LOUDONVILLE, NY – In celebration of its Ruby Anniversary throughout the 2020-21 academic year, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference has been unveiling its 40^th Anniversary Teams this summer to highlight the league's all-time great student athletes and coaches from the 24 sports in which the league crowns champions. The MAAC 40^th Anniversary Women's Soccer Team features six Siena legends in Ashleigh Barone, Noel Cox, Tara Sobierajski, Tabitha Tice, Kristen Turner, and head coach Steve Karbowski.
 
"We are proud at the MAAC to be celebrating excellence both on and off the field for 40 years," said MAAC Commissioner Rich Ensor. "It's a true testament to all of the coaches, administrators, and student athletes who have made this possible over the last four decades. Their hard work and dedication has made the MAAC what it is today; a conference that celebrates their outstanding efforts in 24 unique championships every year. I'd like to thank all of those people who have played a part in shaping the MAAC into what it is today. Despite the challenges presented in the current climate with the COVID-19 pandemic, the future of the MAAC is strongly cemented in the commonality of our member institutions and commitment to the mission of the conference."
 
Ashleigh Barone '12, HOF '17
A first ballot Siena Athletics Hall of Fame inductee in 2017, Barone is the Siena Women's Soccer program's all-time career leader in points (106), goals (44), and game-winning goals (15), which ranks eighth, seventh, and tied for third all-time in MAAC history, respectively. The local standout from nearby Clifton Park, New York starred for the Saints from 2008-11 where she was the only four-time All-Region selection in program history. Barone tied for the team lead in both scoring (27) and game-winning goals (four), while leading the Saints to their first MAAC Championship during the program's magical 2010 season in which Siena tallied a program record 17 wins, and began the year with 12 consecutive victories to achieve a peak national ranking of 25 for consecutive weeks in the Soccer America Top-25 Poll. Barone burst onto the scene during her record-setting freshman season in 2008 when the striker posted program single-season records of 35 points, 15 goals, and six-game winning goals in being named the MAAC Rookie of the Year as well as a First Team All-MAAC, MAAC All-Rookie Team, and MAAC All-Tournament Team selection. A three-time Second Team All-MAAC honoree (2009-11) who piloted the Saints to 49 wins including 20 MAAC victories during her illustrious career, she was also tabbed a 2011 Academic All-District selection and an NSCAA East Region Scholar Athlete.
 
Noel Cox '06, HOF '11
The women's soccer program's first-ever Siena Athletics Hall of Fame inductee in 2011, Cox was heralded as the 2002 MAAC Goalkeeper of the Year and the 2004 MAAC Defensive Player of the Year. A two-time First Team All-MAAC selection (2002, 2003) who donned the Green and Gold from 2001-04, she earned Second Team All-MAAC and MAAC All-Rookie Team acclaim following her freshman season in 2001. Cox ranks second all-time in Siena history in shutouts (19), third in wins (28), and fourth in both saves (294) and goals against average (1.05). She posted a 28-19-4 overall record with a .813 save percentage, and achieved sub-1.00 goals against averages in three of her four seasons. Cox, who still holds the program's single-match record for saves with 18 against Army West Point in 2002, spent five seasons as an assistant coach with the Saints (2006-10) where she helped recruit and develop Siena's first MAAC Championship team in 2010.
 
Tara Sobierajski '17
Sobierajski holds Siena's all-time career records for assists (23), matches played (82), matches started (82), and minutes played (7,686), having logged all but a total of three of her team's minutes spanning a brilliant four-year career starring as the Saints' center back from 2013-16. The only three-time First Team All-MAAC selection in program history (2014-16), she anchored a Siena defense which propelled the Saints to the program's second and most recent MAAC Championship in 2015. The 2016 MAAC Defensive Player of the Year, Sobierajski was a two-time All-Region selection (Third Team in 2015, Second Team in 2016), ECAC All-Star (First Team in 2015, Second Team in 2016), and MAAC All-Tournament Team honoree (2013, 2016). She earned MAAC Second Team and All-Rookie Team acclaim as a freshman in 2013.
 
Tabitha Tice '11, HOF '16
A first ballot Siena Athletics Hall of Fame inductee in 2016, Tice tallied the biggest goal in Siena Women's Soccer history. The midfielder/forward scored the game-winning golden goal in overtime of the 2010 MAAC Championship match to lift Siena to its first-ever title, and was named the Tournament Most Outstanding Player for her heroics. Tice was tabbed a First Team All-MAAC and First Team All-Region selection during the Saints' magical 2010 season in which she scored a team-high 12 goals and tied for the team lead in both scoring (27) and game-winning goals (four) while leading the squad to a program record 17 wins, which began with a 12-0 start in which Siena was ranked 25th nationally for consecutive weeks in the Soccer America Top-25 Poll. Nominated as the MAAC's 2010-11 NCAA Woman of the Year honoree, she was also a 2009 Second Team All-MAAC and 2007 MAAC All-Rookie Team selection. Tice, who starred for the Saints from 2007-10, ranks tied for fifth in program history in game-winning goals (seven), and tied for seventh in both scoring (58) and goals (22).
 
Kristen Turner '07
A two-time First Team All-MAAC selection (2004, 2006), Turner was crowned the 2006 MAAC Offensive Player of the Year. During her stellar senior season the Siena striker was also tabbed a MAAC All-Tournament Team and Third Team All-Region honoree. Turner ranks second all-time in Siena history in points (87), goals (35), and game-winning goals (13 – tied for sixth most in MAAC history). She starred for the Saints from 2003-06, leading Siena to the program's first consecutive double digit wins seasons in 2004 and 2005, and a MAAC Championship Match appearance in 2006. Turner was also a 2005 Second Team All-MAAC and 2003 MAAC All-Rookie Team selection.
 
Head Coach Steve Karbowski '93
The winningest coach in program history with 188 career victories to his name, Karbowski became the first head coach in league history to surpass 100 all-time MAAC Regular Season wins last fall. Now in his 22^nd season leading the Saints, he has piloted the program to its first two MAAC Tournament Championships and NCAA Tournament appearances over the past decade (2010, 2015). A two-time MAAC Coach of the Year (2001, 2002), Karbowski has both recruited and coached the first three Siena Athletics Hall of Famers in program history in first ballot inductees Noel Cox '06 (2011), Tabitha Tice '11 (2016), and Ashleigh Barone '12 (2017). In his first two decades at the helm, Karbowski has guided the Saints to 14 MAAC Tournament appearances, 10 seasons of 10 or more wins, and .500 or better records in 14 of the past 17 years. Additionally, he led the Saints to 15 straight home wins from 2009-11 and 20 consecutive non-conference home victories from 2007-12.
 
The MAAC was founded in 1980 by six charter members: the U.S. Military Academy, Fairfield University, Fordham University, Iona College, Manhattan College and Saint Peter's College. Siena College joined the Metro Atlantic Conference in select sports beginning with the 1989-90 academic year, and currently sponsors 21 athletic programs which compete in the MAAC. The Saints began competing in the sport of women's soccer in the MAAC in 1992, coinciding with the conference's first season sponsoring the sport at the league level.
 
The MAAC is currently comprised of 11 full time member institutions and 17 associate members, crowning champions in 24 sports. Current members include Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona College, Manhattan College, Marist College, Monmouth University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter's University, and Siena College.

Stay up to date with all MAAC 40^th Anniversary initiatives by using #MAAC40.

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