WEEK 11 2023 RUNDOWN – Eclipse Select Alumni

Rounding out their final regular season matchups this past week, our alumni are showing their prowess headed into the postseason. Major storylines include junior Zach Gamster (St. Charles, IL.) and freshman Bella Najera (St. Charles, IL.) With a beauty of a header goal and a nicely slotted shot nearing the end of the match, Gamster notched his first pair of goals of the season during Dominican’s 6-1 victory over Illinois Tech in the NACC quarterfinals. Along with tallying her fifth assist of the year during the Spartans’ Big Ten Quarterfinal matchup against Iowa, Najera was also awarded the Big Ten Freshman of the Year award for her exceptional performance this season!


GOALSCORERS

Senior forward Alicia White (Geneva, IL.) scored her first of the year during GVSU’s matchup Sunday against Purdue Northwest. With 12 minutes remaining in regulation, White put away the match’s final goal after beating the defender and slotting a shot to the bottom left corner past the keeper. Coming out victorious with a final score of 4-1, the Lakers will close out their regular season at home this Thursday, November 2nd against Davenport. Bela Labovic (Schererville, IN.) notched her fourth goal of the year and second game-winner in the Argos’ 1-0 win over West Alabama on Friday. Capitalizing on a corner kick service just six minutes into the match, Labovic’s goal helped West Florida to their fifth home win of the season, and their second consecutive Gulf South Conference Title. Abby Kalou (Buffalo Grove, IL.) added a seventh goal to her season record Saturday during Lesley’s dominant 4-0 victory over UMaine Farmington. Already up by 3 under thirty minutes into the game, Kalou was able to capitalize on her opportunity in the 31st minute to give the Bobcats their fourth and final goal of the day. Arianna Lombardi (Bourbonnais, IL.) earned her ninth goal of the year Wednesday during the Pioneer’s battle at Beloit. Lombardi’s goal off a corner kick service in the ninth minute put Platteville on the board first before ending in a 2-2 tie. The Pioneers will host the WIAC Semifinals this Thursday, November 2 against the highest remaining seed in the tournament.


PLAYMAKERS

Senior forward Jack Finnegan (Hometown, IL.) notched his first assist of the year Tuesday during Wisconsin’s crucial comeback win over Milwaukee. Building some momentum at the 67th-minute mark, Finnegan fed the ball across the box to tie the game at 1 before ending in a final victory of 2-1. Finnegan and the #8 ranked Badgers will travel to take on the #1 seed Hoosiers in the Big Ten Tournament this Friday, November 3rd. Hannah Bebar (Naperville, IL.) put up her fifth assist of the season during the Crimson’s final regular season match against Yale. Under 2 minutes into the game, Bebar’s service into the box was put away to give Harvard an early lead before ending in a final victory of 5-2. Seeded at #2, Harvard will head to Princeton this Friday, November 3rd to compete in the first-ever Ivy League women’s soccer tournament. Julia Simon (Wheaton, IL.) logged her fourth assist of the year Friday during the Billikens Atlantic 10 Quarterfinal matchup against VCU. Picking up the ball in the 37th minute, Simon’s back post shot was rebounded to notch St. Louis’s second and final goal of the match – rolling past the Rams with a final score of 2-0. Simon and the Billikens advance to take on Duquesne in the Semifinals this Wednesday, November 1. Freshman Bella Diorio (Lockport, IL.) added a fourth assist to her season record Monday in the Frogs matchup against UCF. Down by one in the second half, Diorio’s service into the box at the 72nd minute gave TCU the equalizer before ending in a score of 2-3. 


KEEPERS CORNER

Senior keeper Gandhi Cruz (Aurora, IL.) put forth a tremendous effort in the Blue Demon’s final match of the season against Villanova (3-3). A true battle from start to finish, Cruz put up 7 saves on 22 shots faced – marking a career record with a grand total of 87 saves on the season. Junior goalie Lauren Boafo (Hanover Park, IL.) and the Broncos brought home a big 3-1 win over Toledo on Thursday. With the help of Boafo’s efforts in goal, Western Michigan was crowned the MAC regular season Champions for the first time in program history! Earning the first seed in the tournament, they will host the semifinals this Thursday, November 2nd at home.


POSTSEASON AWARDS

  • Bella Najera (Michigan State University) Big Ten Freshman of the Year
  • Emma Phillips (Northwestern University)  Third-Team All Big Ten 
  • Ingrid Falls (Northwestern University) Big Ten Sportsmanship Award Recipient 
  • Allison Rapaduski (University of North Dakota) All-Summit League Honorable Mention
  • Xcaret Pineda (Oklahoma State University) All-Big 12 Second Team

Over 100 Eclipse Select Soccer Club alumni, both male and female, are rostered across every level of college soccer at Division I, II, III, and NAIA. There are 34 alumni designated as freshmen entering their first year of college. The remaining includes 31 sophomores, 36 juniors, 19 seniors, and one graduate student with an additional year of eligibility.