NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - The Atlantic 10 Conference announced its major Women's Soccer Awards Thursday in advance of the 2019 Women's Soccer Championship Semifinals, which begin Friday at Saint Louis' Hermann Stadium in St. Louis, Mo.
Massachusetts standout Melissa Kössler was named the Offensive Player of the Year, and also took home Rookie of the Year Accolades, the second straight year the same player has garnered those honors. Courtney Reimer of Saint Louis was voted Midfielder of the Year, while Billiken teammate Alli Klug was named Defensive Player of the Year for the third consecutive season. SLU's Katie Shields also earned her second straight A-10 Women's Soccer Regular Season title and Coach of the Year nod.
Kössler, a freshman from Potsdam, Germany, exploded on scene for the Minutewomen, leading the team and the A-10 in points (29) and shares the top spot in goals (11) with teammate Lauren Bonavita. The 29 points in a season are the most for any Minutewomen since 1999 (Moa Mattsson '12) and is one point away from becoming the first player since 1999 (Emma Kurowski) to reach 30 points in a season. Kössler was named National Player of the Week in early October after tallying 11 points (4 goals, 3 assists) and both gamewinners in come-from-behind victories.
Reimer, the Billikens' first ever Midfielder of the Year, ranks second on the team with six goals and 14 points, both career highs for the senior. The St. Charles, Mo., native was named to the TopDrawerSoccer National Team of the Week and is part of a SLU squad that is 12-0-2 in its last 14 games, tying the school record for longest unbeaten streak set last season. Reimer helped SLU capture a second straight regular season title, scoring the opening goal in a 2-1 victory over George Washington, clinching the top spot outright.
Klug, a Top-10 Finalist for the Senior CLASS Award is the first player in A-10 Women's Soccer history to win a major award three times. The senior from Webster Groves, Mo., anchors a defense that tops the A-10 in GAA (0.45) and shutouts (12), and has played in all but 31 minutes this season. The Billikens defense has allowed only four goals in A-10 regular-season play. This season, Klug added three goals and an assist, and will finish her season as part of the winningest class in Saint Louis history with 62 wins.
Behind Shields, the defending Champion Billikens have earned a second straight regular season title and top seed for the Women's Soccer Championship. In her seventh year at the helm, SLU has gone unbeaten in 24 contests against A-10 opponents, and her 60 overall wins in the last three years is the most in the conference.
The league's head coaches voted on the awards and also selected the 11-member First Team and 12-member Second Team All-Conference (as result of a tie), as well as the All-Rookie squad. An 11-member All-Academic team was also selected, based on a vote of the women's soccer media relations directors at each of the 14 member institutions.
Joining Kössler, Klug and Reimer on the First Team are Dayton's Alexis Goins, George Washington's Megan McCormick, La Salle's Maci Bower, UMass' Jenny Hipp, from Saint Louis, Hannah Friedrich, Evie Lavelle, and goalkeeper, Mary Niehaus and VCU's Susanna Friedrichs.
The All-Conference Second Team consists of Davidson goalie, Mary Grace Bunch, Duquesne's Deena DeBaldo, from George Washington, Madi Coyne, Maria Pareja and Rachel Sorkenn and Hannah Zaluski, Massachusetts' Lauren Bonavita and Ansley Frazier, Richmond's Alyssa Walker, St. Bonaventure's Sabrina Sousa-Sampson, Saint Louis' Brionna Halverson and VCU's Emma Kershner.
The 11-member All-Rookie Team includes Goins, Laney Huber and Landy Mertz of Dayton, Fordham's Danielle Etienne and Kristen Cocozza, George Washington's Tamaki Machi, La Salle's Danielle Rooney, from UMass, Serena Amhed, Frazier, and Kössler, and Anna Lawler of Saint Louis.
The 11-member All-Academic Team includes Dayton's Emily Jones and Emma Thomas, Duquesne's Lauren Bell and DeBaldo, Richmond's TJ Anderson, St. Bonaventure's Rachel Collins, from Saint Joseph's Erica Behr and Brittany Hartwell-Miller, and SLU's Klug, Reimer and Alyssa Seitzer.
The 2019 Atlantic 10 Women's Soccer Championship continues Friday with the semifinals, held at Hermann Stadium in St. Louis, Mo. Top-seeded Saint Louis takes on No. 4 La Salle at 1:00 pm CT, followed by No. 2 George Washington and No. 3 UMass at 4:00 pm CT. The winners of those contests will face off in Sunday's Championship final at Noon CT, with the Champion earning the league's automatic bid to the NCAAs. All three games of this weekend's action will be streamed on ESPN+, the home of live Atlantic 10 action. Visit Championship Central for more information.