HILLSBORO, Ore. – The five-time defending Northwest Conference champion, Pacific Lutheran University women's soccer team had eight players named the to the all-conference teams on Wednesday.
Ella Merte was named the Defensive Player of the Year and
Hannah Cecil earned Freshman of the Year honors.
Merte powered a defensive unit that shutout 14 opponents on the year and only allowed five goals in Northwest Conference action. The Lutes have not allowed more than one goal in a match all season. Merte is the second straight Lute to win the award after Bri Hunting garnered the distinction in 2019.
Cecil exploded onto the scene this year and led the Lutes with 15 points on the year. She leads the team with seven goals and also ranks third in the league in that category. She is the second consecutive Lute to win the award after teammate
Meghan Michels won it in 2019.
Joining Merte and Cecil on the First Team All-NWC list is senior
Kimber Thomas. Thomas anchored the midfield for the Lutes. She scored the game-winning goal against George Fox last week that clinched the NWC title for PLU. Thomas is a key cog in the PLU defense and scored three goals on the year and added an assist.
Ellie Reardon,
Lily Dose and
Julia Causbie were all honored on the Second Team. Reardon was an important piece to the Lute defense and took the majority of the Lutes' corner kicks. She leads the league with nine assists on the year and she added a goal against Lewis & Clark.
Dose scored four goals on the year and added an assist, while Causbie was second on the team in points with 15 after scoring five times and passing out three assists.
Earning Honorable Mention honors is keeper
Calie Rose and forward
Alyssa Leong. Rose made seven starts this year and played in 11 matches, totaling nearly 600 minutes between the pipes. She made 20 saves and allowed just three goals, while producing a 5-2 record. Leong scored four goals on the season and had an assist for nine points.
The eight all-conference honorees are the second most in school history, tying the 2019 squad. In 2017, the Lutes set the school record with nine All-NWC selections.
PLU will look to continue their magical season on Saturday when they play Pomona-Pitzer Colleges on the campus of Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas at 1:30 p.m. CST.
