JOHN KOVACH | Colleges Canfield's Griffin earns PAC honors for Westminster

NEW WILMINGTON -- Strong defensive play as a sweeper for the Westminster College women's soccer team earned senior Sharon Griffin first team honors on the All-Presidents' Athletic Conference team.
Griffin, a Canfield High graduate, spearheaded the Titans' defense that allowed less than one goal per game (21 in 23 games), and paved the way to one of the best seasons ever at the school under the guidance of second-year coach Girish Thakar.
Westminster tied the school record for most wins (16-7 record) in a season, won its second straight PAC championship (8-2), and earned its second straight trip to the NCAA Division III tournament.
Griffin also played a key role in the Titans' previous 16-win season last year (16-6-2 record), and was selected to the All-PAC second team.
The last defender
"As the sweeper, my responsibility is to be the last defender and take care of what [offense] is left over and to pick up the rest of the defense," said Griffin, who credits experience for helping her to thwart offensive attacks.
"I have been playing for a long time now, and I just kind of go with my instincts," she said. "There isn't time to think about it."
Her strategy is to dilute any offensive attack to help the goalie, junior Nicole Drummond.
"What I do is I try to isolate [offensive players with the ball] to one side to block the passes or shots they may try," said Griffin, noting it's harder to shoot or pass when not in front of the net.
She also has to watch any other offensive players nearby who may get passes.
"I am trying to take away shots and passes to make it easier for the goalie," she said.
She called the sweeper "basically the eyes of the field [for the defense]," and must instruct the other players as to defensive strategy.
"My job is to make it as difficult as possible to get off the shot."
Other All-PAC picks
Griffin, one of five area players on the Westminster team, was joined on the All-PAC first team by two teammates, senior defender Alicia Anderson and senior midfielder Alyssa Pyle. Anderson also made All-PAC first team last year.
Drummond made the All-PAC second team along with two teammates, senior defender Michelle Chovan (Hubbard) and junior forward Angie DePascale (Howland).
The Titans' other two area players were senior defender Megan Chovan (Hubbard), Michelle's sister, and freshman forward Christa Andamasaris (Champion).
Pyle led Westminster in points (31), goals (11), assists (9), game-winning goals (6) and shots (59), and finished her career at the school ranked third in assists (34) and fifth in both goals (31) and points (96).
Drummond had a 0.94 goals-against average while making 103 saves and contributing to eight shutouts. She made the All-PAC first team last year.
Harmonious team
Griffin believed one of the biggest factors in the Titans' success was team harmony.
"All the girls are really good friends," she said. "Some came from the same area. We know how to react to the other players.
"If a team gets along, that's a big deal. Harmony on the team is important in soccer," said Griffin, in her first year as a sweeper after playing outside defender her first three seasons, and at Canfield under coach Dennis Opritza.
The daughter of Mary and William Griffin, Sharon will graduate in May with a bachelor's degree in speech communications and a minor in psychology.
She plans to attend the University of Akron for another bachelor's degree in speech pathology, and a master's degree in speech pathology.
"I want to teach children with speech impediments in a hospital or school," said Griffin.
Other area players
DePascale ranked No. 2 on the Westminster team in scoring (22 points) and goals (10) with two assists, while Andamaris was No. 3 in scoring (12 points on four goals and four assists) with two game-winning goals.
Michelle Chovan had four goals and one assist for nine points, including a pair of goals in the Titans' 3-2 win over Grove City for the PAC championship.
Megan Chovan had one goal and two assists for four points.
kovach@vindy.com