Sports

Fall Wrap-Up

The men’s and women’s soccer teams won regional championships, the field hockey and women’s volleyball teams returned to the New York State championships, both cross-country teams had strong showings in New York State and NCAA regional competition, and the football team broke a number of records.

Women’s Soccer: The Yellowjackets were 15–5 for head coach Terry Gurnett ’76, overcoming two starters’ injuries early in the season to roll to a postseason championship and a final Division III rank of No. 16.

ACADEMIC: The 16th-ranked women’s soccer team won a Team All-Academic Award from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America for cumulative GPA, and 13 players were named to the UAA’s All-Academic team. Team leader Alison Collins ’04 (above) was named Third Team All-American..

Rochester was led by Alison Collins ’04 who scored 18 goals and added 5 assists for 41 points. She was National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/Adidas Third Team All-American and the MVP of the ECAC playoffs.

Collins and Amy Kelmenson ’03 were named All-Region, First Team All-UAA, and All-New York State. Kristin Kelly ’05, who scored 11 goals, including the game winner in the ECAC championship match, was named Second Team All-UAA. Megan Barritt ’03 and Jenica Schmidt ’04 were named All-State.

Thirteen players were named to the UAA’s All-Academic team (GPA above 3.20). The team received the NSCAA’s Team All-Academic award with a cumulative GPA of 3.48, which tied for the 15th-highest GPA among all baccalaureate colleges in all divisions.

Men’s Soccer: With a 14–4–2 record, Rochester tied the single-season victory record for head coach Chris Apple ’92, who completed his third season with the team. The ECAC Northeast title was Rochester’s third straight ECAC championship.

The Yellowjackets received the NSCAA All-Academic Team award for a cumulative GPA of 3.41 on a 4.0 scale, the third-highest cumulative GPA among all baccalaureate colleges in the United States.

Brandon Laws ’04 was named to the NSCAA Men’s Collegiate Scholar All-America team and the Verizon College Division Academic All-District team; he also was one of 11 players named to the UAA’s All-Academic team.

Three players earned All-Region honors: Nate Micklos ’06, Laws, and Ben Cross ’04. Micklos, Cross, and goalkeeper Brian Minehan ’04 were named First Team All-UAA. Laws and Nate Rimmke ’04 were named Second Team All-UAA. Cross finished 10th in the nation in assists.

Field Hockey: Under first-year head coach Michelle Andre, the Yellowjackets finished 12–10 and reached the semifinals of the New York State championships.

The 12 wins matched the school record for most victories in a season. Kaitlin Poeth ’04 and Erin Charnow ’05 were named Regional All-Americans by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association. Poeth was also named All-New York State and All-UCAA, both as a second-team selection.

Women’s Volleyball: The Yellowjackets had a 14–20 overall record, a fifth-place finish at UAAs, and a sixth-place finish in the 12-team New York State championships.

Blair Nonaka ’06 was named to the All-State team. Setter Liz Loveless ’05 recorded 1,090 assists for the season, many to Nonaka (388 kills) and Kristin Vogt ’05 (343 kills). Loveless was named a College Division Verizon First Team Academic All-District selection.

Football: Rochester was 2–8 but ended the season with a thrilling victory over Carnegie Mellon on the road. Quarterback Pat Manuel ’06, who threw for a single-season record 1,979 yards and 15 touchdowns, was named the UCAA Rookie of the Year.

Wide receiver Brian Ferris ’04 caught 53 passes for 883 yards and 11 touchdowns —both single-season records. Ferris also returned the opening kickoff against RPI for a 96-yard touchdown, the third-longest return in school history.

Sam Snowden ’04 and Kassim Howell ’04 were chosen to the First Team Defense by the UAA and the UCAA.

Men’s Cross Country: The Yellowjackets finished eighth of 14 at the New York State championships and 14th of 37 at the NCAA Regional Championships. Chris Nolan ’06 earned Honorable Mention All-New York State status for a 17th-place finish at the New York State championships.

Women’s Cross Country: The Yellowjackets were 3–0 in dual meets, finished fifth among 10 Division III schools at the Lehigh Invitational, third of 15 at the SUNY Geneseo Invitational, and fourth of seven at the Alumni Invitational meets.

Rochester finished fourth out of 15 at the New York State championships. Elizabeth Canfield ’04 was named Second Team All-State, and Lisa Johns ’03 was named Honorable Mention.