Men's soccer

The Coast Guard Academy men’s soccer team is looking to bounce back this season after missing the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference tournament for the first time since the 2011 season, finishing 5-12-1 overall and 2-4-1 in the league.

With 20 players returning for 15th-year coach Chris Parsons, the Bears will look to the experience of their upperclassmen to lead the team and will also benefit from the valuable minutes the underclassmen received last season to make a return to the league tourney.

The Bears are looking forward to the return of fifth-year senior co-captain and midfielder Alex Lane, who lost last season due to injury. During his junior season, Lane was Coast Guard's second-leading scorer with four goals and added four assists in only 12 games played.

Other scoring threats will be sophomore Alex Hall, who started five of the final six games last year (2 goals, 1 assist), senior Patrick Hanrahan and sophomore Griffen Klages.

“Alex brings an intensity to the team that we did not have last season,” Parsons said. “It is contagious and I think that was really missing for us last season, especially in the middle of the field where we were young.”

Another player looking to have a bounce-back year after an injury-shortened 2015 season will be senior Caelan Harshaw. Harshaw has spent the last three seasons at outside back but was still a scoring threat, especially during his sophomore season when he had three goals and four assists. He will look to bring his scoring touch and his ability to get forward to the midfield.

Also in the midfield will be juniors Ryan Dandan (team-best five assists last year) and Luke Telang, sophomores Quintin Parsons of East Lyme and Garrett Magill and freshman Pryor Miller.

The Bears' back line will be led by junior co-captain Austin Read, who was a second team all-conference selection. Read has started and played in every game since he has been at the academy at center back.

“In my opinion, he (Read) is the best center back in the league, there is no question about that,” Parsons said. “He has been named captain as a junior, which indicates how important he is within the team. For me, he is a life vest; you always know it will be a challenge for the other team to get in behind the defense and get service into the box with him at the center of the defense.”

Senior Brad McNell and sophomores Noah Harper and Greg Burnham will join Read on defense. Freshmen Brock Hassett and Wilson Nichols both have had a strong preseason and will push for time in the back four.

Coast Guard returns two goalkeepers, junior Jake Sorensen of Montville and sophomore Bill Bragaw of East Lyme. Bragaw started 11 games last season, making 47 saves with a 1.07 goals-against average, while Sorensen started seven games. Freshman Dakota Harich will also battle for time at the goalkeeper position.

Just two years removed from an NCAA tournament and NEWMAC semifinal berth, the Bears are motivated to use the experience they gained last season to make a return to postseason play.

“Our sophomore players have a year under their belt and all of them played last season,” Parsons said. “They are all bigger, stronger, faster and better now and I think that will be huge for us as a team. We are better team this season.”

The Bears start the season with games against Castleton and Southern Maine at the University of Southern Maine (USM) Husky Fall Classic, beginning Friday. Coast Guard's home opener will be Wednesday, Sept. 7 against Johnson & Wales. 

Women's soccer

The Coast Guard women’s soccer team is looking for a strong year after missing the NEWMAC tournament for the first time in three years, finishing 7-11 overall, 2-8 in conference play. The Bears return 14 players and will look to that experience for a resurgence within the NEWMAC. Head coach Susan Grant returns for her 10th season.

Senior tri-captain Terry Netusil will provide a scoring touch for Coast Guard up top, as she is tied for fifth all-time in goals (13) and sixth in points (31). Netusil was second on the team last season in goals (5) and points (14). She will look to fill the scoring void left from the graduation of Sarah Hills, who led the team in scoring the last three seasons.

Senior Brianna Grisell will also join Netusil as a scoring threat along with freshman Claire Hurley of Waterford, who was the Lancers' second all-time leading scorer and a repeat all-state selection. The combination of speed, creativity and technical ability will make the trio a difficult matchup for any defense this season.

Through the midfield, senior tri-captain Katie Clark will have a dominant role as both a center midfielder and a center back. This is her second year as team captain for the Bears.

Also in the midfield are senior tri-captain Alyssa Sato, junior Gabby Auzenbergs, sophomore Kali Borden and freshmen Elizabeth Miller and Lydia VanWinkle.

“I think we will see scoring across the board from our team as anyone could step up on any given night,” Grant said. "I think our scoring will come from a lot of pieces, which is nice.”

The back line also features a strong, core group with seniors Moira Meek, Emily Matthews and Clark along with sophomore Riley Cassidy who will spearhead an experienced back four who have 105 starts between them.

In goal, the Bears return sophomore Rachel Boohar who started 17 games last season finishing with 113 saves and a 1.71 goals-against average.

A number of new faces appear on the Bears' schedule this season as they open the year with William Paterson at home Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. They will play a competitive nonconference schedule with games against Nichols, Mary Washington, Randolph-Macon, Salve Regina, Johnson & Wales and UMass Dartmouth.

“The changes in our schedule will better prepare us for our NEWMAC games,” Grant said. “It is a good challenge for us and will set the tone for our difficult conference schedule.

“We obviously want to get back to the NEWMAC tournament and be competitive in the tournament. We need to be competitive every time we step on the field to make sure we are prepared for postseason play.”

Volleyball

There is a ton of excitement back in the gym as Coast Guard looks to continue to improve on where it left off last year when the team finished 19-10 overall and 5-5 in NEWMAC play.

The Bears return five key players from last year’s team, but are still fairly young and must replace some important players lost to graduation.

“We want to get Coast Guard volleyball back to where we know it should be,” said coach Mike Bynon, who enters his second season. “ We took steps last year, we had ups and downs as we pushed the limit of what we were able to do and hopefully this year we can be more consistent and work hard and be physical each and every day to get where we want to be.”

Bynon is looking for the team to improve in one area in particular in the 2016 season.

“One of the things we needed to do was improve offensively and not only through recruiting, but with the work our players did in the spring,” Bynon said. “We struggled to put balls away and finish points and I’m happy with I have seen so far in the preseason."

The Bears are looking for a huge year out of middle blocker tri-captain Susan West, the only senior on the team. She appeared in 94 sets and was second on the team with 248 kills last season to go with 217 digs, 29 blocks and 23 aces.

“She has come out of her shell, become a vocal leader and I believe could be one of the best outside hitters in the NEWMAC, which has some pretty impressive players at that position,” Bynon said.

The Bears' junior class will be the strength of the team as four key players return.

Right side hitter tri-captain Emma Saunders, who was very up and down with her offensive output last season has gotten stronger, has another year of maturity and has taken a leadership role and will be a very big piece of what the team is trying to do this season. She registered 102 kills a year ago in 75 sets played.

Middle blocker Madison Scott, who at times last year was unstoppable, will be counted on to bolster the middle. Scott played in all 104 sets last season and had 224 kills while leading the team with 89 blocks and 35 service aces.

Outside hitter Summer Adams continues to improve after recording 167 kills and 127 digs in 94 sets last season.

Rounding out the junior class is Michelle McGill, who returns as the starting libero. McGill is a flashy player with a great work ethic. Last year, she played in 100 sets, led the team with 370 digs and was second on the team with 34 service aces.

“We are so excited that we still have two full seasons with this junior class along with the young talent that we have added,” Bynon said.

Sophomore tri-captain Hailye Reynolds will take over as the Bears' setter.

“She brings an unreal consistency with her character and leadership and there were times last year that we would put her in just to see people smile again,” Bynon said. “She is a student of the game and we need that as the quarterback of our team.”

The Bears have a trio of freshmen that will make an immediate impact on the program in outside hitter Angelou Dunton, middle blocker Alexi Deane and outside hitter and defensive specialist Ali Gates.

The Bears open the season Friday and Saturday at the Cortland Red Dragon Classic with four matches.

“There is a consistency and stability within the program that has not been here in awhile,” added Bynon. “That’s a credit to the kids in how much they trusted us as a coaching staff and it’s been fun since I arrived here last year and it’s exciting to see where we are going.”