MEADVILLE, Pa. – The Allegheny College women’s soccer program got a strong start, going 11-2-2 in 1985, the first year of existence, and the two main scorers on the squad, Nellie Springer (28 goals, 6 assists) and Georganne Morin (18 goals, 12 assists) combined for 110 of the team’s 152 total points. Needing another scorer to help turn a very good team into a remarkable one, head coach John Wilcher brought in Denise (Petrossi) Saldaña, who scorched the back of the nets in her first season with the Blue and Gold to the tune of 15 goals and 13 assists, catapulting her up the record books, and now into the Allegheny College Athletic Hall of Fame, as Saldaña will be inducted into the 26th class of the Hall of Fame on Sunday, June 3 at the Tippie Alumni Center.
Saldaña, a Fullerton, Calif., native, concluded the 1986 season with what has ended up being the fifth highest single season point total in school history, while her assist number broke the school record at the time, and has been passed just once, en route to All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Honorable Mention honors. The 1986 team has three of the top six single season scorers in school history, with teammates Springer (62 points) and Morin (42 points) combining to be one of the highest scoring trios in NCAC history.
In addition to the gaudy first-year numbers, Saldaña helped the team to a 15-4-2 mark and a perfect 12-0 record in the NCAC, leading the Gators to their second title in as many years.
She followed her inaugural season by scoring five goals and dishing out five assists in helping the team to its third consecutive league crown and a 14-3-2 overall record. The team also went 4-0-2 over the NCAC slate for the school’s third consecutive league crown.
A year later, as a junior in 1988, an eight-goal, six-assist season helped the squad turn in their fourth consecutive NCAC crown, going 6-0 in league play and 16-5-0 overall. The offensive output in Saldaña’s junior season (86 goals, 217 points) set school records that still stand today, while advancing to the NCAA Division III tournament for the first time in program history.
In her senior year, the squad was faced with the losses of eventual Hall of Famers Springer (1999) and Morin (2001), both of whom earned three All-America certificates in their careers. Petrossi helped fill the void and then some, scoring 15 goals and dishing out five assists for 35 total points, the second highest total of her career. Her efforts earned her National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-America honors, with her and Amy Miltenberger becoming the third and fourth Gator players to pick up such an honor.
Her totals helped the team to a share of the league title, their fifth straight and the longest such streak in NCAC women’s soccer history. The team went 14-5-1 in the regular season and 7-1 in the conference schedule to tie with Ohio Wesleyan.
Through her four years, Saldaña helped the team to a combined 59-17-4 record and an eye-popping 29-1-2 record in league play, the best four year streak in program history. Her career numbers of 43 goals and 115 points fall just behind Springer and Morin’s, while her 29 assists is fourth overall.
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