Army West Point Athletics
Witham, Cassalia Garner Postseason League Honors
October 29, 2018 | Women's Soccer
CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – Senior defender Sydney Witham and sophomore goalkeeper Sydney Cassalia of the Army West Point women's soccer team were named to the All-Patriot League team, the league announced Monday morning.
Witham collected first team honors for the first time in her career, while Cassalia garnered second team accolades for her first time. Both players earned their second career honors after being third team honorees a season ago. Additionally, Witham is the first Cadet since Clare Shea in 2016 to collect first team accolades.
"The recognition these ladies have received is deserved and accurate," head coach Adrian Blewitt said. "They have been our most consistent performers all season, and their high level of play has had a direct impact on the team's success. Our staff and players are proud of them as they have become the figureheads and standout leaders of our team."
Witham was one of four Army players to start all 18 games this season, playing every minute in 16 of those contests. The Crown Point, Ind., native's 1,716 minutes played were the most among position players. She totaled four points on the year with a goal and two assists on 26 shots (13 on goal). Witham ranked second on the Black Knights in assists, shots and shots on goal, while setting personal bests in each category.
Her first-career score came in the 50th minute of the Patriot League opener at Lehigh when she ripped a 20-yard shot into the upper left corner.
In addition to all her work in the attacking end of the field, Witham was also a contributed heavily to Army's back line which allowed the second-fewest goals in the league. She also served as the primary option on free kicks and corners.
Cassalia improved upon her impressive rookie campaign by playing all 1,772 minutes of Army's 18 games, earning nine shutouts. The Omaha, Neb., native boasts a 0.66 goals-against average after allowing just 13 goals, while her 100 saves contributed to an 0.885 save percentage. Additionally, she dished out two assists on the year, becoming the first goalkeeper in program history to record a point. Her first helper came in the season opener at Wagner before a booming punt led to the opening goal in the Star Game at Navy on Oct. 12.
The second-year player made at least six saves on nine occasions, including a personal-best 12 denials against Marshall on Aug. 19. Cassalia put together a scoreless streak of 495:17 over a six-game stretch that included four shutouts and 28 consecutive saves, the longest since Alex Lostetter in 2008.
She became the 11th keeper in program history to clear the century mark for saves and is the first to do it since her sister, Jordan Cassalia, in 2014. Sydney Cassalia was also the ninth Cadet to post nine or more clean sheets in a season, moving into fifth on the all-time list with 15 career shutouts in 35 games.
The sixth-seeded Black Knights will make their first postseason appearance since 2014 on Tuesday in the Patriot League Quarterfinals when they travel to service-academy rival Navy. Kickoff against the third-seeded Mids is slated for 7 p.m.
For more information on Army West Point women's soccer, visit GoArmyWestPoint.com and follow @ArmyWP_WSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
2018 Patriot League Women's Soccer All-Patriot League Teams and Major Awards
Offensive of the Year: Yari Bradfield, American, Sr., F
Midfielder of the Year: Mara Consentino, Colgate, Jr., M
Defensive Player of the Year: Alex Jackson, Navy, Jr., D
Goalkeeper of the Year: Kelly Chiavaro, Colgate, Jr., GK
Rookie of the Year: Taylor Kofton, Boston University, Fr., M
Coach of the Year: Nancy Feldman, Boston University
First Team All-Patriot League
Yari Bradfield, American, Sr., F
Anna Heilferty, Boston University, So., F
Sam Miller, Colgate, So., F
Barrett, Boston University, Sr., M
Mara Consentino, Colgate, Jr., M
Kayla Arestivo, Lehigh, Jr., M
Cadie Higginson, Navy, So., M
Sydney Witham, Army West Point, Sr., D
Alex Jackson, Navy, Jr., D
Baseley McClaskey, Navy, Jr., D
Kelly Chiavaro, Colgate, Jr., GK
Second Team All-Patriot League*
Carly Flahive, Holy Cross, Jr., F
Sarah Bayer, Loyola Maryland, Fr., F
Jourdan Ziff, Loyola Maryland, Sr., F
Victoria Tran, Navy, Fr., F
Audrey Denkler, American, Sr., M
Chelsea Churchill, Boston University, Sr., M
Sage DiGoulio, Colgate, So., M
Sabrina Mertz, Lehigh, Sr., M
Libby Closson, Boston University, Sr., D
Maddie Dano, Bucknell, Sr., D
Leah Lewis, Colgate, Jr., D
Sydney Cassalia, Army West Point, So., GK
Third Team All-Patriot League*
Jenna Marek, Bucknell, So., F
Abby Sotomayor, Colgate, Jr., F
Alex Stanford, Lafayette, Sr., F
Taylor Kofton, Boston University, Fr., M
Ang Seslija, Holy Cross, Sr., M
Hannah Hoefs, Loyola Maryland, Jr., M
Sydney Maxson, Colgate, So., D
Caroline Wallace, Holy Cross, Sr., D
Julianna Cabrera, Loyola Maryland, Sr., D
Sydney Fortson, Navy, Jr., GK
*Due to a tie, there are two non-specific position players on the second team and none on the third team.
Witham collected first team honors for the first time in her career, while Cassalia garnered second team accolades for her first time. Both players earned their second career honors after being third team honorees a season ago. Additionally, Witham is the first Cadet since Clare Shea in 2016 to collect first team accolades.
"The recognition these ladies have received is deserved and accurate," head coach Adrian Blewitt said. "They have been our most consistent performers all season, and their high level of play has had a direct impact on the team's success. Our staff and players are proud of them as they have become the figureheads and standout leaders of our team."
Witham was one of four Army players to start all 18 games this season, playing every minute in 16 of those contests. The Crown Point, Ind., native's 1,716 minutes played were the most among position players. She totaled four points on the year with a goal and two assists on 26 shots (13 on goal). Witham ranked second on the Black Knights in assists, shots and shots on goal, while setting personal bests in each category.
Her first-career score came in the 50th minute of the Patriot League opener at Lehigh when she ripped a 20-yard shot into the upper left corner.
In addition to all her work in the attacking end of the field, Witham was also a contributed heavily to Army's back line which allowed the second-fewest goals in the league. She also served as the primary option on free kicks and corners.
Cassalia improved upon her impressive rookie campaign by playing all 1,772 minutes of Army's 18 games, earning nine shutouts. The Omaha, Neb., native boasts a 0.66 goals-against average after allowing just 13 goals, while her 100 saves contributed to an 0.885 save percentage. Additionally, she dished out two assists on the year, becoming the first goalkeeper in program history to record a point. Her first helper came in the season opener at Wagner before a booming punt led to the opening goal in the Star Game at Navy on Oct. 12.
The second-year player made at least six saves on nine occasions, including a personal-best 12 denials against Marshall on Aug. 19. Cassalia put together a scoreless streak of 495:17 over a six-game stretch that included four shutouts and 28 consecutive saves, the longest since Alex Lostetter in 2008.
She became the 11th keeper in program history to clear the century mark for saves and is the first to do it since her sister, Jordan Cassalia, in 2014. Sydney Cassalia was also the ninth Cadet to post nine or more clean sheets in a season, moving into fifth on the all-time list with 15 career shutouts in 35 games.
The sixth-seeded Black Knights will make their first postseason appearance since 2014 on Tuesday in the Patriot League Quarterfinals when they travel to service-academy rival Navy. Kickoff against the third-seeded Mids is slated for 7 p.m.
For more information on Army West Point women's soccer, visit GoArmyWestPoint.com and follow @ArmyWP_WSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
2018 Patriot League Women's Soccer All-Patriot League Teams and Major Awards
Offensive of the Year: Yari Bradfield, American, Sr., F
Midfielder of the Year: Mara Consentino, Colgate, Jr., M
Defensive Player of the Year: Alex Jackson, Navy, Jr., D
Goalkeeper of the Year: Kelly Chiavaro, Colgate, Jr., GK
Rookie of the Year: Taylor Kofton, Boston University, Fr., M
Coach of the Year: Nancy Feldman, Boston University
First Team All-Patriot League
Yari Bradfield, American, Sr., F
Anna Heilferty, Boston University, So., F
Sam Miller, Colgate, So., F
Barrett, Boston University, Sr., M
Mara Consentino, Colgate, Jr., M
Kayla Arestivo, Lehigh, Jr., M
Cadie Higginson, Navy, So., M
Sydney Witham, Army West Point, Sr., D
Alex Jackson, Navy, Jr., D
Baseley McClaskey, Navy, Jr., D
Kelly Chiavaro, Colgate, Jr., GK
Second Team All-Patriot League*
Carly Flahive, Holy Cross, Jr., F
Sarah Bayer, Loyola Maryland, Fr., F
Jourdan Ziff, Loyola Maryland, Sr., F
Victoria Tran, Navy, Fr., F
Audrey Denkler, American, Sr., M
Chelsea Churchill, Boston University, Sr., M
Sage DiGoulio, Colgate, So., M
Sabrina Mertz, Lehigh, Sr., M
Libby Closson, Boston University, Sr., D
Maddie Dano, Bucknell, Sr., D
Leah Lewis, Colgate, Jr., D
Sydney Cassalia, Army West Point, So., GK
Third Team All-Patriot League*
Jenna Marek, Bucknell, So., F
Abby Sotomayor, Colgate, Jr., F
Alex Stanford, Lafayette, Sr., F
Taylor Kofton, Boston University, Fr., M
Ang Seslija, Holy Cross, Sr., M
Hannah Hoefs, Loyola Maryland, Jr., M
Sydney Maxson, Colgate, So., D
Caroline Wallace, Holy Cross, Sr., D
Julianna Cabrera, Loyola Maryland, Sr., D
Sydney Fortson, Navy, Jr., GK
*Due to a tie, there are two non-specific position players on the second team and none on the third team.
Players Mentioned
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