CALDWELL COLLEGE ATHLETICS - 2008-2009 YEAR IN REVIEW
It was another exciting year for Caldwell College athletics in 2008-2009,
highlighted by a trip to the NCAA Division II East Region Tournament by the
softball team. In the fall, the volleyball team won the Central Atlantic
Collegiate Conference North Division title, and the men’s soccer team
captured the CACC regular-season crown. Volleyball coach Megan Hrbek, men’s
soccer coach Jamie Nash and women’s soccer coach Nate Guagliardi all were
named CACC Coach of the Year for the respective sports. Senior forward Chad
Bennett was chosen the CACC Player of the Year for men’s soccer, freshman
women’s basketball player Kaitlyn Lambert earned CACC Rookie of the Year
honors, and men’s basketball player Manny Perez was selected to play in the
prestigious NABC/NCAA Division II All-Star Game. Additionally, freshman
golfer Daniel Garcia became the first Caldwell golfer to receive an
invitation to compete in the NCAA Division II Regional Tournament.
Several student-athletes received awards for their success in the classroom.
Senior women’s soccer player Samantha Rinks was selected to the ESPN the
Magazine Academic All-District 2 first team, becoming the first Caldwell
women’s soccer player to receive the honor. Three senior student-athletes
earned their third CACC All-Academic Team honor of their careers by
maintaining a cumulative grade-point average of 3.50 or higher. They are
Rinks, men’s soccer player Kevoi Walters and baseball player Jorge Torres.
Here’s a recap of each team’s season.
FALL
CROSS COUNTRY
Head Coach: John Tosato (6th season)
The 2008 cross country season was highlighted by a fifth-place finish at
the NJAIAW meet in Pomona, N.J. Junior Jaclyn Feola was the Cougars’ top
runner for most of the season, finishing first among her teammates in three
of the team’s seven races. The Cougars finished 10th at the CACC
Championship, with Feola crossing the finish line in 52nd place.
MEN’S SOCCER
Head Coach: Jamie Nash (9th season)
Final Record: 11-7-1 overall, 8-1-1 CACC (1st)
For the first time since 1993, the Cougar men’s soccer team captured the
CACC regular-season crown and earned the top seed in the CACC Tournament.
Caldwell scored 30 goals while allowing 15 in the 10 conference games and
set a school record with eight CACC victories, highlighted by a
come-from-behind, 3-2 win at Bloomfield. After receiving a bye, the Cougars
met fourth-seeded Post in the semifinals of the CACC Tournament. The Eagles
scored goals in the 17th and 66th minutes, then held
on for the shutout, handing the Cougars their only shutout loss of the
season against a CACC opponent. The result leaves the Cougars still looking
for their first CACC Tournament title in the 18-year history of the program.
Senior forward Chad Bennett had an outstanding season, scoring a team-best
13 goals to go with four assists for 30 points. His performance earned him
CACC Player of the Year honors, becoming the first Caldwell men’s soccer
player to receive the league’s top honor. A first team all-CACC selection,
Bennett also was named to the Daktronics all-East Region first team, while
senior goalkeeper John Plaugic made the all-CACC second team. Head coach
Jamie Nash, who has been involved with the men’s soccer program as a player
and coach for 14 years, was chosen CACC Coach of the Year.
WOMEN’S SOCCER
Head Coach: Nate Guagliardi (2nd season
Final Record: 8-11-1 overall, 7-3-1 CACC (4th)
With a group of 18 newcomers joining just five returning players, the
women’s soccer team improved four spots to fourth place in the CACC. The
Cougars started slowly with an 0-6 record before winning five of their next
seven games, including an overtime victory over Dominican. The successful
stretch allowed the Cougars to earn the No. 4 seed and a home game in the
CACC Tournament quarterfinals against Nyack. In a hard-fought battle at
Caldwell Field, freshman Giana Scerbo scored the game’s only goal in the 81st
minute to give the Cougars their first CACC Tournament win since 2004.
Caldwell advanced to face top-seeded Philadelphia in the semifinals. After
surrendering a goal in the 71st minute, the Cougars tied the game
on a goal by senior Samantha Rinks with less than five minutes remaining.
The score stayed 1-1 until the Rams scored on a free kick with less than a
minute to play in the second overtime period, eliminating Caldwell for the
second straight year.
Senior midfielder Kristee Paknis led Caldwell in scoring for the third
straight year with 12 goals and six assists for 30 points. Paknis made the
all-CACC first team and became the first Caldwell women’s soccer player
named to the Daktronics all-East Region first team in the history of the
program. Rinks was chosen to the all-CACC second team, while senior Kim
Fenton received all-CACC honorable mention. Additionally, Rinks was selected
to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District 2 first team. She is the
first Cougar women’s soccer player to receive the honor. Head coach Nate
Guagliardi received the CACC Coach of the Year award for the team’s improved
play.
WOMEN’S TENNIS
Head Coach: Michael Lukacs (2nd season)
Final Record: 2-12 overall, 1-6 CACC (7th)
The women’s tennis team consisted mainly of underclassmen for the second
consecutive year and finished near the bottom of the CACC standings. A
bright spot was freshman Olga Ndhlovu, who won a team-best five singles
matches while combining with sophomore Chiaki Saito for three doubles
victories. Ndhlovu represented the Cougars at the CACC Singles Tournament,
and played in the CACC Doubles Tournament with Saito.
VOLLEYBALL
Head Coach: Megan Hrbek (3rd season)
Final Record: 18-11 overall, 13-4 CACC (1st in CACC North)
Through its first two seasons as an intercollegiate sport, the Caldwell
College volleyball team won four matches against 41 losses. Things changed
quickly for the Cougars in 2008, as the team went 13-4 in conference play to
finish first in the CACC North Division. A dominating 3-0 victory over Holy
Family highlighted a seven-game winning streak that put the Cougars in
position to win the North. The division title gave Caldwell the North’s top
seed in the CACC Tournament. In the program’s first CACC Tournament match,
Caldwell defeated Nyack 3-1 in the Newman Center to advance to the
semifinals against Philadelphia. The semifinal match started well for
Caldwell with a 25-21 first-set win, but the Rams took the next two sets and
held a 23-16 advantage in the fourth set. Facing defeat, the Cougars mounted
a furious comeback to tie the score at 23-23 and briefly stave off
elimination. The comeback fell short, however, as Philadelphia took the
final two points and won the match, 3-1.
A trio of freshmen received all-CACC honors, led by right side Amber Mosher,
who led the Cougars in kills with 2.69 per game to earn a spot on the all-CACC
first team. Setter Lauren Roth, who ranked fifth in the CACC in assists,
made the second team, while middle blocker Titilola Alao received all-CACC
honorable mention. Head coach Megan Hrbek was named CACC Coach of the Year
for the team’s amazing turnaround.
WINTER
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Head Coach: Mark Corino (21st season)
Final Record: 12-16 overall, 8-8 CACC (4th in CACC North)
The men’s basketball team featured all-CACC forward Manny Perez and
several newcomers in an up-and-down season. The Cougars hovered around .500
most of the season, and were 10-10 after back-to-back wins over Post and USP.
But a 2-5 finish down the stretch left Caldwell with an 8-8 record in league
play, good for fourth place in the CACC North Division. The good news is the
Cougars made the CACC Tournament for the 21st time in the 22-year
history of the program. The bad news is the team played its first-round game
at top-seeded Bloomfield, where the Cougars had suffered a 16-point loss two
weeks earlier. The result was the same in the tournament, as Bloomfield
eliminated Caldwell with a 95-71 defeat.
Senior forward Manny Perez earned a whole closet-full of awards after
averaging 18.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game to lead Caldwell in both
categories. Perez was named to the all-CACC and all-Met first teams and
became the first Cougar to receive all-Region honors when he was selected to
the Daktronics all-East Region second team. He also was chosen an ECAC
Basketball All-Star, and was one of just 20 players in all of Division II to
play in the prestigious NABC/NCAA Division II All-Star Game. Perez finished
his career with 1,859 points to rank second all-time at Caldwell.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Head Coach: Linda Cimino (3rd season)
Final Record: 10-18 overall, 8-9 CACC (3rd in CACC North)
The women’s basketball team battled injuries an inconsistent play all
season but still qualified for the CACC Tournament for the second year in a
row. After starting the season with four straight losses, the Cougars won
their next four contests to even their record at 4-4. Another losing streak,
this time five games long, was followed by three conference wins that gave
Caldwell a 5-1 mark in league play. But the Cougars were unable to build on
this momentum and won just three of their remaining 11 games. A third-place
finish in the CACC North Division sent Caldwell to Bloomfield for the first
round of the CACC Tournament, where the Cougars fell, 61-50.
Senior forward Mackenzie Lynch earned all-CACC second team and all-Met first
team honors after averaging 16.3 points and 10.9 rebounds. Lynch achieved
the 1,000-point milestone on Jan. 20 against Chestnut Hill, and finished her
career with 1,232 points and 814 rebounds. Sophomore guard Kirsty Leedham,
who scored a league-best 43 points at Post on Jan. 27, made the all-CACC
third team after leading the Cougars in scoring at 16.6 points per game.
Freshman guard Kaitlyn Lambert, who scored 11.3 points per contest and
earned CACC Rookie of the Week six times, was selected the CACC Rookie of
the Year.
SPRING
BASEBALL
Head Coach: Jay Messina (1st season)
Final Record: 18-23 overall, 12-15 CACC (9th)
The Cougar baseball team struggled through an 18-23 campaign and missed the
CACC Tournament after winning the conference title in 2008. Injuries
hampered the Cougars’ experienced pitching staff, with 2008 CACC Pitcher of
the Year Robert Casal throwing 48 fewer innings this year than a year ago.
All-CACC pitchers Stephen Pfeil and Eric Hines also suffered injuries,
affecting the pitching depth that is necessary for a 27-game conference
schedule. The Cougar bats were explosive at times, producing double-digit
runs 13 times. In a 17-5 win at Bloomfield Apr. 26, Caldwell pounded out 21
hits, including four doubles and two homers, while scoring 11 runs in the
ninth inning alone. But the team never put things together and finished in
ninth place in the CACC standings.
Junior Buddy Riggs became a starter after two years in the bullpen and
earned all-CACC first team and all-East Region second team honors. Riggs
went 6-2 with an earned run average of 3.85 while striking out 72 in 60 1/3
innings. Junior outfielder Ray Keelan also was first team all-CACC and
earned all-Region honors from three organizations after batting a team-best
.387 with eight home runs and 48 runs batted in. Junior infielder Adric
Saxon made the all-CACC second team.
GOLF
Head Coach: Mike Andrusin (3rd season)
This was an exciting year for the Cougar golf team, which placed a pair of
its freshmen near the top of the leaderboard at several events. Freshmen
Daniel Garcia and Randy Kurzinsky played well at the CACC Tournament, with
Garcia tying for seventh and Kurzinsky tying for 10th. Both
performances earned the duo all-CACC honors, becoming the first
all-conference players from Caldwell since 2004. They also led the Cougars
to a fifth-place finish at the conference tourney. Garcia also made history
when he was selected to participate in the NCAA East/Atlantic Regional.
Garcia, who finished in a tie for 90th at the regional, is the
first Caldwell golfer to be invited to a regional tournament in the 15-year
history of the program.
SOFTBALL
Head Coach: Dean Johnson (15th season)
Final Record: 37-18-2 overall, 20-4 CACC (2nd)
The softball team continued its recent history of success with its fifth
appearance in the NCAA Regional in the past six years while setting a school
record for most conference wins. After finishing second in the CACC
standings with a 20-4 conference record, the Cougars advanced to the final
day of the CACC Tournament for the seventh consecutive season. Sophomore
Brittany Pulido tossed two shutouts on the first day to beat Wilmington and
Bloomfield. Host Georgian Court, seeded fourth, defeated Caldwell 8-2 on
Friday, forcing the Cougars to play an elimination game against Bloomfield
on Saturday morning. Following a 7-0 blanking of the Lady Deacons, the
Cougars fell to Georgian Court again, 2-0, for a runner-up finish.
At the NCAA regional, hosted by top-seeded Le Moyne, the Cougars received
another pitching gem from Pulido in a 2-0 win over Dowling in the first
game. Le Moyne squeaked out a 2-1 victory in the winner’s bracket game,
setting up a rematch with Dowling in an elimination game. The contest, which
was delayed 90 minutes due to lightning and rain, also went into extra
innings with the game tied at 6-6. The score remain locked until the top of
the 11th, when a double by sophomore Annie Forte plated Kyrie
Timbrook with the game-winning run. Still alive, the Cougars had to beat Le
Moyne twice to advance to the Super Regional in the new format. But the
Dolphins scored four times in the third inning en route to a 7-1 win that
eliminated Caldwell from the regional.
Pulido, senior Gina Capardi, juniors Kyrie Timbrook and Danielle Genovese
and freshman Kelly Ryan each earned all-CACC first team and all-region
honors. Capardi, an All-American in 2008, also made the NFCA all-East Region
first team.
MEN’S TENNIS
Head Coach: Bruce Hamburger (2nd season)
Final Record: 3-11 overall, 3-7 CACC (t-4th)
For the first time, the men’s tennis team played a conference schedule,
as the CACC added men’s tennis as a championship sport in 2009. Seniors Mike
Manna and Thane McKenzie represented Caldwell at the first CACC Men’s Tennis
Tournament, participating in both the singles and doubles competitions.
Manna and sophomore Josh Getka each won a team-best four matches in singles
play, while Getka and sophomore Andy Loughnane won five doubles matches on
the season.
PHOTO GALLERY
 Jaclyn Feola |
 Luis Sartorio |
 Laura Ciesla |
 Samantha Rinks |
 Mais Attyeh |
 Mackenzie Lynch |
 Carl Augustin |
 Mike Manna |
 Kristen de la Campa |
 Chris Parker |
 Jorge Torres |
