Late October Athletics Update

Women's soccer qualifies for the HVIAC Championships, while women's volleyball made it to the HVIAC Conference semi-finals and cross-country placed 5th in the HVIAC Conference Championships.

Women's Soccer
Home News & Events Stories

Season Ends for Women’s Volleyball in HVIAC Conference Semi-Finals

After a season that started with an 0-4 record but finished with a first-ever berth in the Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships, the TKC Women’s Volleyball Team ended the year with a 0-3 loss to Pratt (12-25, 19-25, 22-25). TKC had lost to Pratt three times previously this season, but this semi-final match marked the closest margins of defeat of any of the four contests this season. Behind HVIAC Player of the Year, Alice Vincente, Pratt finished the year 15-4 and 4-1 in the conference as they lost the championship game to College of New Rochelle. For the Lady Lions they improved as the season went on, after their slow start they ran off five victories in a span of six games to finish 6-9. After falling one win short of advancing to the HVIAC Championships in 2013, the team posted a 3-2 record in the conference this year to qualify for the postseason championships. Behind the leadership of senior captain Kelli O’Donnell (Braidwood, IL) and junior captains, Alex Rollis (Clifton Park, NY) and Jessie Schnoebelen (San Diego, CA) the team worked hard to improve with each passing week and each game on the schedule. While the trio kept the team upbeat off the court, they were invaluable between the lines. O’Donnell was second in the conference in digs per set (4.91), she was also seventh in the conference in both kills per set (2.14) and points per set (2.7) . Rollis was third in the conference in kills per set (3.05) and points per set (3.5) and sixth in digs per set (3.37). Schnoebelen was second in the conference in assists per set (5.28) and fifth in assists (227). The team also received strong contributions from senior Joanne Vo (Westminster, CA), and a trio of freshmen rounded out the roster. Dekka Hunley (Prescott Valley, AZ) had 288 total attacks which was seventh in the conference, Alina Baumgartner (Copenhagen, Denmark) added 12 kills and 18 assists, and Abena Anim-Somuah (Ontario, Canada) was seventh in the conference in blocks per set (.17) as she led the team with 7 blocks. Coach Tiffany Firebaugh is already hard at work recruiting for 2015, and after a 2014 season to be proud of, the future looks bright for the Lady Lions Volleyball Team.

 

TKC Women’s Soccer Advances to HVIAC Championship Game Second Year in a Row

On a blustery day at Randall’s Island the Lady Lions shut out the St. Joseph’s Bears 5-0 in the Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Semi-Finals. The two teams met earlier this month in their regular season conference game with King’s prevailing 5-3. TKC was determined not to leave anything to chance in this playoff game with a high scoring back and forth affair and were determined to clamp down defensively against the talented St. Joe’s offense. The Bears lead all NCAA teams (D1, D2, D3) with 94 goals behind Cansu Usta’s 36 goals which also leads the NCAA. She is helped by Shannon Fahy (19 goals) and Pam Chernyakhovsky (15 goals). St. Joe’s had only been shutout once this season prior to this match. TKC is not too far off when it comes to scoring goals as they have 80 for the season. So while many probably expected a shootout, both teams seemed to be concentrating on defense until TKC sophomore captain Genesis Castrellon (Encinitas, CA) fired in a shot 31 minutes into the game for a 1-0 TKC lead. The Lady Lions would break the game open with 3 goals in the first 15 minutes of the second half. Castrellon would get her 29th goal of the season 4 minutes into the second half for a 2-0 lead on a brilliant header of a Caitlin Essex (Argyle, TX) corner kick. Essex would get her 18th goal of the season less than 2 minutes later for a 3-0 TKC lead. Aleena Cruz (Chula Vista, CA) would add another header off an Essex corner kick and then scored her second goal, her 14th goal of the season, off yet another Essex corner kick play as Essex finished with 3 assists. Victoria McAlister (Rancho Cucamonga, CA) made 3 saves for the TKC shutout as the defense of Erika Hilliard (Euless, TX), Annalise Bourgeois (Woburn, MA), Kylie Locklar (Hagerman, ID) and Marcy Majors (Germany) limited the potent Bears attack to just 8 shots. As the entire TKC team committed to the defense of their goal, the unsung heroes in the midfield were Meg Melvin (Highlands Mills, NY), Maizy Medley (Fircrest, WA), Ariel Mouser (Aiken, SC), Dominique Machain (Carlsbad, CA), Morgan Ewing (Salt Lake City, Utah) and Joanne Isaacs (Easton, PA). TKC will take on Lehman Wednesday in their last regulars season game before meeting Albany Pharmacy in the HVIAC Championship game, a rematch of last year’s final which Albany Pharmacy won 3-1.

 

Women’s Cross Country Takes 5th at HVIAC Conference Championships

On a chilly, blustery Sunday afternoon the Women’s Cross Country team traveled to the Hudson Valley Sports Dome in Milton, NY for the Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships. Although the conditions were not ideal, the TKC team and all of the other competitors were pumped for the 5K race. The Lady Lions would end up finishing in 5th place, a nice improvement from their 6th place finish last year. With only one senior on the team, this result also sets up a nice foundation for next year. Sophomore captain Keyah Harvey came across the line in 24:47 which was good for 17th place and in individual medal. Next came junior Tiffany Owens with an impressive 25:25 (24th) in her first race of the year. Senior Madeline Cobb carved an impressive 48 seconds off her previous time at this course with a 26:15 (32nd). Hannah Lezak was next with 26:49 (35th) and Rachel Moreno cam in at 32:32 (45th). The team resumes two and a half weeks of training before heading to Syracuse, NY for the USCAA National Championships.

 

TKC Women’s Soccer Defeats Valley Forge Christian

The Valley Forge Christian Patriots honored three of their seniors in a nice ceremony prior to the game on Saturday. One of their seniors, goalkeeper Amanda McGinniss, had been injured in the previous game. This knee injury would end her soccer season prematurely and will also affect her basketball season and possibly softball in the spring. In a great display of sportsmanship, the TKC Lady Lions suggested that McGinniss start the game out on the field in her spot at goalkeeper. The whistle blew to signal the start of the game and TKC forwards Genesis Castrellon and Caitlin Essex dribbled towards the Valley Forge goal and softly hit a shot right at McGinniss, so she could record one more save to go along with the 700 she had previously made in her career. McGinniss scooped up the ball, paused to soak in the moment, then threw it out of bounds so she could be subbed off of the field. No sooner had the ball gone out of bounds when she was rushed by her teammates and TKC players who exchanged high fives, handshakes and hugs. It was a wonderful moment of what sports should be all about as McGinniss proudly exited the field with the help of her coaches. The game would then resume with Genesis Castrellon scoring her 24th goal of the season just 3:58 in for a 1-0 Lady Lions lead. Almost 30 minutes would elapse before Castrellon struck again as TKC went into halftime leading 2-0. King’s would make some minor adjustments at halftime and Caitlin Essex made it 3-0 just 3 minutes into the half with her 16th goal of the season. Castrellon would get her 26th and 27th goals just six minutes apart at 60′ and 66′ to give TKC a comfortable 5-0 cushion. Freshman Maizy Medley would get on the sheet 3 minutes later with her 8th goal and Caitlin Essex and Aleena Cruz would add goals to round out the 8-0 win. Annalise Bourgeois recorded 2 saves and the shutout in goal and the TKC defense of Erika Hilliard, Ariel Mouser, Kylie Locklar and Marcy Majors were solid all day. Strong midfield play was provided by Meg Melvin, Joanna Isaacs, Dominique Machain and Abena Anim-Somuah. TKC will train this week while getting ready for their Sunday 10/26 HVIAC Conference SemiFinals.

 

Volleyball Splits the Weekend

On Friday night the TKC Women’s Volleyball team and members of the student body honored seniors Kelli O’Donnell and Joanne Vo before playing their last home game of the season against Cooper Union. Once the match began it was all TKC, and they never looked back as the Lady Lions dominated in a 3-0 win. They would have no time to rest and celebrate as Saturday morning they were on the bus early for the ride out to Valley Forge Christian. Unlike last year, the Lady Lions would not be able to spoil Valley Forge’s Senior Day. In a hard fought contest, TKC fell 0-3 (14-25, 20-25, 23-25). TKC will get back to practice this week as they prepare for their first-ever appearance in the Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Conference Championships, a semi-final match with Pratt Institute next Sunday 10/26.

 

Lions Fall to Patriots in Men’s Soccer to End Season

The TKC Men’s Soccer team fell 0-2 to the Valley Forge Patriots on Saturday 10/18. The Patriots outshot the Lions 18-13 but TKC did have a 6-2 advantage in corner kicks. Despite plenty of good scoring opportunities, TKC just could not find the back of the goal on this day. TKC freshman keeper Jacob Wright (Philadelphia, PA) was solid in goal and Zach Adams (Princeton, KY) led the way offensively with 5 shots. The Lions ended their season at 4-9, a one win improvement over 2013. TKC was also 2-4 in the HVIAC Conference and fell just one win short of qualifying for the HVIAC Conference Tournament. With only one graduating senior, Seth Parks, Head Coach Ilyas Tasci is optimistic about the future of the TKC Lions Men’s Soccer Team.


View more stories about: