The Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) is pleased to announce Durham College of Oshawa will represent Ontario at the 2007 Big Kahuna/adidas Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) Women’s Soccer Nationals hosted by Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax City’s Mainland Commons from November 7-10, 2007.

The five day event begins on Tuesday, November 6 with the CCAA All Canadian Awards Banquet and play kicks off on Wednesday, November 7 and continues through Saturday, November 10. Durham will first see action on Thursday, November 8 as they face the host Mount Saint Vincent University Mystics.

Durham comes into the championship as the third seed after winning the Provincial Championship for the second consecutive season with a thrilling 2-0 victory over the Humber Hawks in the Championship final at Algonquin College on October 27. The title marked the Lords fourth title in five years and their fifth overall title, setting a new benchmark in OCAA women's soccer.

The Lords lineup picked up plenty of hardware this season as Katie Szeghalmi, a second-year forward from Oshawa, was named OCAA Player of Year as well as OCAA Championship MVP. She will also be honoured as an All-Canadian at the CCAA All-Canadian Awards Banquet. This marks the fifth straight year a member of the Durham Lords has been recognized for this honour. Szeghalmi is also the OCAA’s nomination for CCAA Player of the Year. Laura Dixon, a former member of the Durham Lords is the last Ontario player to win the award. She received the honour in 2003.

The goalkeeper of the Lords, Ashley Visser, who did not allow a goal the entire season was awarded Championship Top-Goalkeeper and League Top-Goalkeeper. Krista Metcalf was awarded the OCAA Rookie of the Year while Amanda Durno, 2006 OCAA Player of the Year and CCAA All-Canadian, was a member of the OCAA Championship All-Star Team.

Durham has been the pinnacle of OCAA Women's Soccer all season, not allowing a single goal in 2007 and outscoring their opponents 47-0. The Lords will look to improve on their performance from last season at Nationals, where they just missed out on their first national medal as they dropped a 3-1 decision to FX Garneau in the bronze medal game.

Emily Costello of the Fanshawe Falcons (London) will also be honoured as a CCAA All-Canadian. This marks the second year in a row that Costello, the Falcons captain, has received this acknowledgement.

Humber head coaches Vince Pileggi and Mauro Ongaro are in consideration for the CCAA Coach of the Year award. The last coach from Ontario to win this honour was Renzo Castellani of Mohawk College (Hamilton), who won it 1998.

The 2007 CCAA Women’s National Soccer Championship features the top six women’s soccer teams in Canada.

The Championship Seeding is below:

1. Capilano College – North Vancouver, BC
2. Collège François-Xavier-Garneau (F.X. Garneau) – Québec, PQ
3. Durham College – Oshawa, ON
4. Mount Royal College – Calgary, AB
5. Mount Saint Vincent University (MSVU) – Halifax, NS
6. University of King’s College (UKC) – Halifax, NS

CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE:

Wednesday, November 7
10:30 am - F.X. Garneau vs. MSVU (Host)
1:00 pm - Capilano vs. UKC

Thursday, November 8
10:30 am - Durham vs. MSVU (Host)
1:00 pm - Mount Royal vs. UKC

Friday, November 9
10:30 am - F.X. Garneau vs. Durham
1:00 pm – Capilano vs. Mount Royal

Saturday, November 10
9:00 am - 5th place vs. 6th place
11:00 am - Bronze Medal Game
1:30 pm - Gold Medal Game

For more information, including the latest news, results and developments within the 2007 CCAA Women’s Soccer Nationals, please visit the official championship website: www.msvu.ca/soccernationals/.

DURHAM LORDS ROSTER

1 - Ashley Visser
2 - Courtney Collicott
3 - Sarah Tice
5 - Kirsten Bodashefsky
6 - Katie Szeghalmi
8 - Jennifer Michalicka
9 - Amanda Durno
12 - Brittany Micucci
13 - Jen Lecourt
14 - Jodi Den Bok
15 - Amanda Irwin
18 - Misty Mischtian
19 - Brittany Feher
20 - Abbie Visser
21 - Krista Metcalf
22 - Sandra Bower
23 - Julia Earle
24 - Nikki Tuck

Coaching Staff:
Head Coach: Vaso Vujanovic
Assistant Coach: Lori Ferren
Assistant Coach: Anthony Whitney
Goalkeeper Coach: Vasco Jeronimo
Athletic Director: Ken Babcock


DURHAM LORDS 2007 RESULTS

Regular Season
@ Fleming W 3-0
@ La Cite W 6-0
@ Algonquin W 1-0
vs. St. Lawrence W 8-0
vs. Centennial W 5-0
@ Seneca W 4-0
vs. Cambrian W 6-0
vs. Loyalist W 9-0

Qualifying Match
vs. St. Clair W 2-0

OCAA Championship (Hosted by Algonquin College)
vs. Fanshawe W 3-0 (Semi-Final)
vs. Humber W 2-0 (Gold Medal Game)

The OCAA governs intercollegiate sports and promotes physical activity in its member institutions through quality athletic and campus recreation programs. It offers 15 varsity sports to 30 member institutions throughout Ontario. For more information on the OCAA visit www.ocaa.com.