News Release

Quartet of Lyons Lands on NEWMAC Women's Soccer All-League Teams

WORCESTER, MA- For the ninth straight season, the Wheaton College women's soccer team had at least four players named to New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) all-league teams, as junior co-captain Lyndsey McManus (Marshfield, MA/Marshfield) and sophomore Emily Hough (Norwich, VT/Hanover) landed on the first team during Tuesday's coaches meeting at Clark University. Sophomores Melida Alvarez (Saugus, MA/Buckingham Browne & Nichols) and Alessia Viscomi (Newton, MA/Newton North) each earned a spot on the second squad.

Hough became the first Lyon since Erin Duffy '05 in 2001 and 2002 to earn all-conference first-team honors each of her first two years with the program. Viscomi drew her second league accolade after being named to the first team as a freshman, while Alvarez and McManus were selected for their initial all-conference awards. Alvarez was the NEWMAC Rookie of the Year last fall.

As one of five Lyons to have played all 23 games, McManus has been instrumental in the Lyons' success, as the co-captain has helped anchor a defense that shut out 13 teams and held 17 opponents to one goal or fewer. She also tied for second in conference (4) and overall (6) assists. McManus posted the game-winning goal against Mount Holyoke College on September 27 while assisting winning tallies versus Rhode Island College, Saint Joseph's College of Maine, Smith College and Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). McManus previously earned New England Women's Intercollegiate Soccer Association (NEWISA) all-region honors last fall.

Hough led all NEWMAC players in goals (9), assists (5) and points (23) during league play and stands first among all conference competitors in overall points (37) and assists (11) while standing second in goals (13). She is tied for second in overall game-winning goals (5) and tied for third in league game-winners (2). Hough registered at least one point in 11 games while notching a hat trick on two occasions. In her past 16 contests, Hough played a hand in 21 of Wheaton's 35 goals, scoring 10 times and distributing 11 assists. A 2007 NEWISA All-New England pick, Hough is 10th in program history in each career points (77) and goals (27). Her assist total this year leaves her one shy of the program's single-season top 10, and she is three short of the top 10 in points.

With a league-high 14 goals, Alvarez stands second in the NEWMAC in points (31) and fourth in game-winning tallies (4). In conference play, she was tied for third in game-winning markers (2) while tying for eighth in both points (10) and goals (4) despite appearing in six of a possible nine contests. Alvarez posted at least a point in 11 of her 19 games, as Wheaton went 8-2-1 when she scored a goal. The striker is seventh in program history in career goals (37) and eighth in points (81) and was a National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), NEWISA and D3Kicks.com All-New England selection last fall.

Another strong defensive presence, Viscomi was one of two Lyons to start a team-high 22 contests, as the back started each game in which she played. During the Blue and White's 1-0 victory over Clark University in a NEWMAC Tournament semifinal on Saturday, Viscomi netted the lone goal of the match with 1:02 remaining in regulation. She also assisted a tally during Wheaton's 4-0 win over Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on October 21. Last fall, Viscomi drew an NSCAA All-New England accolade.

The Blue and White went 7-1-1 in NEWMAC action, claiming at tie of its 10th straight regular season league crown before falling in overtime of the conference tournament title game. At 16-5-2 overall, the Lyons qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the ninth straight year, as they will oppose Eastern University in the first round on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. in a contest at Rowan University in New Jersey.

Submitted 2008-11-11 15:31:59 by Wheaton College-MA Sports Information Department

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