Six Landmark Players Named To Soccer All-Region Team

MADISON, N.J. - Six Landmark Conference women's soccer players have been named to the National Soccer Coaches Association Division III All-Region Team. The conference had two players on the Mid-Atlantic second-team with four more players earning third-team recognition.

Moravian College junior Tracy Fitzpatrick and The Catholic University of America junior Suzie Peters each claimed second-team honors. Catholic then had senior Diana Napolitano, senior Katelynn Chambers and junior Elyse Bellardini on the third team and she was joined by University of Scranton senior Laura Gibbons.

Fitzpatrick returned from a torn ACL suffered in her sophomore year to be selected as the Landmark Conference Offensive Player of the Year this season. She was also a first-team All-Conference pick as she led the conference with 11 goals and 33 points. She was also third in the conference in assists. She also had six game-winning goals which ranked first in the conference.

Peters (Nanuet, N.Y./Albertus Magnus) was named to the second team marking the first time in program history a Cardinal has been selected above the third-team.  The junior led the squad in scoring with 12 goals and three assists for 27 points after starting all 20 of CUA's contests.  Peters had three game winners for the season and earned ESPN The Magazine All-Region honors as well as a nod to the Landmark Conference first team.  The forward was all-tournament at both the D.C. Classic and the SWAT Kick Classic this past season.

Napolitano (Hasbrouck Heights, N.J./Immaculate Heart) ended her impressive career at CUA as the all-time assist leader capturing the top spot in assists in a game, season and career for the program.  The senior midfielder battled back from an injury to score three goals and notch three assists for a total of nine points on the year, two of her goals were game winners.  Besides her third team all-region honor, Napolitano was also selected to the Landmark Conference second team and D.C. Classic all-tournament squad.

Bellardini (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Valley) rounded out the honorees for the Cardinals earning a spot on the third team.  The junior midfielder ranked third on the team in scoring with eight goals and one assist for 17 points and two game winners.  Earlier in the season she was named to the D3Kicks.com Team of the Week after scoring three goals including one game winner in a two-game span.  She was named to the Landmark Conference first team and also selected all-tournament at the SWAT Kick Classic.

Gibbons was named the Landmark Conference Defensive Player of the Year in a voted conducted among the league's eight head coaches.  She anchored a defensive unit that posted six shutouts and was instrumental in leading Scranton to the championship of the first-ever Landmark Conference title under interim head coach Toby Lovecchio. She was a key member of three conference championship teams (2004, 2006, 2007), two of which advanced to the NCAA tournament (2004, 2006), and finished with an overall record of 39-33-9 (.537).

The Landmark Conference had three women's soccer teams qualify for postseason play. Moravian earned a bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament, while Catholic and Juniata College were each ECAC Division III Postseason participants.