This Week in WAC Women's Soccer - Oct. 22
This Week in WAC Women's Soccer - Oct. 22
CBU'S HALD AND NM STATE'S AVILES NAMED PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
California Baptist's Miranda Hald and NM State's Lece Aviles were selected as the Western Athletic Conference Women's Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week for Oct. 15-20, respectively.
Hald, a senior forward from Oceanside, Calif., helped lead the Lancers to an undefeated weekend as she posted five points in two outings. Hald recorded a brace against UT Rio Grande Valley as the first-place Lancers went on to defeat the Vaqueros 3-0. Hald added to her strong weekend as she tabbed an assist in a 3-0 victory over Grand Canyon on senior day. Against the Lopes, she set up teammate Rola Badawiya for the Lancers' second goal of the afternoon. Hald also posted a perfect 1.00 shots on goal percentage on seven shots in two games.
Aviles, a sophomore defender from Aztec, N.M., anchored the Aggie defense in two overtime victories over conference opponents. Aviles helped her team hold CSU Bakersfield and Chicago State to just one combined goal on 26 total shots. Aviles played every minute of the two wins on the weekend, totaling 192:05 minutes on the pitch. At center back, she led NM State to their first shutout victory of the year in a 1-0 overtime win over CSU Bakersfield.
Other offensive nominees: Grand Canyon's Camryn Larson led the Lopes in shot attempts with three shots against Seattle U... NM State's Hannah Leitner recorded an assist on both Aggie goals in a 2-1 win over Chicago State... Seattle U's Bailey Hall scored the Redhawks lone goal as SU went on to defeat Grand Canyon 1-0... Maya Chitman of UT Rio Grande Valley netted her first-career goal as she scored the Vaqueros game-winner against CSU Bakersfield... Utah Valley's Cassidy McCormick recorded her first career goal on her way to a hat trick in a 10-0 win over the Cougars of Chicago State.
Other defensive nominees: California Baptist's Romy Salvador added two shutout wins to her resume as she played all 180 minutes between the sticks in two games for the Lancers... Lauren Garthwaite of Grand Canyon recorded 22 saves in two matches on the weekend... Liz Mann of Kansas City helped the 'Roos defense hold Utah Valley to just two shots on goal while also scoring the game-winner against the Wolverines... Seattle U's Michele Adam anchored the Redhawk defense in a 1-0 victory over Grand Canyon... Kinga Szemik of UT Rio Grande Valley recorded her 6th shutout of the season as the Vaqueros defeated CSU Bakersfield 1-0... Utah Valley's Saydee Bacdad helped the Wolverines pick up their third straight shutout of the season as the Wolverines held Chicago State scoreless.
BY THE NUMBERS
With three weeks of conference play remaining, California Baptist leads the league in shots taken (290) and goals (31). Utah Valley paces the conference in total points (87) and assists (27). Chicago State continues to lead the league in saves (137). Conference front runner California Baptist has allowed the fewest goals (12) and is the league leader in goals-against average (.580).
Individually, California Baptist's Rola Badawiya and Kansas City's Rylan Childers share the league lead for goals with nine apiece. Childers and Jessie Ray of Seattle U each have six assists to lead the conference in that category. KC's Childers paces the league in points with 24. Lancers' Badawiya also leads the conference in game-winners (5). Judith Sorribes of Chicago State is the league leader in saves (125). Of goalies that have played in one-third of their team's minutes, California Baptist's Romy Salvador holds the best goals-against average (0.42) and save percentage (.885). Kinga Szemik of UT Rio Grande Valley leads the league in clean sheets with six on the year.
IMPLICATIONS ON THE TABLE
This week's slate of conference games is highlighted by a contest between the two teams atop the league table. California Baptist will host Seattle U with a shot to continue to control their own destiny. With a win over the Redhawks and a victory over Kansas City next week, the Lancers would secure the regular-season WAC title. A Seattle U victory over California Baptist would leave the door open for UT Rio Grande Valley and Utah Valley to still have a shot capturing the regular-season crown.
ROOS REACH PROGRAM MILESTONE
Over the weekend, Kansas City captured its 100th program victory as they defeated Utah Valley 1-0 on Oct. 20. The win came in their 219th all-time contest. Overall the program is 100-94-25 in 11 seasons of competition.
KC'S SMALL NAMED SENIOR CLASS AWARD® CANDIDATE
Kansas City senior defender Abby Small has been selected as one of 30 women's candidates for the Senior CLASS Award®. The total list of candidates is comprised of 60 NCAA men's and women's soccer student-athletes who excel both on and off the field.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
Small, a two time Academic All-WAC selection, was selected to the United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-Region second team in 2018. As an electrical and computer engineering major, Small currently has a 3.64 cumulative GPA.
Small exemplifies leadership on and off the field as one of the SAAC (Student-Athlete Advisory Committee) and SALC (Student-Athlete Leadership Council) leaders and representatives for Kansas City. Through SALC, Small volunteers with Children's Mercy Hospital and donates to the Greater KC Boys & Girls Club.
Academically, Small is a member of IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers), a member of SWE (Society of Women Engineers) and a member of Engineers without Borders.
Starting 67 of a possible 68 games in which she has played, Small has proved to be an anchor on the Roos strong defense. A two-time All-WAC First Team selection, Small was named the Preseason WAC Defensive Player of the Year for the second year in a row. She is a part of a Kansas City team that is coming off its second consecutive WAC regular-season title. At the time of nomination, Small and the Kansas City defense was ranked 44th in the nation in goals-against average (.547).
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
The group of 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season. Those 10 finalists will be placed on an official ballot that is distributed through a nationwide voting system. One female candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four C's of community, classroom, character and competition will be selected.
The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2019 NCAA Women's College Cup® championships in December.