Behrend will play soccer at MOC

By MOC Sports Information
Published in Sports on July 13, 2006 2:19 PM

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MOUNT OLIVE -- Mount Olive has signed six recruits -- four from Eastern North Carolina -- to women's soccer National Letters-of-Intent, it was announced by head coach Chris Shaw. Stephanie Behrend of Wayne County, Nia Celata and Jenn Sastre of Cumberland County, and Jenna Gudac of Johnston County join Danielle Boyes of Virginia and Kirsten White of Ontario among this year's recruiting class.

Behrend, a midfielder from Goldsboro, tallied 29 goals and 38 assists during her senior year at Rosewood High School. She helped lead Rosewood to a 17-3 record as the team posted its first-ever win in the state playoffs. Behrend earned all-conference honors and was named Goldsboro News-Argus Girls' Soccer Co-Player of the Year.

"Stephanie is an extremely hard-working midfielder and she has the ability to both possess the ball and beat players off the dribble," said Shaw. "We fully expect Stephanie to be an impact player for us this season."

Celata, a midfielder from Hope Mills, helped lead Southview High School to the state playoffs. Celata earned all-conference honors in her senior year as she finished with five goals and four assists.

"Nia is a very versatile and hard-nosed player who is comfortable using both feet," said Shaw. "We will look to utilize Nia on the outside either in the attack or on defense."

Sastre, a goalkeeper from Fayetteville, was a teammate of Celata at Southview High School. Sastre recorded 137 saves in her senior year and garnered all-region and all-conference recognition."

"Jenn is a talented shot stopper with an excellent kicking game," Shaw commented. "I believe that Jenn can develop into an excellent goalkeeper for Mount Olive College."

Gudac, a forward from Pine Level, N.C., holds the career goal-scoring record at North Johnston High School with 136 goals, including 55 during her senior season. An all-region and all-conference honoree, Gudac was selected to participate in the East-West High School All-Star Game. North Johnston posted a 17-6-1 mark during her senior year, the best record in school history.

"Jenna is coming to us as the most prolific goal scorer in her high school's history," noted Shaw. "She has excellent goal scoring instincts and we hope she can continue that prowess at Mount Olive."

Boyes, a midfielder from Hayes, Va., earned all-conference honors during her senior year at Gloucester High School. She helped lead her squad to an 8-1 mark in district play and a berth in the regional tournament.

"Danielle is a versatile player that we will look to utilize out wide," said Shaw. "She has the ability to play in the back or in the midfield."

White, a defender from Woodstock, Ontario, is a graduate of Huron High School and played club soccer for the London Gryphons. White joins fellow Ontario native and two-time All-Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference selection Kate Painter on the Trojan squad.

"Kirsten is an extremely talented defender and we expect her to make an immediate impact on the program," said Shaw. "She is comfortable both as an outside back and as a central defender."

Mount Olive posted a record of 14-9-0 in 2005 and reached the championship game of the CVAC Women's Soccer Tournament for the second consecutive year. The Trojans finished as runners-up last season after winning the conference title in 2004.

Ryan Brown named

assistant occer coach

Three-year Trojan letterwinner and two-year team captain Ryan Brown has been named assistant men's soccer coach at Mount Olive, it was announced by head coach Jerry Riggs. Brown, who completed his athletics eligibility last fall, begins his duties immediately.

Brown, a native of Jacksonville, was a three-year starting defender for the Trojan men's soccer team and helped lead Mount Olive to two of its most successful seasons in school history. In 2004, Mount Olive posted a 14-5-3 record and earned its first-ever Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference championship, posting a 1-0 win over Belmont Abbey in the title game of the CVAC Tournament. Last fall, the Trojans earned their first-ever national ranking, peaking at No. 7 and spending six consecutive weeks in the Adidas/NSCAA Division II Men's Soccer Top 25. Mount Olive finished with a record of 11-6-2.

"Ryan played soccer with a lot of passion and energy, and he'll continue to bring that to the team as a coach," said Riggs, who is entering his fifth year as head coach. "He has strong leadership skills and he knows what it takes to win in this league and in the region. I'm looking forward to getting Ryan involved in all aspects of the program right away."

"I'm very excited about the opportunity and I know this will be a great learning experience," said Brown, who is finishing up an internship this summer and will receive his undergraduate degree in December. "I'll need to make the transition from teammate to coach and the players will also need to adjust, but I'm looking forward to the challenge."

Brown replaces Michael Fuhrer, who graduated last December after serving as assistant coach in 2005.

Mount Olive kicks off its 2006 campaign with the Mount Olive College Men's Soccer Invitational (Sponsored by Sleep Inn) August 26-27 at Trojan Field.

MOC athletes

are honored

Two Mount Olive College student-athletes have been recognized as Arthur Ashe, Jr., Sports Scholars for 2006. Lucia Henkle was named to the second team for women's tennis, while David Marquez was named to the first team for baseball.

Henkle, a senior from Guatemala City, Guatemala, finished her collegiate tennis career as a four-time All-Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference first team selection. She was named CVAC Women's Tennis Player of the Year in 2005 and earned Freshman of the Year honors in 2003. Henkle, who will graduate in December with a degree in business management, has a 3.53 cumulative grade point average. She is active in the International Club at Mount Olive College.

Marquez, a rising senior from Acarigua, Venezuela, is tied for the third-highest cumulative grade point average among the 227 male student-athletes to earn Arthur Ashe, Jr., Sports Scholars recognition in 2006.

He has a cumulative gpa of 3.90 majoring in biology with a minor in chemistry, and has been named to the MOC President's List four times for posting a perfect 4.0 GPA. Marquez has been a part-time starter for the Trojan baseball team, playing the outfield and designated hitter positions.

Named for tennis legend Arthur Ashe, the Sports Scholars Awards recognize undergraduate students of color for excellence in athletics, academics and campus/community involvement.