore High School.  
 
Midfielders
The midfield will be important for the Monarchs this year as they have a strong group of sophomore and juniors that will be looked upon to help the new faces on defense. Sophomore Stephanie Corea had a breakout freshman year with two goals and one assist while starting all 16 games. Juniors Natalie Poulton and Anna Lacalamita came off the bench last year and will look to work their way into the starting lineup this season.

Sophomore Breanna Jacinto started seven games as a freshman and contributed two assists for the Monarchs while Cassie Keady scored a goal in 13 games off the bench. Freshmen Alyssa Macher and Casey Genovese will look to contribute minutes on the pitch. Macher is a Floral Park, New York native and played for a Sacred Heart Academy team that won a New York State Championship in 2016 while Genovese was an All-Division midfielder for a Pope John Paul II team that won the Frontier Division Championship her junior year.
 
Defense
Defense has been a strong point for the Monarchs the past few years and the Monarchs look to continue that in 2018. However, the back line will look completely different then it did last year. Senior Abby Smith has the most experience on the team, but she is coming back from injury and will probably miss the start of the season. Smith started all 16 games last year and was a big reason why the team set a school record. Fellow senior Caitlin Hargrave fought injuries as a junior and played in just three games.

The sophomore class features Angela Edgell and Bekah Araujo. Edgell will be the most experience player on the defensive side when the season starts after starting 12 of the 13 games she appeared in last year. Araujo also played in 13 games coming off the bench.

To combat the graduation losses on defense, Carrozza has brought in four freshmen who will get time right away. Abby Castle played at Red Lion Area and is a Felton native. Janelle Scillia is from Lititz and played at Warwick High School. Kara Keim played at Millersburg Area and is a Millersburg native. Taylor Russo is from Staten Island, New York and played at St. Joseph by the Sea.

The Monarch's last line of defense, the goalkeeper, will look to guide the young defense through the opening non-conference slate. Lucky for King's, all three keepers are back from a year ago and the team has added a freshman to the mix.

Jess Schenfeld and Elizabeth Nolen split time last year with Schenfeld getting the majority of the time before Nolen came on strong at the end of the year. Schenfeld recorded a 5-5-1 record with three shutouts while allowing 11 goals in 12 games. Nolen started five games and had a 3-1-1 record with four shutouts allowing just two goals in six appearances.

The Monarchs also have sophomore Lindsay Cousins back on the team. Cousins did not make an appearance in a game last year but gained valuable experience behind Schenfeld and Nolen. King's also has freshman Tara Bender on the roster who is expected to challenge Schenfeld and Nolen for playing time. Bender was a three-time All-Conference keeper for Oxford Area High School.

The Schedule
King's starts the season with four straight home games at McCarthy Stadium beginning on Friday night when they host Penn College. They will then host Ramapo, Juniata, and Susquehanna before their first road match at Albright on September 15. The rest of the non-conference schedule features Centenary, Lebanon Valley, Stockton, and Keystone. Conference play will begin on September 29 when they host FDU-Florham at 7:00 p.m. at McCarthy Stadium.