November 24 , 2004

Sarah Silverio

Maggie Dolan

Sophie Dennis

Lea Desforges

Amy Kuzio

GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith field hockey team had five players named to the 2004 National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) All-North Atlantic teams. The Herons placed three on the first-team and two on the second-team.

Senior midfielder Sarah Silverio (Radnor/Villanova, Pa.) and junior forward Maggie Dolan (Towson/Towson, Md.) earned first-team honors for the second straight year, while sophomore forward Sophie Dennis (Dana L. West/Port Byron, N.Y.) moved up to the first-team from the second-team a year ago. On the second-team, senior back Lea Desforges (Woodstock Union/Stockbridge, Vt.) made her second straight appearance, while junior midfielder Amy Kuzio (Clinton/Clinton, N.Y.) garnered her first All-North Atlantic award.

Silverio, a 2003 second-team All-American, played in 14 games this season, starting 13. A stingy defender and a dangerous attacker, she scored a goal and assisted on four others to raise her career totals to 10 goals and seven assists for 27 points. The three-year starter is a two-time first-team All-Liberty League selection and participated in the 2004 NFHCA North-South Senior All-Star game.

Dolan has emerged as a consistent scoring threat for the Herons. A two-time All-Liberty League honoree, she scored 13 goals and assisted on nine others to finish second on the team in scoring. Dolan scored a season-high four points five times this season. In the conference, she ranked third in points, second in assists, and fourth in goals. Over the past three seasons, Dolan has posted 21 goals and 16 assists for 56 points.

Dennis—thanks to the second most prolific scoring season in Heron history—is as close to a sure bet All-American as there is. She scored a Liberty League best 19 goals and added nine assists for 53 points. Only Kimberly O’Gorman ’88 has scored more goals and points in one season (30-7-67 in 1987). With just two seasons under her belt, Dennis is poised to join an exclusive William Smith sorority. She has 39 goals and 12 assists for 90 points, just 10 shy of becoming just the 10th Heron to record 100 career points.

A four-year starter, Desforges is one of the top defenders in the nation. The two-time All-Liberty League selection anchored the Herons’ backline that yielded just a 1.44 goals against average. William Smith posted a conference best eight shutouts this season. During her career, she started all 77 games she played in and recorded seven defensive saves. Desforges joined Silverio in the North-South All-Star game, which the North won 3-1 on Nov. 20.

Kuzio is a three-year starter in the Heron midfield and the stopper on William Smith offensive penalty corners. She posted three goals, including the game-winner in the Herons’ NCAA quarterfinal win over third-ranked Ursinus, and six assists for 12 points. A second-team All-Liberty League pick, Kuzio has started 57 of the 61 games she has played in for William Smith, scoring four goals and assisting on 12 others.

William Smith finished the season with an 18-3 overall record. The fifth-ranked Herons won the Liberty League regular season and tournament championship, posting a 7-0 conference mark. William Smith earned its 15th NCAA Tournament bid and reached the semifinals for the sixth time in the program’s history before falling to the eventual national champion, Salisbury, 2-1 in overtime.

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