Sunday, July 25, 2004 - 2 PM

NEW JERSEY WILDCATS
9

vs.

NEW YORK MAGIC
0

Mercer County Community College

Wildcats Cap Dominant Season
Pichon Leads Way with 10-Point Game

WEST WINDSOR, NJ - The New Jersey Wildcats capped a dominant regular season today with a dominant performance as they cruised past the New York Magic 9-0 at Mercer County Community College. Marinette Pichon led the way for the Wildcats with a big day that included four goals and two assists.

With the win, the Wildcats finished the regular season with a perfect 14-0 record - just the fifth time in W-League history that a team has gone through the regular season unbeaten and untied. The Wildcats finished the season in first place in the Northeast Division - their first-ever first-place finish and the first time that any team has gone undefeated in the Northeast Division.

The Wildcats will be hoping to ride the momentum from their victory over the Magic when they host the Eastern Conference playoffs next weekend. New Jersey earned a bye through through the preliminary round of the conference playoffs and will host three teams from each division in the conference on Saturday night in the semifinals. The semifinal round will be a doubleheader with games at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and the conference final will be on Sunday at 5 p.m. at Mercer County Community College.

Anne Makinen and Kelly Hammond both contributed two goals and one assists for the high-powered Wildcats offense, which finished the season with a W-League record 76 goals. Pichon also took the lead in the W-League scoring race with 21 goals and seven assists for 49 points. Kim Francis contributed a goal and an assist off the bench and Alli D'Amico added two assists after coming on in the second half.

Makinen opened the scoring with the first two goals of the game - one a header off a cross from Tasha St Louis in the fifth minute and the other on a pass from Pichon in the 35th minute. Hammond connected one minute later as the Wildcats went into halftime with a 3-0 lead.

Pichon went electric in the second half with three goals in a five minute span starting in the 58th minute before setting up Hammond for her second of the game in the 66th minute. D'Amico set up Francis in the 71st minute before Pichon closed the scoring when she ran onto a free kick from Makinen and buried a shot in the 83rd minute.

LINEUPS:
NEW YORK MAGIC: Ronale McKenzie, Janine Capello, Allison Valenti, Elizabeth Darby, Erin Schwetye, Kanae Haneishi, Kristen Habernicht, Magnolia Perez, Gretchen Miller (Danielle Salmon 85), Abigail Alt (Elizabeth Bajo 65), Lisa Baldwin.
NEW JERSEY WILDCATS: Becky Wachsberger (Alissa Kacar 72), Beth McNamara, Rochelle Willis (Kim Francis 45), Kim Brandao, Janine Willis, Jen Redmond (Maura Gallagher 45), Anne Makinen, Kelly Hammond, Tasha St Louis (Katie Ludwig 31), Kate Sands (Alli D'Amico 60), Marinette Pichon.

GOALS:
NJW – Makinen (St Louis) 5^th minute
NJW – Makinen (Pichon) 35^th minute
NJW – K. Hammond 36^th minute
NJW – Pichon (K. Hammond) 58^th minute
NJW – Pichon (Francis) 60^th minute
NJW – Pichon (D'Amico) 63^th minute
NJW – K. Hammond (Pichon) 66^th minute
NJW – Francis (D'Amico) 71^st minute
NJW – Pichon (Makinen) 83^rd minute

SAVES:
NYM – McKenzie 6
NJW – Wachsberger 1, Kacar 1

SHOTS:
NYM – 3, NJW – 28