Tuesday, July 6, 2021

AUSTIN, Texas – After helping lead Seattle Pacific to an unblemished 2020-21 season, Falcons’ junior defender Mariah Alexander and senior Sophia Chilczuk have been named Division II First Team Academic All-Americans by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Alexander and Chilczuk led Seattle Pacific to an 8-0-1 record in the COVID-delayed 2020-21 season. The Falcons were one of two GNAC teams to finish the season undefeated.

Alexander is one of six members of the first team with a 4.00 GPA. A business administration major, Alexander started all nine matches in 2020-21, scoring three goals. Two of those goals came in matches against in-state rival Western Washington. A regular starter each of the last two seasons, Alexander has five career goals and two career assists.

Chilczuk, who has a 3.92 GPA as a physiology major, led the GNAC in 2021 with 10 goals and 28 points while ranking second among conference players with eight assists and 38 shots. She scored a goal in seven of the Falcons’ nine matches, including three straight two-goal performances to open the season. Chilczuk has amassed career totals of 30 goals, 17 assists and 77 points in her career. She ranks 15th on the GNAC all-time list for goals and 18th for points.

The duo becomes the eighth and ninth Women’s Soccer First Team Academic All-Americans in GNAC history and the fifth and sixth for Seattle Pacific during the GNAC era. Alexander and Chilczuk were the only two players named to the team from West Region conferences.

Nominees for the CoSIDA Academic All-America program must be of sophomore eligibility or greater, must be in their second year at the nominating institution, must be a starter or important reserve for their team and must have a cumulative GPA of 3.30 or greater. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, student-athletes were nominated based on career statistics rather than statistics from just this season.