News Release

Wheaton Sweeps Major NEWMAC Awards for Third Time in Five Years

WORCESTER, MA- The Wheaton College women's soccer team swept the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference's (NEWMAC) three major awards for the third time in five years, and four of the five Lyons to earn all-league honors landed on the first team during the conference's postseason meeting at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) on Tuesday. Wheaton also swept the NEWMAC accolades in 2003 and 2004.

Senior back Erin Davis (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow) became the seventh Lyon to earn player-of-the-year honors, and she placed on the NEWMAC All-Conference first team for the second straight season. Freshman forward Melida Alvarez (Saugus, MA/Buckingham Browne & Nichols) is the fifth player in program history to earn a rookie-of-the-year award, and head coach Luis Reis drew his third NEWMAC Coach-of-the-Year laurel.

Senior Jenna Rabesa (Teaticket, MA/Falmouth) was named to the first team for the first time since her sophomore year, while freshmen Emily Hough (Norwich, VT/Hanover) and Alessia Viscomi (Newton, MA/Newton North) earned first-team honors. Classmate Barrie Lindsay (Ipswich, MA/Waring School) was a second-team selection. Wheaton's freshmen became the program's initial first-year students to draw all-conference honors since 2001, and the trio was the largest contingent of freshman all-conference performers in program history.

Davis was a key offensive and defensive contributor as Wheaton went 9-0 during NEWMAC play, and she has started 19 games for the 21-0-1 Lyons, who have posted 15 shutouts while allowing 6.4 shots per game. Davis is third in the league with 10 assists and tallied each of her three goals on penalty kicks.

Alvarez led the NEWMAC with 22 goals and eight game-winners while ranking second with 48 points. She is first among league freshmen in goals and points, tying for fourth and placing sixth in each category in program history, respectively. Alvarez has played a hand in 13 goals that either tied the game or gave Wheaton the lead.

Rabesa put together a well-rounded offensive season primarily out of the backfield and ranks among the top 10 in the league in goals (9), assists (8) and points (26). She became the seventh Lyon to reach the 100-point mark while scoring at least one point in 12 games this fall.

Hough is one of two NEWMAC players to rank among the league's top five in each goals (14) and assists (11), and she's third in points (39). She leads conference freshmen in assists and has four game-winners. Hough has played a hand in eight goals that either gave Wheaton the lead, tied the game, or stood up as the game-winner.

Viscomi jumped right into Wheaton's starting lineup in the backfield, having missed only one game all season in making a team-high starting 20 starts. Against league foes, Viscomi helped Wheaton allow only four goals in 1,080 minutes, as opponents were able to attempt only 4.8 shots per game.

Lindsay played a big part in Wheaton's offense over the second half of the season, recording three goals and nine assists during the past 13 games. She is tied for fourth in the league in assists.

In his 11th season, Reis owns a 217-30-8 record after becoming the second-fastest coach in Division III history to earn their 200th victory, which came on September 11. Reis pushed the Lyons to their seventh consecutive undefeated league campaign, as the Lyons own an 88-game NEWMAC unbeaten streak, the longest active run in NCAA soccer. Reis also won coach-of-the-year honors in 2003 and 2004.

Wheaton captured its ninth consecutive NEWMAC regular season title this fall and corralled its seventh tournament crown in eight years. The Lyons also qualified for an NCAA Tournament for the eighth straight season and host Baptist Bible College on Friday in the first round at 11:00 a.m.

Submitted 2007-11-06 15:29:55 by Wheaton College-MA Sports Information Department

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