Looking in on Women's Soccer

By Tim Dooley

The beginning of a new school year and the end of August brings back another men’s and women’s soccer season to Owen T. Carroll field. In particular, the women’s team is looking to rebound from a tough campaign last year in which they failed to make the playoffs.



This year’s team has a plethora of young talent with only six players on the team having junior or senior status. One of the young leaders is sophomore Elizabeth Bond, who has started all three games this year as goalkeeper. Her role is extremely vital as she fills in for Amanda Becker, who was a former mainstay at the position, starting 55 games in the past three years for the Pirates. Taylor Wilson, Ashley Beamish, and Lauren Lehman are three freshman who have started in all three games this year for the Pirates. Nicki Gross, a sophomore, is another young player who has contributed much to the team already, having the second most goals and points on the team while starting in 17 games last season.

Katie Andreski, a junior, started in 15 games last season, and so far has been a major factor in the Pirates’ recent success. In the 2008 campaign, Andreski scored two goals in 6-0 win over Sacred Heart and provided the only goal in a 2-1 loss to St. Louis. Megan Mills, a junior who started in sixteen games last year, returns to the team as a defender. Anne Anders and Cassie Gioia, return as the Pirates’ only two seniors.

The team has showed success in the early 2008 campaign. After opening the season with a tough loss to Saint Louis, the team, lead by second year coach Kazbek Tambi, has pulled off two straight wins. After stomping Sacred Heart the Pirates defeated Marist 2-1. Tomorrow they will be playing Fairfield University before taking on Quinnipiac and Columbia in the Saint John’s tournament.

The biggest test for this young squad will be their Big East schedule. Tough opponents this year will be last year’s Big East Champion, West Virginia. and National Division Champion, Notre Dame. The team should fair pretty well in the conference if players like Andreski and Gross have good years combined with a significant contribution from the younger players.

Special thanks to Joseph Montefusco for providing information for this article.

Checkin' In on the NL East

By Timothy Dooley



With a little more than one month to go in the regular season, the NL East remains up for grabs. The New York Mets, who had an murky and unpredictable first half of the season, have since been on fire after picking up a new manager just before the All-Star break. Since Jerry Manuel has come on board, the Mets have amassed a 38-28 record, ripping of a 10-game winning streak prior to July 15th. Intended staff ace Johann Santana looks like he'll earn his $16.9 million a year, by having a 2.64 ERA and winning his last five games. (where he was given a decision). However, it's sure to bet that the Mets still have last year’s collapse on their mind, as well as a shaky bullpen and a starting rotation with a hole. There's no doubt about it though; these Mets will look to finish strong and make the playoffs in their last year at Shea Stadium.



The Philadelphia Phillies have run a little hot, and a little cold in the month of August, but at the time of this post, have taken the NL East lead with a 13-inning slaying of New York. The Phillies’ biggest concern has been a lack of run support for their starting pitchers. However, the Phils have displayed an explosive offense with recent 8-1 and 9-2 shellackings of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and with that a sense of determination with a 5-2 win in extras after coming behind in the bottom of the ninth. If the Phillies want to defend their NL East title, they have do go through the rest of the division, with 8 out of their last 10 series against NL East opponents.



The biggest surprise of the division has been the Florida Marlins. The Fish don't have a single player making over $5 million in 2008 (Paul Lo Duca makes exactly that, and he was a National to start with) However, they play with the tenacity of a team with a payroll of 20 times that. Hanley Ramirez, the 24 year old shortstop, leads the team in average, homeruns, hits, runs and stolen bases. It goes without saying that he has played extremely well this year and is a major reason why the Marlins have done well this year. Lack of strong starting pitching, however, looks to be the Fish’s biggest concern and will probably keep them out of the playoffs. Don't you wish it was 2003?



The Braves have had a tough year. That also goes without saying. Despite having a strong lineup with Chipper Jones and Brian McCann, pitching and injuries have derailed the Braves’ hopes for a playoff berth this year. Combine the team's ERA of 4.60, and the injuries to future Hall of Famers John Smoltz and Tom Glavine as you begin to comprehend what has happened down in Hot-lanta. With the trading of Mark Teixeira, it wouldn’t be surprising if Bobby Cox is let go after this season and a total revamping of this squad begins. This just in: Mark Kotsay, a playing chip the Braves were reported to keep has in fact been shipped to Boston.



Finally, in last place is the Washington Nationals. The team hasn’t finished above fourth in the division since their move to the nation’s capital. With an extraordinary lack of talent, a lackluster GM and trouble selling seats, the team needs an ace and potentially a major offensive player to complement current players like Aaron Boone, Christian Guzman, and Ryan Zimmerman if they want to compete in the NL East next year.

THE BOTTOMLINE

With the Marlins fading, the division will come down to the Mets and Phillies. Expect only one of these teams to make the playoffs with the other falling short of the Wildcard spot. While the Mets have an arguably better starting staff, the Phillies have a stronger bullpen with Brad Lidge as the closer. If the Phillies can give good run support for their starters, than they will repeat as NL East Champs.


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