Widener senior Sam Baer (Lancaster, PA) earned her fourth All-Commonwealth Conference nod and third straight first-team honor for women’s soccer with junior Jessie Furia (Morton, PA) and sophomore Brittany Balentine (Medford, NJ) named second team.
Baer ends a spectacular career in which she was picked second team all-league as a defender in 2006, first team all-conference as a forward in 2007 and first team as a midfielder the last two years. She graduates first in school history with 40 assists, second with 29 goals and second with 98 points.
It was another solid campaign for Baer, who closed ninth in the league with 20 points, tied for ninth with seven goals and tied for sixth with six assists.
Furia was picked to the second team a second straight year by leading one of the top defenses in the conference. Her play helped Widener end fourth with a 1.29 goals against average that included five shutouts and 13 games permitting one goal or fewer.
Furia, who notched a career-high four assists this season, also helped the Pride record a school-record 11 shutouts last year.
Balentine again played solidly at forward, ending third in the league with 28 points, third with 11 goals, third with four game-winning goals and tied for sixth with six assists. She has amassed an astounding seven game-winning goals in just two years.
Balentine’s best game this season took place October 14 against Alvernia, becoming the 13th player in school history to record a hat trick.
Widener (13-4-3, 3-3-1 CC) had another solid campaign in which it opened 10-1-1 to match the best start in school history.