Russo named to NSCAA/adidas Scholar All-America East Region team

HUNTINGDON, Pa. – Senior Lisa Russo (Haskell, N.J./Lakeland), goalkeeper for the Juniata College women's soccer team, has been named an Honorable Mention selection to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) / adidas Scholar All-America East Region team.

Russo was one of only three Landmark Conference student-athletes named to the squad. She finished the 2007 season with 68 saves against 19 goals allowed in nearly 1500 minutes in the Eagle goal, for a 1.14 goals against average and a .782 save percentage. Russo ranked third in the Landmark Conference in GAA and fourth in save percentage.

A biology major, Russo has been engaged in research over the last two years, in preparation for her post-graduate plans to attend graduate school and pursue a career in microbiology research. She presented a research paper, "Characterizing the IgG Binding Domains of Protein G", at the Annual Conference of the Allegheny Branch of the American Society for Microbiology (ABASM) this past November in Pittsburgh. This spring, she will be working on an ongoing study in Juniata's microbiology lab that is looking into how surface and secreted bacterial proteins interact with host factors to contribute to infection.

The Eagle women's soccer team finished the season 9-6-3, earning the first post-season berths in program history. Juniata qualified for the four-team Landmark Conference tournament, dropping a 3-2 decision to the University of Scranton. The Eagles then received a bid to the ECAC Division III Women's Soccer South Region Tournament, falling to tournament top-seed Grove City College, 3-2.

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