Tuesday, November 4, 2014
PORTLAND, Ore. – Seattle Pacific’s Isabel Farrell has been selected GNAC Player of the Year for the 2014 women’s soccer season.
Farrell also won the GNAC Newcomer of the Year after transferring from the nearby University of Washington and placing second in the GNAC in points, assists and game-winning goals.
Western Washington senior Kim Cooper earned the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year after helping the Vikings to an 11-0-3 conference record. Cooper is part of a Vikings defense that leads the nation in goals-against average, only allowing four goals all season.
The Freshman of the Year award went to Mackenzie Nolte of Central Washington. Nolte finished second in the conference in goals while placing sixth in assists and fourth in points. She led the Wildcats in all of these categories.
Western Washington’s Travis Connell and Montana State Billings’ Wojtek Krakowiak were named co-Coaches of the Year. Connell has led the Vikings to an undefeated record while Krakowiak took a 6-8-2 team from a year ago and made it into the second-seed at the GNAC championship tournament on Thursday and Saturday.
Western Washington and Seattle Pacific placed seven players on the first team, including six unanimous selections.
WWU forward Catherine Miles earned the first team honor for the second season in a row, as did Cooper. Fellow junior forward Jessica Bertucci was the other Western Washington forward selected to the first team. Brianna Jones finished second in Player of the Year voting and earned her second consecutive first team selection.
Farrell is joined on the list with Seattle Pacific teammates Hannah Huesers and Laura Moore. Huesers led the conference in goals with 14 while Moore was second on the team, and fourth in the conference, in assists.
Montana State Billings Alisa Sagdahl and Haley McFarlane got the nods for the first team. Sagdahl led the Yellowjackets in points, goals and assists in her junior year. McFarlane was second highest defender voted on by the coaches, helping lead MSUB to seven shutout wins.
Western Oregon also placed two on the first team ballot with defender JoEllen DeLeon and goalkeeper Amanda Rose Johnson. DeLeon was a second teamer last season while Johnson earns her second straight first team award after being voted the GNAC Newcomer of the Year in 2013.
Senior Hadli Farrand was the only Central Washington Wildcat to make the first team. The senior midfielder was third in Player of the Year voting. She placed second on the team in points, goals and assists and helped the Wildcats to their second straight GNAC championship appearance.
Northwest Nazarene’s Lexi Fesenbek headlines the GNAC second team as its only unanimous selection. Fesenbek led the conference in assists with eight in conference play while breaking the NNU record of 12 for an entire season.
Three freshman made the second team, including the Freshman of the Year in Nolte. NNU’s Ashley Cook-Cox received the most votes among midfielders on the list while Western Washington’s Emily Webster was second.
Saint Martin’s placed one of its two members honored as all-GNAC on the second team with Taylor Gersch. The sophomore defender started all 18 matches for the Saints and was one of seven underclassmen to make the 11-member second team. No seniors were selected as part of the team.
Simon Fraser placed two on the GNAC’s Honorable Mention list with forward Olivia Aguiar and defender Teagan Rae Sorokan.
In all, Western Washington led the conference with nine players earning places on one of the all-GNAC teams. CWU, MSUB and SPU each had six players represented as well.
Twenty-seven of the 39 players selected above will be competing at the 2014 GNAC championship on Thursday and Saturday.
First Team: Forwards - *Hannah Huesers, SPU (So., Lake Stevens, WA); Jessica Bertucci, WWU (Jr., Bellingham, WA); *Catherine Miles, WWU (Jr., Anacortes, WA); Alisa Sagdahl, MSUB (Jr., Edmonds, WA). Midfielders - *Isabel Farrell, SPU (Jr., Redmond, WA); *Kim Cooper, WWU (Sr., Bellingham, WA); *Hadli Farrand, CWU (Sr., Ellensburg, WA); *Laura Moore, SPU (M, Jr., Kent, WA). Defenders - *Brianna Jones, WWU (Sr., Bonney Lake, WA); Haley McFarlane, MSUB (rSo., Colorado Springs, CO); JoEllen DeLeon, WOU (Sr., Gresham, OR). Goalkeeper - Amanda Rose Johnson, WOU (Sr., Montrose, CA).
Second Team: Forwards - *Lexi Fesenbek, NNU (Jr., Olympia, WA); Mackenzie Nolte, CWU (Fr., Marysville, WA); Elise Aylward, WWU (So., Renton, WA). Midfielders - Ashley Cook-Cox, NNU (Fr., Nine Mile Falls, WA); Emily Webster, WWU; (Fr., Bellingham, WA); Katlyn Lokay, MSUB (Jr., Boulder, CO); Mariah Konyn, WOU (So., Eugene, OR). Defenders - Shayla Page, SPU (Jr., Redmond, WA); Taylor Gersch, SMU (So., Sherwood, OR); Kari Kastelic, MSUB (So., Phoenix, AZ). Goalkeeper - Ashley Haden, WWU (Jr., Brush Prairie, WA).
Honorable Mention: Forwards - Sasha Dini, SMU (Sr., Tacoma, WA); Makana Pundyke, WOU (Jr., Kula, HI); Olivia Aguiar, SFU (Jr., Coquitlam, BC); Abby McFaul, SMU (Jr., Federal Way, WA). Midfielders - Delanee Nilles, WWU (Jr., Poulsbo, WA); Alexa Diaz, SPU (Sr., Burien, WA); Chelsea Shuman, MSUB (Sr., Kalispell, MT); Sarah Jenkins, NNU (So., Everett, WA). Defenders - Katherine Miccile, WWU (Sr., Kent, WA); Megan Ward, CWU (So., Chehalis, WA); Teagan Rae Sorokan, SFU (So., North Vancouver, BC); Ashley Shaw, SPU (Jr., Seattle, WA); Abby Litka, CWU (Fr., Issaquah, WA); Jennifer Johnson, MSUB (Sr., Wenatchee, WA); Peyton Moon, WOU (Sr., Nampa, ID); Allie Bohnett, CWU (So., Gig Harbor, WA). Goalkeeper - Kayla Lipston, CWU (Sr., Federal Way, WA).
GNAC Player of the Year – Isabel Farrell, SPU
GNAC Defensive Player of the Year – Kim Cooper, WWU
GNAC Freshman of the Year – Mackenzie Nolte, CWU
GNAC Newcomer of the Year – Isabel Farrell, SPU
GNAC Coach of the Year – Travis Connell, WWU & Wojtek Krakowiak, MSUB