Women's Soccer | 11/6/2018 11:42:00 AM
ROCHESTER, NY -- Seven members of the RIT women's soccer team were named to the 2018 Liberty League Women's Soccer All-Conference Team on Tuesday, Nov. 6.
Marla Roberts (Penfield, NY/Home Schooled),
Lauren Chester (Rochester, NY/Greece Olympia) and
Alyssa Salls (Plattsburgh, NY/Plattsburgh) were first team selections, while
Emily Thiel (Seattle, WA/Roosevelt) and
Abbey Saia (Monroe, CT/Masuk) garnered second team picks.
Mia White (Littleton, CO/Rocky Mountain Deaf School) and
Jessica Jones (Holden, MA/Wachusett) earned honorable mention accolades. Chester was also honored as Defensive Player of the Year.
Chester, a second-team selection in 2017 and honorable mention selection in 2016, has started 19 games on defense for RIT, logging a team-best 1,751 minutes. She has helped anchor a defensive unit that is fourth in the league allowing 0.74 goals per game. Chester, a co-captain, had the assist on
Abbey Saia's (Monroe, CT/Masuk) game-winning goal in the 92nd minute in the first round of the Liberty League Tournament versus Vassar.
Salls has a 7-2-3 record in 2018. The sophomore goaltender is fourth in the league with a 0.68 goals against average, and a .873 save percentage. Salls made a career-high 11 saves in a 2-1 win over Ithaca on Oct. 24. She posted a 0.93 goals against average and a .800 save percentage in last week's Liberty League Tournament, earning her second straight Liberty League Defensive Performer of the Week. Salls is tied for fourth in the league with three shutouts.
Roberts, a co-captain, has played in all 19 games in 2018. She leads the team and is fourth in the Liberty League with eight goals, and fourth in the league with 18 points. Her goal in the 89th minute versus Vassar in the first round of the Liberty League Tournament tied the game at 2-2 as RIT went on to the 3-2 overtime victory. Roberts had a season-high five points on two goals and an assist in a 7-1 win versus Nazareth College on Oct. 2.
Saia has started all 19 games in 2018. She is fifth on the team in scoring with three goals and two assists. Her goal in overtime completed the miraculous comeback by the Tigers in a 3-2 win versus Vassar in the first round of the Liberty League Tournament on Oct. 30.
Thiel, who was also a 2017 All-Liberty League selection, has started all 19 games at midfield for RIT in 2018. She is fourth on the team logging 1,383 minutes, tallying five points on a goal and three assists. Thiel, a co-captain, tallied a season-high three points on a goal and an assist in a 7-1 win versus Nazareth Oct. 2.
Jones, a second team All-Liberty League selection in 2017, has played in 18 games in 2018. She has logged 1,249 minutes and helped anchor the fourth-best defensive unit in the conference, allowing 0.74 goals per game. She has a career-high seven points on two goals and three assists this season.
White, a co-captain, has played in all 19 games this season. The junior forward is second on the team in scoring with 11 points on four goals and three assists. She is tied for second on the team with two game-winning goals. White tallied a season-best goal and an assist twice versus Farmingdale State and Clarkson.
RIT is 11-5-3 overall and received an at-large berth into the 2018 NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Championship. The Tigers will host Susquehanna University on Saturday, Nov. 10 at 1:30 p.m. in the first round. It is the third NCAA Tournament appearance for the Tigers and first since 2013.
