Sophomores Chanel Comis (Durham, NC/Cardinal Gibbons) and Michelle Yarger (Chantilly, VA/Chantilly HS) earned First Team All-Conference honors, while fellow sophomores Cynthia Osorio (Oceanside, NY/Oceanside HS) and Alexis Alessi (Rockville Centre, NY/Oceanside HS) and freshman Ciara O’Donnell (Bethpage, NY/Kellenberg) were named Second Team All-Conference. Mount Saint Vincent’s five All-Conference selections were second best behind Conference Champion Montclair State, who earned seven selections, and the Mount was the only Skyline program that saw its entire starting defensive unit earn All-Conference honors.
Comis, a co-captain as a sophomore, has had a solid season in which she established herself as one of the premiere two-way players in the Skyline Conference. On top of a 22-goal, seven assist season in which she scored at least one goal in 14 games, Comis is among the team leaders in both ground balls (37) and draw controls (35), and has proven to be the team’s top defensive midfielder, drawing the opposition’s best midfielder during most games.
Joining Comis on the First Team was Yarger, who is in the midst of a terrific defensive season in which she is currently tied for the conference lead in ground balls (60), is third in the Skyline with 45 caused turnovers. Her efforts have led a defensive unit that has held the Mount’s opponents to single digit scoring totals during nine out of 17 games. Yarger has collected five or more ground balls during seven games this season, and her nine ground ball/nine caused turnover effort against Kean on April 8 was instrumental to a 15-9 Mount Saint Vincent upset win.
The Second Team features two defenders and an attacker as Alessi has enjoyed a terrific sophomore campaign in which she is currently second on the team with 27 caused turnovers, third on the team with 47 ground balls, and fourth on the team with 27 draw controls despite playing only ½ of the season on the draw circle. Alessi’s lacrosse accomplishments are even greater when combined with the fact that she is one of the top soccer goalies in the Skyline Conference and this season led the Mount to an incredible 10-7 season this past Fall.
Osorio, a High School teammate of Alessi’s, earned a rare distinction of being named All-Conference in two different sports after she was named Second Team All-Conference during the Fall as a star member of the Mount Saint Vincent Women’s Soccer team. She has enjoyed a terrific lacrosse season in which she is currently second on the team with 47 ground balls, and third on the team with 26 caused turnovers. The team’s fastest defender, Osorio excelled in a variety of roles this season and was often a vital part of the Mount Saint Vincent transition game thanks to her speed and craftiness.
Rounding out the Mount Saint Vincent presence on the All-Conference team was O’Donnell, a freshman attacker, who is currently the Dolphin leader in goals (35) and points (42) to go with 23 ground balls and 16 draw controls. O’Donnell was one of the best freshmen in the Skyline Conference this season, registering a hat trick or better during five out of six Conference games, and eight games with three goals or better overall. An imposing presence thanks to her combination of size, strength, and speed, O’Donnell’s season included 17 goals and 20 points against Skyline Conference competition.
Mount Saint Vincent is currently 8-9 overall during its second season of varsity competition. The Dolphins will look to finish the 2006 season at .500 on Saturday, May 6 when they host Cazenovia at 1:00 p.m. at Columbia University’s Wien Stadium.
