Another week marked another set of weekly awards won by the College of Staten Island by the City University of New York Athletic Conference. Soccer standouts Catherine Mulligan and Miguel Morales both won the conference’s Defender of the Week award, while freshman standout Teresa Maresca was named the CUNYAC’s Rookie of the Week in women’s volleyball.
No stranger to great defense, Mulligan was awarded the conference’s Defender of the Year honor a year ago by the CUNYAC coaches. This is Mulligan’s second turn this season as a Defender of the Week, having last won on the week of September 11. CSI has not allowed a goal in 286 minutes, which includes a complete 180 in two conference contests last week against CUNYAC opposition. Mulligan anchored a defense that only allowed a total of three shots with only one going on goal. The run included a 3-0 blanking of second-place John Jay, insuring the Dolphins of a CUNYAC Regular Season title. For the season, Mulligan has started 15 games in 16 appearances, registering a single shot while logging well over 1,200 minutes on the pitch. She has been a part of all 10 shutouts the Dolphins have registered this season.
On the men’s pitch, Morales has been a staple as a center back on the Dolphins rejuvenated defensive line. Morales was spectacular this past week in the middle, lending himself to numerous defensive plays and playing a full 90 against Arcadia University and all but six minutes in a 0-0 tie with John Jay College in the team’s CUNYAC finale. Morales has no offensive statistics this season, but has logged over 1,400 minutes this season, starting 16 games in 17 overall appearances in his debut offering. The Defender of the Week honor is the first of his budding career.
Rounding out the list of honorees is freshman Teresa Maresca, who took her second Rookie of the Week honor of the season after a 2-1 week for the Dolphins. Maresca tallied a total of 21 kills in three matches, including 11 against Lehman College, her second-highest output in a single match this season. Along the way, Maresca accumulated 11 service aces, part of her team-leading 54 on the year. She also positioned herself for eight digs and a pair of blocks. She ranks second on the team in blocks with 22 and kills with 115.
All three CSI programs are now gearing up for the CUNYAC Postseason Tournament with both the men’s soccer and women’s volleyball teams earning No. 5 seeds while the women’s soccer team has the No. 1 seed and are eyeing a three-peat as CUNYAC postseason champions.
