(Posted October 4, 2004)

Huntingdon, PA - Juniata College senior goalkeeper Melonie Sappe' (Dallas/Shavertown) has been named the Commonwealth Conference goalkeeper/defensive field hockey player of the week for the second week in a row. This is the third time that Sappe' has received this honor since the beginning of the season.

Sappe' helped Juniata to a 1-0 victory on this past Saturday at 16th-ranked Lebanon Valley. The Eagles earned a 1-0 victory after two rounds of penalty strokes. Sappe' recorded 10 saves during the seventy minutes of regulation time, and then added two more during thirty minutes of sudden-death overtime play. She then turned away six shots during the game-deciding penalty shootout to secure the win for Juniata. It was the second time this season that the senior keeper has helped Juniata earn a penalty-stroke victory.

Sappe' has recorded fifty saves this season and has posted an impressive .943 save percentage through the team's first eight games. In the 587 minutes of play, Sappe' has only given up three goals. Her shutout against Lebanon Valley lowered her goals against average to 0.36 which ranks first in the Commonwealth Conference. The victory over Lebanon Valley was her third shutout of the season, and her second in conference play. She has allowed two goals in 310 minutes. In Juniata's two penalty-stroke wins, she has stopped 16 shots and allowed just four successful strokes.

With Sappe' anchoring the defense the Eagles are off to the best start in the program's history. Juniata's 7-1 record is the best the field hockey team has been through eight games. Three separate Juniata teams had 6-2 records through the first eight contests. Juniata is ranked 12th in the most recent STX/NFHCAA Division III poll. Juniata is 7-1 overall and 3-1 in the conference through eight games. The Eagles will look to improve on the conference record when they host Elizabethtown on Wednesday.

###

Our readers respond...

Be the first to provide a response.

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.