Paul Smith’s student-athletes picked up honors in no fewer than four collegiate sports, both with their teams and as individuals. The three women’s teams led the fall season, all grabbing conference championships.

“The coaching staff did a superb job of keeping the student-athletes engaged in training and preparing for athletic competition through the 2020-2021 school year, despite the pandemic and near total absence of competitions,” Paul Smith’s College Athletic Director Jim Tucker said in a statement. “This, combined with a very successful recruiting effort across the board, resulted in several very talented athletes on campus who want to excel and have a strong desire to win in their selected sports.”

The women’s soccer squad went undefeated in the regular season prior to winning the Yankee Small College Conference tournament with a 1-0 victory over the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Grace Kronick had the game’s lone tally, on a set-up from Hayleigh Gates. Abigail Cancilla earned Defensive Player of the YSCC Tournament, while Kate Roefs and Brooke Kiefer both earned YSCC All-Conference honors.

During the conference semi-finals, Roefs was unstoppable. She scored four goals, while Danielle Lockwood added another in a 5-0 victory over New Hampshire Technical Institute.

Paul Smith’s Steven Donnelly stands in net during a game against Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences on Oct. 10 at Paul Smith’s College. (Enterprise photo— Parker O’Brien)

Goalkeeper Anna Thrasher was named YSCC Conference Tournament MVP with 10 saves in the championship match. She led the conference with only seven goals allowed this season.

The conference title earned the Bobcats an automatic bid to the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Nationals. Paul Smith’s coach Bailey Walton received Coach of the Year honors.

On the men’s side, goalkeeper Steven Donnelly and striker Marvis Nosa made the YSCC All-Conference Team, while Zack Luzzi was named Coach of the Year. Paul Smith’s finished the season blanking its final three opponents, including a 4-0 victory over conference-leading Albany Pharmacy to conclude the regular season. Nosa fired home three goals in the first half to lead the Bobcats.

During the post-season, the drama really started. Paul Smith’s opened the conference tournament with a 1-0 win over NHTI, followed by a 2-1 decision over Albany Pharmacy in the conference semi-finals in a contest that saw Donnelly prove his mettle.

In a thrilling conference championship match, Central Maine Community College jumped out to a 2-0 advantage before Nosa chipped in two quick goals to tie it up.

The game then went to extra time, where Central Maine took the decision on a penalty kick and advanced to the USCAA national tournament.

YSCC honors also went to the Bobcats volleyball team, which captured both regular and post-season titles, the latter occurring with defeats of Southern Maine and NHTI. In addition to receiving Player of the Week honors in September, Alli Cherry and Jordan Louis were placed on the all-conference team, while Cherry was the tournament’s Most Valuable Player and Louis collected the award for Offensive Player of the Tournament.

The team got an automatic bid to the USCAA National Tournament, and has been ranked in the top five in USCAA Division II volleyball all season.

Paul Smith’s runners made their own headlines this year, having advanced to the YSCC Championships in cross-country at Vermont Tech. Paul Smith’s entered the event having placed second, third and fourth in fall invitationals.

Freshman Jessie Church led from start to finish and won the YSCC Women’s 6K (3.7 miles) Championships in 27 minutes, 54 seconds. Three of her fellow Bobcats earned all-conference honors. Ellen Haas (29:16) took fourth place, followed by Melody Ascioti (29:37) in fifth and Ellie Judice (31:03) in seventh.

The women’s team won the event scoring 25 points to second place Albany Pharmacy’s 31. Nine women from Paul Smith’s took part in the 6K event. The team’s fifth scorer in the event was Michelle Martineau, who finished in 18th place.

Captain Zack Sprott-Scribner ran the Bobcats to a second-place finish in the men’s 8K (4.9 miles) event. He earned All-Conference honors with a personal best time of 31:38. Brady Miller (32:57) wound up in ninth place, while John Thompson (34:10) took 11th. Nathan Shader was the fourth Bobcat in the lineup. He finished the race with a time of 35:39.

Both the men’s and women’s teams are hoping to finish in the top 10 at USCAA Cross Country Nationals in Virginia Beach on Friday.

During the fall golf schedule, Paul Smith’s produced a pair of YSCC All-Conference selections. Sophomores Madison Bentley and Daniel Miner finished the season with the YSCC’s second and third lowest scoring averages, respectively.

The Bobcats were as dominant on water as they were on land, capturing both the New York State collegiate championships in bass fishing and in the canoe marathon. The effort from the Bobcat anglers included the lunker of the tournament, weighing over 7.5 pounds.