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Herons hold firm at No. 5 in coaches poll
November 1, 2005
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GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith College soccer team remained at No. 5 in the latest edition of the NSCAA/adidas Division III national rankings for the third consecutive week. The Herons are the top ranked team in the New York region poll.
Under the leadership of legendary Head Coach Aliceann Wilber, the Herons’ (14-0-1) have won at least 13 games in nine consecutive seasons. William Smith is enjoying its best start since the 1993 squad also opened the season with a 14-0-1 mark.
On Oct. 26, the Herons completed an unbeaten regular season by overpowering Cortland 4-0. Sophomore striker Laura Burnett-Kurie (Oyster River/Durham, N.H.) netted her conference leading 17th and 18th goals to pace the offense, while the suffocating defense stifled the Red Dragons’ attack. William Smith has only surrendered one goal this season. Junior goalkeeper Nikki Dudley (Chittenango/Chittenango, N.Y.) registered her Division III leading 14th shutout. She also leads the nation in goals against average (0.07) and save percentage (.980).
The Herons will host the Liberty League Championship Tournament. Top-seeded William Smith will face No. 4 Hamilton (7-5-1) in the first semifinal at 11 a.m. on Nov. 4. No. 2 Union (15-1-2) will square off against No. 3 Skidmore (12-4-1) at 1:30 p.m. The championship game is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. on Nov. 5.
Admission to the tournament is free. Fans unable to make the trip to Geneva can follow the action via real time statistics on the Liberty League Tournament home page.