For the first time in school history, the College of Staten Island women’s soccer team stands positioned atop the NCAA Division III individual leaders in three statistical categories. Sophomore Samantha Wysokowski is the national leader in goals per game, while fellow sophomore Melissa Gelardi leads in assists per game. Combining the two the most effectively is junior Demi-Jean Martorano, who leads the nation in points per game.
Scoring all of five goals a year ago in limited field duty, Wysokowski spent most of her freshman year in-between the pipes. That has changed this year, and Wysokowski has been up to the task, dumping in 17 goals in just 12 games this year. That run has included six multi-goal games, including a career-high four-goal effort in a win over Brooklyn College earlier this month. Wysokowski has also registered three assists, and is second on the team with 49 shots taken. Thus far, her 1.545 goals per game average leads the national rank, just a whisker ahead of teammate Martorano, who stands with 1.455 goals per game.
Martorano’s 16 total goals in 12 games is only a step behind Wysokowski, and her five game-winning goals is good for eighth best in the nation as well. The versatile Martorano can also be seen manning the defensive backfield and the midfield, and the results are a total of six assists, good for second on the squad and 30th in the national ranks. All accumulated, Martorano boasts 38 points, good for 3.55 per game, the national leader. She leads the squad with 51 total shots, which include 35 on goal. Martorano has now registered 50 goals in her short career, needing only three more to tie the CSI all-time record of 53, set by Fiosa Begai in 2008.
Among the national leaders in assists a year ago, Melissa Gelardi has already destroyed the all-time assist mark at CSI, registering 18 helpers this year to give her 31 for her career, 10 more than Begai’s 21 career assists, the former CSI record. Gelardi’s 1.5 assists per game also leads the nation, as does her 18 total assists this season.
The trio of Wysokowski, Martorano, and Gelardi are responsible for over 72% of CSI’s total offensive production this year. CSI’s 3.92 points-per-game average this year is good for eighth highest in the nation, another prolific statistic.
CSI is currently 8-5 this season, a mark that includes a 5-0 mark against their brethren in the CUNYAC, where they have outscored their opponents by a 34-4 margin. Their final conference game is an October 25 clash with City College of New York.