University of Connecticut Athletics
UConn Players Staying Competitive Over The Summer
5/20/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
May 20, 2011
STORRS, Conn. - With the school year complete, several UConn women's soccer players will be competing over the summer in women's amateur leagues throughout the country and Canada. Five UConn players will be major cogs in the lineup for the New England Mutiny competing in the Women's Professional Soccer League.
Sophomores Danielle Dakin (Wilbraham, Mass.), Amanda Carvalho (Cheshire, Conn.), Karen Gurnon (Tolland, Conn.), Hillary Lackman (Storrs, Conn.) and incoming freshman Riley Houle (Columbia, Conn.) are all competing with the New England Mutiny in the WPSL. The WPSL is an amateur league boasting 65 teams throughout the country.
Also competing in the WPSL and playing for the Connecticut Reds are sophomore Michelle Baj (South Windor, Conn.), freshman goalkeeper Leigh-Ann Jaggon (Windsor, Conn.) and incoming freshman Chelsea Hunter (Middletown, Conn.).
Freshman Devin Prendergast (Babylon, N.Y.) will also play in the WPSL as a member of the Long Island Fury.
In recent WPSL news, Dakin and Jaggon were both named to the most recent WPSL Team of the Week after a 0-0 draw between the New England Mutiny and the Connecticut Reds.
A large contingent of Huskies will also be competing in the W-League, a 27-team amateur league featuring four conferences in the U.S. and Canada.
Juniors Jessica Shufelt (Rochester, N.Y.) and Melissa Busque (St. Bruno, Quebec) have joined up with incoming sophomore transfer Julie Hubbard (Waverly, Pa./Penn State) and freshman Jennifer Skogerboe (Leesburg, Va.) on the Ottawa Fury in the Great Lakes Conference.
Two other UConn players will be competing in the Great Lakes Conference as junior goalkeeper Jessica Dulski (Pittsford, N.Y.) guards the net for the Rochester Ravens and redshirt-junior Courtney Wilkinson-Maitland (Candiac, Quebec) has signed with the Laval Comets.
Competing in the Northeast Conference, redshirt-senior Cory Bildstein (Stockton, N.J.) will appear with the New Jersey Wildcats while junior Danielle Schulmann (Sadle River, N.J.) will represent the New Jersey Rangers.
UConn has a long history of top players performing at the highest level in the WPSL and W-League.
Former UConn player Angelika Johansson ('10) holds the distinction of being the 2009 W-League MVP. Former UConn star and U.S. National Team selection Brittany Talyor ('09) was Johansson's teammate in 2009 and was named the 2009 W-League Defender of the Year.
Additionally, former players Meghan Cunningham ('10), Meghan Schnur ('07) and Stephanie Labbe ('08) helped lead the New England Mutiny to the 2007 WPSL National Finals. Labbe was named to the All-WPSL Final Four team. Schnur led the Mutiny in 2007 with eight goals and nine assists and scored a goal in the WPSL Final Four. She was also a WPSL First Team Selection in 2007 and was a five time All-WPSL Selection. Meghan Cunningham converted a penalty kick to advance the Mutiny past Tampa Bay Elite in the 2007 WPSL Final Four.
Connecticut will begin competition in 2011 with an exhibition against UMass on Thursday, August 11th in Storrs, Conn.. Time is to be determined.
