Lemekha & Chiarella Earn CCC Weekly Awards
Lemekha named DPOW, Chiarella receives ROW honors
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (October 15, 2018) – Junior goalkeeper Alex Lemekha (Stamford, Conn.) and freshman midfielder Vanessa Chiarella (Hampden, Mass.) of the Western New England University women's soccer team have both received weekly awards from the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), the league office announced on Monday afternoon.
Lemekha was named the CCC Defensive Player of the Week for the first time this season and fifth time in her career, while Chiarella received Rookie of the Week accolades.
Western New England went 3-0 last week with CCC victories over Wentworth and Curry on Tuesday and Saturday, respectively, and a non-conference triumph at Westfield State on Thursday.
Lemekha posted a 0.47 goals against average and a .933 save percentage in her two appearances against the Leopards and Colonels. Making her third start of the season on Tuesday at Wentworth, Lemekha finished with six saves as Western New England earned a 2-1 double overtime victory. She then turned in an eight-save shutout performance on Saturday in the Golden Bears' 5-0 win over Curry.
Chiarella fueled Western New England's offensive outburst on Saturday with a hat trick as the Golden Bears extended their winning streak to four games.
She opened the scoring in the 40th minute before tacking on insurance goals in the 66th and 70th minutes, respectively.
Western New England (8-6-1, 4-1-1 CCC) travels to Eastern Connecticut State on Wednesday, before returning home to host the University of New England on Saturday.
