DENVER -- SMU, the Western Athletic Conference regular-season champion, dominated the selections of the conference women's soccer postseason honors. Mustang midfielder Kim Harvey was named the Freshman of the Year, while George Van Linder was selected as WAC Coach of the Year. Fresno State senior Jill Pearson was the Player of the Year.
The league's head coaches select the all-WAC teams and player, freshman and coach of the year honorees by a vote.
SMU, who went undefeated in conference action, placed five players on the all-WAC first team. Sisters Sarah and Kim Harvey headlined the list of eleven athletes selected to the first team. Fresno State had a total of five honorees, three on the first team and two on the second team. Three Hawai`i players earned second-team honors, while San Jose State, TCU, UTEP and Tulsa each had two all-WAC selections.
Pearson, a native of Garden Grove, Calif., led the league in goals (15) and points (37) in 18 matches for the Bulldogs. Frustrating opponents all season, Pearson also assisted teammates on seven goals.
Harvey, of Garland, Texas, showed upperclassman poise when beating the keeper nine times, six of which were in conference matches. Starting 10 times, Harvey saw action in all 18 matches and was the team's second-leading scorer.
In his second season at the helm, Van Linder led the Mustangs to a 13-4-1 overall record, with a
6-0-1 conference mark, heading into postseason play. The Mustangs have earned national attention throughout the season and currently hold the 18th spot in the NSCAA/adidas Top 25 poll. Van Linder's troops allowed just two goals in conference action and were held scoreless only three times this season, while shutting out opponents 11.5 times.
The first round of the WAC Championship tournament begins today with San Jose State and UTEP kicking off at 5 p.m., followed by TCU and Fresno State at 7:30 p.m. at Bulldog Stadium in Fresno, Calif. The winners advance to the semifinals and will meet either SMU or Tulsa on Friday, November 3. The championship match will be played at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 5.
The complete list of the all-WAC teams follows:
First-Team All-WAC Second-Team All-WAC
Sherry Dick, So., F, TCU Arlene Devitt, Fr., F, Hawai`i
Sarah Harvey, Jr., F, SMU Reyna Green, Jr., F, Fresno State
Jill Pearson, Sr., F, Fresno State Kelly Noonan, Sr., F, Tulsa
Kim Harvey, Fr., MF, SMU Julie Twellman, So., F, Tulsa
Nicole Lamb, Sr., MF, SMU Brandy Apodaca, Sr., MF, San Jose State
Aimee Thompson, Jr., MF, Fresno State Kelly Parker, So., MF, UTEP
Corrine Atkins, Sr., D, Fresno State Ashley Potthoff, Sr., MF, SMU
Christina Collins, Jr., D, SMU Camille Kalama, Sr., D, Hawai`i
Brenda DeRose, So., D, TCU Susan Shivokevich, Jr., D, Fresno State
Jackie Ostdiek, Sr., D, San Jose State Leila Wai, Sr., D, Hawai`i
Becca Lief, Sr., GK, SMU Katie Gilmore, Fr., GK, UTEP
Freshman of the Year: Kim Harvey, MF, SMU
Player of the Year: Jill Pearson, Sr., F, Fresno State
Coach of the Year: George Van Linder, SMU