Women's Soccer Sees Six Players Receive All-CCC Honors; #2 Endicott Hosts #7 Wentworth Saturday

2014 All-CCC Women's Soccer Teams

SPRINGFIELD, Mass.- The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Commissioner's Office announced the 2014 Women's Soccer All-Conference teams on Thursday and Endicott saw six players receive recognition from coaches in the league.  Following a 2014 regular season in which the Gulls posted a 10-4-4 record overall and a 6-2-1 record in CCC play, three student-athletes received First Team honors while three more received Honorable Mention nods.  The six honorees and the rest of the team have their sights set on Saturday when they kick off CCC post season play by hosting #7 Wentworth (8-8-3, 3-5-1 CCC) in CCC Quarterfinal action in the #2 vs. #7 matchup.

Receiving First Team honors were seniors Ally George (Stratham, N.H.) and Clare Mansfield (Stoneham, Mass.), and junior Paige Marinelli (Burlington, Conn.).  George earns her first All-Conference recognition during a season in which her steady play at the midfield position helped lead the Gulls to the second best record in the conference.  The senior added two assists on the season, notching her first in the team's 7-0 win over Salve Regina at home before capping her Senior Day with another assist.  Mansfield, the leader of a stout defensive unit that finished tied for fourth in league play in goals against average with 0.86.  The senior back who was named CCC Defensive Player of the Week once this season (10/13/14), also tied a career high in points with three after scoring the eventual game-winner on Senior Day over Curry on a 35 yard free kick and assisting on Shelby McLenithan's (Bennington, Vt.) game-winner against Wentworth three days later.  This is the second All-CCC honor for Mansfield in her career as she earned All-CCC Second Team distinction last season.  The final All-CCC First Team honoree for the Gulls was junior forward Paige Marinelli who finished second on the team with four goals despite missing four matches due to injury.  The junior, who receives her first career All-CCC recognition, totaled nine points on the season (4 goals, 1 asst.), and notched one game winner, the lone goal in the team's 1-0 win at Western New England.  Three of her four goals on the season came against CCC competition.

The three student-athlete s to receive All-CCC Honorable Mention honors were LeeAnn Card (Paxton, Mass.), Katie Donnelly (Madison, Conn.) and Shannon Hickey (East Haddam, Conn.).  For Card, the nod marks her second straight season earning All-CCC recognition as she received Second Team honors in 2013.  The junior has tallied five points on the season (2 goals, 1 asst.) to bring her career total to 25.  Her first goal of the season came in a 1-1 tie against Wellesley while her second came in the team's 4-0 win over Curry.  Donnelly joins Card and Mansfield as two-time All-CCC honorees as the goal keeper received First Team distinction in 2013.  The senior has enjoyed a solid season in goal, recording a 10-4-4 record overall while breaking Endicott's all-time career shutout record (29) and moving into a tie for third all-time with career wins (39).  Donnelly, a two-time CCC Defensive Player of the Week (9/29/14 & 10/20/14) on the season, has recorded six shutouts to date on the season, four of which came against CCC competition. Hickey, the team's lone freshman honoree, quickly picked up the team's defense and has anchored the right back position for the entire season, starting 18 of a possible 18 matches.  Along with Mansfield, Betsy Albiani (Stoneham, Mass.) and Katherine Chipman (Brunswick, Maine), the freshman played a pivotal role in the team's defensive unit that allowed just 15 goals through 18 matches which included a five match shutout streak towards the end of the season.

#2 Endicott now directs all attention and focus to Saturday's CCC Quarterfinal match against #7 Wentworth to be played at 11:00 a.m.  In their lone meeting this season, Endicott earned a 2-0 win behind two McLenithan goals that both came within the last eight minutes of regulation.  The two squads squared off twice in 2013 with the Gulls defeating the Leopards 3-1 during the regular season and 1-0 in the CCC Semifinals.