Soccer Overview

Head Coach: Kanae Haneishi
Phone: 413-538-2112

The Mount Holyoke soccer team prides itself in maintaining a challenging schedule composed of strong National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III opponents, including some of the top-ranked teams in the nation. The team competes in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC), which boasts some of the best competition in the region, pitting the Lyons against opponents such as Wheaton, Springfield, Smith and Wellesley. 

In her first season at the helm of the program, head coach Kanae Haneishi led her squad to three victories. The Lyons completed their 2007 slate with an overall record of 3-13, posting a 1-8 mark versus NEWMAC foes. At the conclusion of the year, they were selected to receive the NEWMAC’s annual team Sportsmanship Award.

Sophomore Lauren Orr earned NEWMAC Second Team  All-Conference honors after an outstanding season. For the year, the forward led the team with eight goals and 18 points. She registered three multi goal efforts and a pair of winners.

Mount Holyoke broke into the win column with a 3-1 triumph over the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. Trailing 1-0 at the intermission, Orr exploded for a natural hat trick in the second half to seal things.

Orr was also critical in the Lyons 2-0 win over Elms College, as she assisted on both goals. Following 50 minutes of scoreless play, Mount Holyoke tallied a pair of goals in a span of 2:36 early in the second half. First year midfielder Colleen Richards netted her first collegiate marker to get things going. Less than three minutes later, junior midfielder Emmy Fontaine knocked in the Lyons second goal. Sophomore goalkeeper Elaine Harvey made five saves en route to her first shutout.

Mount Holyoke downed the Coast Guard Academy 1-0 in dramatic fashion, as Orr collected the match-winner just 56 seconds into the first overtime period.

First year forward Jacquelyn Archibald made an immediate impact on the program in her inaugural collegiate campaign. She found the net twice and dished out a club high four assists from the forward position. Fontaine contributed two goals and a pair of helpers, while Richards added one goal and two assists.
 
Harvey was Mount Holyoke’s featured goalkeeper in 2007. She accumulated 151 saves in 1342:05 minutes played.

Mount Holyoke offers a competitive environment within which student-athletes are constantly challenged to continually strive for improvement. The traditional soccer season runs from the last week in August to early November. In practices, head coach Kanae Haneishi stresses the development of solid technical and tactical skills and emphasizes a commitment to team play. The program embraces a style of play built on solid team defense, in which dynamic attacking opportunities are created through maintaining possession.

All team members have both varsity high school and club soccer experience. The program attracts players with a commitment to excellence both on and off the field, as demonstrated by the NSCAA Academic Awards earned in each of the last six years for maintaining one of the top team GPAs in the nation.

As a Mount Holyoke scholar-athlete, you are driven to excel in the athletic arena as well as the classroom and laboratory. The discipline, sense of accomplishment, and competitive edge that you bring to your sport resonate throughout your intellectual life.

The desire to achieve -- it's all part of the mind-body connection.