Colby ranked 7th in current

The Colby women’s soccer team will return 19 varsity players for the 2006 campaign. Captains Liza Benson ’07 (Orchid, Fla.), Libba Cox ’07 (Guilford, Conn.), and Laura Williamson ’07 (Manchester, Conn.) will lead a veteran squad looking to return to post-season play with a berth in the sixth annual NESCAC Championships.

The playmaking of Cox, Lauren Goethals '08 (Needham, Mass.), Meggie Herlihy '08 (Simsbury, Conn.), Angela Martinelli '08 (Conway, Mass.), Katie McCabe '08 (Watertown, Conn.), Liz Morbeck ’07 (Seattle, Wash.), and Whitney Lynn ’09 (Dallas, Texas) will provide midfield strength.

Scoring is expected to come from former NESCAC Rookie of the Year Williamson, Laura Pomponi ’08 (Beverly, Mass.), Meg Cordner ’07 (Katonah, N.Y.), Veronica Barila ’09 (Stow, Mass.), and Jess Lueders-Dumont ’09 (Lincoln, Vt.).

The Mules have defensive experience in Meridith Blascovich ’07 (Santa Barbara, Calif.), Meg Davis ’07 (Hopkinton, Mass.), Mollie Puskar ’08 (Pittsburgh, Pa.), Libbie Howley ’09 (Millis, Mass.), and Emma Schofield ’09 (Marblehead, Mass.).

Goaltender Benson will return to the starting position and will be the voice and the vision for the group on the field. Sophomore Rachel Freierman ’09 (Cambridge, Mass.) will also vie for time in net.

The Colby women's soccer team made it to the NESCAC Tournament semifinals for the first time since the playoff system started. The Mules finished with a 7-3-5 record and advanced past Amherst College in a penalty kick shootout in a NESCAC quarterfinal.

The Mules lost in the conference semifinals to eventual champion Tufts University by a tight 2-1 score. Tufts, which Colby beat 2-0 in the season opener, went on to the NCAA semifinals.

Junior forward Laura Williamson and junior goalkeeper Liza Benson both were named to the NESCAC all-conference first team. Williamson moved into second place on the all-time scoring list at Colby with 34 goals and 13 assists for 81 career points. Williamson needs 15 points to become the Mules' all-time scoring leader. Benson was among the top three goalkeepers in three statistical categories in the NESCAC.

Sisters Kara and Katie McCabe were named to the NESCAC second team. Kara, a senior co-captain, led Colby's defense. Katie was second on the Mules in scoring with two goals and a team-best seven assists under head coach Jen Holsten.

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