In addition to recognizing teams for their accomplishments throughout the season, the Landmark Conference highlights individual athletes for their outstanding performances.
At the closing of every season, All-Conference teams are selected for every sport in the conference. Now, with the fall seasons coming to a close, Landmark has awarded nine Goucher athletes with spots on the All-Conference teams for their respective sports.
Catie Ditmore, Megan Smith, Galen Guindon, Evan Rosse, Sisley Pumilia, Kellen Matthews, Allison Metzger, Joey Negreann, and Hadley Couraud were selected to represent Goucher on the All-Conference teams.
Both the first and second-team All-Conference squads are selected by head coaches from every team in the conference, and coaches must nominate players from other teams.
According to the Landmark Conference Manual, “Each team sport that participates in conference play selects a first and second All-Conference team. The size of the team is equal to the number of positions in the team sport (i.e. basketball – 5; soccer – 11; etc.) with one additional spot at the discretion of the sport committees.”
Senior volleyball captains Catie Ditmore and Megan Smith led their team to an impressive victory over Moravian University and a trip to the conference semifinals. They were both voted to the All-Conference second team.
Ditmore, a middle hitter, averaged 1.31 kills and 2.23 digs this season. She has the second most service aces in Goucher history with 218, and the fourth most assists, with 1,473.
“Receiving this honor means that I accomplished not only something I have always wanted, achieving a high honor in my collegiate athletic career, but that working hard and having a team to support me for four years has proven to be important. This honor represents my team as a whole, not just myself,” she said.
Smith, who was selected to the All-Landmark team in 2007 and 2008 as well, is Goucher’s all-time leader in kills. The outside hitter had 417 kills this year, bringing her career total to 1,563.
Because she was nominated by other conference coaches, she said, “It means they’ve recognized you as a solid player. It’s nice to be recognized after a successful season.”
Galen Guindon, senior and co-captain of the Men’s Soccer team, and Evan Rosse, also a senior, played extraordinarily well despite a disappointing losing season. They were both named to the second team.
Rosse, a forward, was Goucher’s leading scorer this season. He scored six goals and had two assists, and recorded 14 goals and six assists throughout his collegiate career.
Guindon scored four goals and had 10 assists during his four seasons of play. He was also nominated as a midfielder to second-team All-Conference in 2007. “I’m honored that the coaches of our conference recognized and respected my hard work, devotion and passion for the game,” he said.
From the Women’s Soccer team, juniors Sisley Pumilia and Kellen Matthews were selected to the second team.
Now a two-time member of the All-Landmark Women’s Soccer team, Pumilia, a midfielder, had three goals and an assist in 2009. She holds the school records for most goals in a season, with 23, and shares the school record for most goals in a game, with five. Despite the team’s record, Pumilia believes they improved tremendously throughout the season.
Matthews, the goalkeeper, has started every game for the past three seasons for Goucher. This season she had 154 saves, and concluded the season with a 1.87 goals against average.
Matthews said that she is honored to be recognized by other Landmark coaches, and having played for three years, she’s enjoyed balancing athletics with other aspects of life at Goucher
Junior Allison Metzger was the only Goucher Field Hockey player to be selected to the All-Conference second team. She scored five goals and recorded three assists in the 2009 season.
“I think it shows that I’m a leader and a dominant force on the field, and it feels great to be recognized as a valuable player in Landmark Conference field hockey,” said Metzger.
Joey Negreann, a sophomore on the Men’s Cross Country team, earned the final spot on the All-Conference team after beating out Logan Torgeson of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at the Landmark Conference Championships. He is Goucher’s first male runner to be nominated to All-Landmark for Cross Country.
Negreann acknowledges that the season went well for the team, and is optimistic for the future. “We’re a young squad and I am looking forward to seeing what we can accomplish in the next few seasons together,” he said.
On the Women’s Cross Country side, first year Hadley Couraud solidified her spot on the All-Conference second-team after placing 11th overall in the 6,000 meter run at the Landmark Conference Championships.
The first female runner from Goucher to make Landmark All-Conference, Couraud said, “To be honest, this is all so new to me that I didn’t really know how to take it, or how much it meant. It was my team that really helped me realize what the All-Conference team meant.”
“I really believe that everyone is capable of so much more than they realize, and we’re only inhibited by our hesitation to break out of our comfort zone,” she added.
Geoff Miller, Goucher’s Athletic Director, is proud of these athletes and their efforts this fall season. This year was a noticeable improvement, as only three Goucher athletes were recognized to the All-Conference teams last year.
“Our teams are competitive now even if they are not winning a lot of games. This means there are better players, ones who should be considered for All-Conference,” said Miller.
Landmark names nine to All-Conference
Published: Thursday, December 10, 2009
Updated: Monday, August 9, 2010 20:08
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