INDIANAPOLIS – McKendree University sophomore forward Sydnee Carroll, Bellarmine University freshman forward Olivia Taylor as well as Truman State University junior goalkeeper Katie Mattingly and head coach Mike Cannon have earned major postseason honors for the 2016 Great Lakes Valley Conference Women's Soccer season, it was announced by the league office Thursday evening. Carroll was voted by the league coaches as GLVC Offensive Player of the Year, while the Bulldog’s Mattingly was Defensive Player of the Year and the Knights’ Taylor was picked as Freshman of the Year. In addition, Truman’s Cannon garnered Coach of the Year accolades. Along with these award winners, a total of 34 standouts were named to the 2016 All-Conference Teams. The annual awards were presented Thursday at a reception on the eve of the GLVC Championship Tournament.
With her selection, Carroll becomes the first Bearcat to both earn a major award and be named to an All-GLVC team, being voted as a first-team honoree. She earned the league’s top offensive honor after registering a Conference-best 35 points, 1.84 points per game, 16 goals, 0.84 goals per game and nine game-winning goals. She also had the most points (22), goals (10) and game-winners (six) in GLVC-only contests. The Millstadt, Illinois, native also notched three assists on the year. Carroll was integral to the Bearcats success in 2016, leading the group to its highest seed in the GLVC Championship Tournament at No. 4 and their first ever win in the postseason event – a 1-0 home victory against No. 5 Bellarmine. McKendree finished the regular season with a 14-4 overall record while 11-4 in the GLVC. The sophomore was honored as Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 26 after totaling eight points on three goals and two assists, scoring the game-winner against Indianapolis and dishing out the helper on the game-winner versus Saint Joseph’s.
Mattingly makes it two years in a row for Truman State collecting a major accolade, as Jessica Hanson made history by becoming the program’s first to do so with the same merit in 2015. Mattingly is now a two-time All-GLVC selection, being chosen to the Second Team last year and this season improving to the First Team. The junior leads the league in goals against average (0.27), save percentage (.922), shutouts (13) and shutouts per game (0.72). She also recorded a Conference-best 11 shutouts and .929 saves percentage in 15 GLVC games to go along with her 12-1-2 record. The Perryville, Missouri, product was named Defensive Player of the Week a record five times this year and helped Truman to its first GLVC regular season title and top seed in the Championship Tournament. She was also a NSCAA Division II College Player of the Week on Oct. 4 after two she registers two shutouts that included recording a then-career-high nine saves in a 1-0 win over nationally ranked Rockhurst.
Taylor’s recognition gives Bellarmine its third GLVC Freshman of the Year in women’s soccer after Sarah Barton took home the honors in 2002 and senior teammate Mary Beth Gorham was the 2013 honoree. The forward ranks in the top 10 in the loop for points (16, t-7th), points per game (0.89, t-10th) and goals (six, t-10th). During league games, she recorded 13 points on five goals and three assists. The Brandon, Mississippi, native’s numbers were good for second best on the Knights’ lineup behind Gorham, who had 18 points and seven goals overall. Additionally, two of Taylor’s goals were game-winners, and she also supplemented with four assists.
Cannon has guided his 18th-ranked Bulldogs to a 13-1-3 regular season record overall, including 12-1-2 in league play and the first GLVC Regular Season Conference title in program history. The 24-year leader becomes Truman’s first GLVC Coach of the Year, as voted by his peers, after leading the Bulldogs to a NSCAA national ranking as high as No. 10, which they held for three weeks straight earlier in the 2016 campaign. Cannon’s crew notched a host of All-Conference slots, including three first-team nods in Mattingly, sophomore defender Laura Ney and junior defender Caity Schmitt. Senior forward Stephanie Williams and classmate midfielder Megan Whitehead were recognized by the league on the Second Team, and another pair of seniors were third-team picks that includes midfielder Megan Casserly and defender Casey Maloney.
Twenty-six other women's soccer stars earned recognition from the GLVC coaches, as two 11-member and one 12-member (due to a tie) All-Conference teams were also released on Thursday.
Of the 34 All-Conference selections, Rockhurst University and Truman State led the way with seven representatives each, the Hawks earning the most on the First Team with four and the Bulldogs with three. University of Missouri-St. Louis followed with six, including one second-team choice and the other five on the Third Team. Bellarmine and McKendree had four total selections with two on both the First and Second Teams. With two selections each were Quincy University and University of Wisconsin-Parkside, and rounding out the contingent is Lewis and Maryville that both earned a third-team laurel.
Joining Carroll, Mattingly, Ney and Schmitt on the First Team were the Hawks four representatives in Meghan Kilkenny, Kaley Nieters, Jessica Smelcer and unanimous selection Courtney Silberberg. Also a unanimous choice was Bellarmine’s Gorham, who is joined by classmate midfielder Lauren Holder. UW-Parkside’s Jillian Hetfleisch rounds out the 11-player First Team.
The league also recognized 16 GLVC James R. Spalding Sportsmanship Award honorees. The student-athletes chosen are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. These individuals must also be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting. The honorees are now eligible to become one of their school’s two Spalding Sportsmanship Award winners, which will be announced at the end of the academic year.
A complete list of the three All-Conference Teams and major postseason award winners follows below.
Offensive Player of the Year
Sydnee Carroll, F, So., MCK
Defensive Player of the Year
Katie Mattingly, GK, Jr., TSU
Freshman of the Year
Olivia Taylor, F, Fr., BU
Coach of the Year
Mike Cannon, TSU
FIRST TEAM
Mary Beth Gorham, F, Sr., BU#
Lauren Holder, MF, Sr., BU
Sydnee Carroll, F, So., MCK
Meghan Kilkenny, MF, Sr., RU
Kaley Nieters, F, Jr., RU
Courtney Silberberg, MF, Sr., RU#
Jessica Smelcer, B, So., RU
Laura Ney, B, So., TSU
Katie Mattingly, GK, JR., TSU
Caity Schmitt, B, Jr., TSU
Jillian Hetfleisch, F, Sr., UWP
SECOND TEAM
Lexy Hazle, B, Sr., BU
Hannah Poteet, GK, Sr., BU
Allyssa Reiniger, B, Sr., MCK
Kayla Delgado, B, Sr., UMSL
Abby Pulliam, F, So., QU 1
Natalie Quisenberry, B, Jr., QU
Kristin Wolff, F, Sr., RU
Brandi Vollmer, MF, Sr., RU
Stephanie Williams, F, Sr., TSU
Megan Whitehead, MF, Sr., TSU
Lauren Bialas, MF, Sr., UWP
THIRD TEAM*
Jessica Chavez, F, Gr., LEWIS
Allison Verville, MF, So., MU
Sydnie Markowski, B, So., MCK
Chelsea Whittaker, MF, Jr., MCK
Kirsten Crabtree, MF, Sr., UMSL
McKayla Harder, F, So., UMSL
Emily Mosier, B, Jr., UMSL
Miriam Taylor, F, Sr., UMSL
Taylor Tosovsky, MF, Sr., UMSL
Ali Wallner, GK, Sr., RU
Megan Casserly, MF, Sr., TSU
Casey Maloney, B, Sr., TSU
*additional member due to tie
# Unanimous Selection
2016 WOMEN’S SOCCER JAMES R. SPALDING SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD NOMINEES
Lexy Hazle, BU
Morgan Piotraschke, DU
Regina Bolin, UIS
Michele Govern, UINDY
Nicole Dominguez, LEWIS
Nadia Abu-Douleh, MU
Danielle Hareb, MCK
Anna Fink, S&T
McKayla Harder, UMSL
Brianna Chapman, QU
Kristin Wolff, RU
Jenna Arnold, SJC
Taylor Patty, USI
Megan Whitehead, TSU
Vianey Hernandez, UWP
Mackenzie Giegling, WJC