FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
S-49-02-03
Wednesday, November 20, 2002

Seven Blue Jays Named to All-Commonwealth Conference Men's Soccer Team

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. --- Seven members of the 2002 Elizabethtown College men's soccer team have earned spots on the All-Commonwealth Conference teams.

Four players made the first team, including junior goalkeeper Michael Ciattei (Jarrettsville, MD/St. Paul's School-Baltimore), senior defender Brad Confer (Lancaster, PA/Manheim Township), junior midfielder Charlie Haines (Hamilton, NJ/Hun School of Princeton), and freshman forward Andrew Kummerer (Glenmoore, PA/Coatesville).

Three Etown players were named to the second team, including sophomore defender Chase Franklin (Phoenix, MD/Loyola Blakefield), senior midfielder Drew Wiley (Lancaster, PA/Manheim Township), and junior forward Steve Custer (Baltimore, MD/Dundalk).

This is the first time Ciattei has earned all-conference recognition. In 2002, he started 15 of Etown's 20 games in the goal and played 1,247.5 minutes. During that time, he allowed just eight goals for a 0.58 goals against average, and he made 57 saves. He was a part of six Etown shutouts and tallied five complete game shutouts. He was also named the Commonwealth Conference Player of the Week once during the season. A 2000 graduate of St. Paul's School in Baltimore, Md., he is majoring in business finance with a minor in Spanish at Elizabethtown.

Confer has been on the all-conference team twice before, in 2000 and 2001. He was also an NSCAA All-Mideast Region selection in 2001, and was recently named a Verizon/CoSIDA Academic All-District team member in 2002. As a defender, he started all 20 of the Blue Jays' games in 2002, tallying one goal and two assists for four points in the process. Over the course of four years, he totaled eight goals and six assists for 22 career points. A 1999 alumnus of Manheim Township High School, he is majoring in biochemistry with a minor in physics at Elizabethtown College.

Haines earned an all-conference berth in 2001 as well as this year. He also earned a spot on the All-Mid-Atlantic Region team in 2001. In 2002, he started all 20 of Etown's games, totaling six goals and three assists for 15 points, ranking third on the team in offensive production, and top among the team's midfielders. In three seasons, he has compiled 15 goals and 13 assists for 43 career points. During the spring, he is also a standout golf player at Elizabethtown. A 2000 graduate of the Hun School of Princeton, he is majoring in business administration and finance at Elizabethtown.

Kummerer had a precocious collegiate debut as a Blue Jay in 2002, leading the team with 17 points, tying for the team lead with five assists, and finishing second on the team with six goals scored. He started 17 and played in all 20 of Etown's games in 2002. He is a 2002 graduate of Coatesville High School.

Franklin earned his first berth on the all-conference team this year after starting in the backfield in 19 of Etown's 20 games. He tallied four goals and one assist for the Blue Jays in 2002 for nine points. A 2001 graduate of Loyola Blakefield High School, he is majoring in accounting with a minor in Spanish at Elizabethtown College.

Wiley earned his first all-conference selection while at Elizabethtown this year. He played in 17 of the Blue Jays' games and started nine. He tied for the team lead with five assists, and he had two goals scored for a total of nine points. Four of his assists came against conference opponents this year. In two seasons at Etown, the senior totaled three goals and six assists for 12 career points. A 1998 graduate of Manheim Township High School, he is majoring in business marketing at Elizabethtown.

This is Custer's second time on the all-conference team, as he received the honor before in 2001. He played in 19 and started 16 of Etown's games this year, and he led the team with seven goals scored. He also had two assists for a total of 16 points, ranking him second on the team in offensive production. In three years, Custer has amassed 16 goals and 14 assists for 46 career points. A 2000 graduate of Dundalk High School, he is majoring in social work at Elizabethtown College.

The Elizabethtown College men's soccer team concluded the 2002 season with a 14-3-3 overall record, and was ranked 25th in the nation at one point during the season. The Blue Jays captured first place with a 6-0-1 Commonwealth Conference record during the regular season, but were knocked out of the first round of the conference playoffs and were passed over for an at-large NCAA Division III tournament bid. One of the most consistently dominant programs in the history of collegiate soccer, Etown wrapped up its 51st consecutive .500-or-better season in 2002.