DENVER – Louisiana Tech’s Kat McCullough and San Jose State’s Nina Butera have been named Western Athletic Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, for the week of Sept. 14-20.
McCullough, a graduate midfielder from Coppell, Texas (Coppell HS), scored two goals in a 4-1 win at Mississippi Valley State and recorded the game-winning assist in a 1-0 win against UALR. McCullough had two shots on goal, two goals scored, and one assist for five points over the two matches. With its two wins, Louisiana Tech is off to its best start in program history at 10-0-0.
Butera, a junior goalkeeper from San Jose, Calif. (Presentation HS), earned her third straight victory and first individual shutout of the season in goal last week in helping the Spartans to a 1-0 double-overtime win at home over UC Davis. Butera played all 100:34 and equaled her single-game season high with seven saves. Butera faced 18 shots without giving up a goal and now has a scoreless streak of 210:47. Friday’s shutout was the sixth of Butera’s career, the third-most in the SJSU record book.
Other offensive nominees included: Boise State junior forward Shannon Saxton; Fresno State junior forward Claudia Cardenas; Hawai‘i senior forward Britta Bourne; Idaho freshman midfielder/forward Erica Hart; Nevada sophomore midfielder Natalie Ratnavira; New Mexico State freshman forward Crystal Burns; and San Jose State senior forward Emmy Belding.
Other defensive nominees included: Boise State senior goalkeeper Jen Burns; Fresno State sophomore defender Kendall VanDine; Hawai‘i senior defender Kristyn Shapka; Idaho senior defender Sari Morrison; Louisiana Tech sophomore goalkeeper Cat Buchanan; Nevada freshman goalkeeper Dana Moreno; and New Mexico State freshman defender Elise Nordin;