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Dixie State’s Mikala Wilkes named Player of the Year
Dixie State's Mikala Wilkes named Player of the Year
HPU's Meghan Fuller earns Freshman, Newcomer of the Year awards
PHOENIX, AZ - When the coaches of the Pacific West Conference selected Dixie State senior midfielder Mikala Wilkes (Cedar Hills, UT/Lone Peak) the Preseason Player of the Year, they obviously had some foresight of what was to come.
On Wednesday, Nov. 11, Wilkes was named the 2009 PacWest Women's Soccer Player of the Year for her outstanding season. She will lead the Red Storm against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Friday at noon PST in the opening round of the NCAA Division II National Championship Tournament.
2009 All-PacWest Women's Soccer Team
The Red Storm enters the post-season with a 13-1 PacWest mark and an overall record of 14-4-0, including a 9-1 record in its last 10 games.
Wilkes was one of seven Dixie State players to receive All-PacWest accolades. This year the Pacific West Conference coaches or designated representatives from each school selected 33 student-athletes for all-conference accolades. The squad consisted of a first team, second team and honorable mention featuring four forwards, for midfielders, three defenders and a goalkeeper on each listing.
The All-PacWest Team was announced by the PacWest Media Relations
Office in Phoenix, Ariz., on Wednesday.
In addition to Wilkes earning Player of the Year, Hawai‘i Pacific dominated the remainder awards with red-shirt freshman forward Meghan Fuller (Pearl City, HI/Pearl City - left photo) taking both Newcomer and Freshman of the Year honors, and sophomore Carianne Makino (Honolulu, HI/Kaiser) earning the Goalkeeper of the Year award.
Sea Warrior head coach Michele Nagamine led her team to a third-place finish in the PacWest with 24 points on an 8-6 record to claim Coach of the Year accolades. Her squad was 10-8-1 overall during her second season as head coach. Last year HPU was 3-9 in the conference and 5-14 overall.
Wilkes earned her third straight All-PacWest First Team selection, this time as a midfielder after scoring 29 points in 17 starts. She ranked third in scoring in the PacWest, tied for second in goals with 12, and tied for eighth in assists with five. She produced one game-winning goal, ranked second in both points (1.71) and goals (0.71) per game, and tied for eighth in assists per contest (0.29). She will have a chance to add to those totals this weekend.
Wilkes was one of two Dixie State players making All-PacWest First
Team Midfield. Sophomore teammate Camille Peterson
(North Logan, UT/Skyview - left) joined Wilkes after
recording 17 points in 18 starts. She tallied her points on five
goals and seven assists, ranking second in the PacWest in total
assists, and tying for seventh in scoring. She also drilled two
game-winners, tied for eighth in points per game (0.94), and ranked
second in assists per contest (0.39).
Senior Carly Haycock (Bountiful, UT/Bountiful) was named to the All-PacWest Team for the third straight year, this time claiming Honorable Mention as a midfielder. She was a First Team choice in 2008 and a Second Team winner in 2007. In 15 games, Haycock totaled 13 points on six goals and an assist. She registered a pair of game-winning goals and ranked 10th in goals per game (0.40).
Dixie State also collected All-PacWest honors for two defenders
and two forwards in 2009. On offense, junior Wendy
Stratford (Layton, UT/Layton - right) - an Honorable
Mention last year - was named a First Team Forward, while senior
Shannon Larsen (Salt Lake City,
UT/Skyline) earned Second Team accolades.
In 16 games, Stratford amassed 16 points on seven goals and two assists. She tied for eighth in the PacWest in total goals and tied for ninth in total points. She also ranked third in game-winning goals (4), shared sixth place in points per game (1.00), and ranked eighth in goals per contest (0.44).
Larsen contributed 14 points on four goals and six assists over 18 games. She tied for third in total assists and in assists per game (0.33).
Sophomore Whitley Davis (Sandy, UT/Brighton) was named All-PacWest First Team Defender, while freshman Kelsey Tesoro (Las Vegas, NV/Shadow Ridge) claimed Honorable Mention.
Davis and Tesoro each contributed six points on two goals and two assists. The Dixie State defense finished the regular season ranked second in the PacWest in goals allowed (21) and in goals against average (1.14).
Hawai‘i Pacific ended up second in the number of
all-conference selections with six thanks to four First Team
choices. In addition to being named the Goalkeeper of the Year,
Makino (left) was named All-PacWest First Team in net for her
outstanding season.
In 19 games she produced a 10-8-1 overall record with a 1.47 goals against average (4th) covering 1715:51 of action. She ranked fourth in the PacWest in goals against average, seventh in save percentage (.708), sixth in total saves (68), and seventh in saves per game (3.58). She finished the season ranked third in total shutouts with five.
Fuller claimed All-PacWest First Team as a forward in addition to her Freshman and Newcomer of the Year honors by racking up 20 points on nine goals and two assists. She ranked fifth in the conference in total points, and fourth in goals scored, points per game (1.25) and goals per game (0.56). She tied for fourth in the league with a trio of game-winning scores.
The Freshman of the Year award is open to any red-shirt freshman or true freshman athlete, while the Newcomer of the Year award is for student-athletes making their first appearance in the PacWest. Freshman are eligible for both which explains why Fuller garnered the honors.
Freshman Amber Fuller (Pearl City, HI/Kamehameha
Schools) joined her older sister on the All-PacWest
First Team as a middie for HPU. In 18 games she scored eight goals
and had one assist for 17 points, tying for fifth in goals scored
and seventh in points. She also tied for seventh in points per game
(0.94) and shared fifth place in goals per game (0.44). Two of her
goals were game-winners while she drilled one penalty kick.
Rookie forward Dyanne Anderson (Dana Point, CA/Dana Hills - right) earned All-PacWest First Team honors after her offensive explosion this season. In 19 starts she produced a dozen goals, tying for the second-best total in the league this year. She also tied for third in the conference in assists with six and ranked second in total points with 30. She completed her year ranked third in points per game (1.58) and goals per game (0.63), tied for fifth in assists per game (0.32), and tied for fourth in game-winning goals (3).
HPU senior midfielder Jamie Hirai (Captain Cook, HI/Konawaena) was named Honorable Mention at her position, claiming All-PacWest honors for the fourth straight season. She was an Honorable Mention in 2006 and 2008, and she collected First Team accolades in 2007. In 19 starts she posted eight points on two goals and four assists.
Freshman Liana Gualderama (Honolulu, HI/Kamehameha Schools-Oahu) rounded out the Sea Warrior selections with an Honorable Mention as a defender. She contributed an assist in starting all 19 games as a rookie for Hawai‘i Pacific.
Grand Canyon and Dominican (CA) each listed six All-PacWest
selections in 2009. For first-year PacWest school Dominican (CA),
it included First Team pick Kaitlyn Brown (San Diego,
CA/Academy of Our Lady of Peace - left). In 18 starts
she produced 10 points on a goal and eight assists, leading the
PacWest in total assists and in assists per game (0.44).
The midfield squad featured freshman Stephanie Malone (Sacramento, CA/Rosemont) as an Honorable Mention and senior Eleanna Mendez (Windsor, CA/Windsor) earning Second Team accolades.
In 20 games, Malone had 13 points on six goals and one assist with one game-winner, while Mendez posted 15 points on six goals and three assists with one game-deciding score.
Junior Bridget Folan (Pacifica, CA/Sacred Heart -
right) earned Second Team honors as a forward after
posting 16 points on five goals and a half-dozen assists. She tied
for third in total assists in the conference, while she also tied
for ninth in total points and tied for seventh in assists per game
(0.32). She scored a pair of game-winning goals this season.
In addition to Folan at forward, freshman Mary Wheeler (Edgewood, WA/Puyallup) was named Honorable Mention at the same position. She scored six goals and added two assists for 14 points in 20 starts this year.
Half of Grand Canyon's six All-PacWest selections came at the midfield position. Senior Aislinn Finfrock (Glendale, AZ/Independence) and junior Kayla Poe (Mesa, AZ/Dobson) were named Second Team, while freshman Sasha Scott (West Hills, CA/El Camino Real) was an Honorable Mention.
Finfrock (left) posted a dozen points on four goals and four
assists in 18 games and 16 starts, while Poe totaled 15 points on
seven goals and one assist. Five of her seven goals were
game-winners, tying her for first in the PacWest, while she also
tied for eighth in total goals scored. Scott contributed a goal and
an assist for three points in 20 games and 18 starts.
Defensively, senior Jessica Schartz (Phoenix, AX/Paradise Valley) earned All-PacWest honors for the second straight year. In 2008 she made the Second Team, while this year she claimed Honorable Mention after contributing five points on a goal and three assists in 19 starts.
Junior Mileena Buchei (Stansbury, UT/Grantsville) started 19 games in net for the Antelopes and finished her year as an Honorable Mention goalkeeper. She posted the fifth-best goals against average in the league (1.48) and finished the year with an 8-8-1 record while playing 1584:49. Her .729 save percentage ranked fifth in the conference, as did her total number of saves (70), saves per game (3.68), and total number of shutouts (3).
Senior Kaylen Jackson (Tucson, AZ/Amphitheater -
right) was named to the Second Team as a forward for
the Antelopes. In 18 games she collected 18 points on eight goals
and two assists, tying for fifth in the PacWest in goals scored and
ranking sixth in total points. She also tied for sixth in points
per game (1.00) and tied for fifth in goals per contest (0.44).
Maybe the hottest team heading down the stretch, BYU-Hawaii claimed five All-PacWest selections after ending the year with a 12-2 conference mark, a 15-3 overall record, and a 9-1 record over its last 10 games.
Junior forward Emily Mearns (San Ramon, CA/California
- left) packed up her third All-PacWest First Team
selection for the Seasiders after taking her first two in 2008 and
2006. In 18 games, Mearns amassed a league-leading 31 points on 13
goals and five assists. She topped the PacWest in putting the ball
in the net, tied for fifth in helping others score, and shared the
conference lead in game-winners with five. She also led the PacWest
in points per game (1.72) and goals per game (0.72), while tying
for ninth in assists per contest (0.28).
Sophomore Margaret Sekona (Juneau, AK/Juneau Douglas) joined Mearns as an All-PacWest Forward after being selected to the Second Team. She totaled 14 points on six goals and two assists with one game-winner. This marks her second All-PacWest selection after making the squad as an Honorable Mention in 2008.
Junior Natasha Aiono (South Jordan,
UT/Bingham) made her third straight All-PacWest squad
as a First Team choice at midfield. She was an Honorable Mention as
a rookie in 2007 and was named First Team and PacWest Player of the
Year in 2008.
This season in 18 games, Aiono (right) tied for fifth in the conference in goals scored (8), shared eighth place in assists (5), and ranked fourth in total points (21). She also tied for fourth in game-winners with three, ranked fifth in points per game (1.17), tied for fifth in goals per game (0.44), and tied for ninth in assists per contest (0.28).
Junior Kimberly Herrera (Manteca, CA/Manteca) was an All-PacWest Second Team selection at defender, while junior Becky Ploeger (Broomfield, CO/Standley Lake) made her third straight all-conference squad.
Ploeger (left) was a Second Team choice after earning All-PacWest
Goalie of the Year and First Team selections in 2007 and 2008.
She was outstanding in net this season with a PacWest-leading 0.47 goals against average and a league-best 15 victories on a 15-2-0 record. She also topped the conference in shutouts (10), save percentage (.843) and shutouts per game (0.59). She played 1522:13 and totaled 43 saves (8th) with a 2.53 saves-per-game average (8th).
Herrera contributed four assists and four points in 18 games, while the BYU-Hawaii defense allowed just 10 goals and a 0.56 goals against average.
Hawai‘i Hilo earned four All-PacWest selections, including a
pair of Second Team defenders in juniors Vanessa Butin
(Waipahu, HI/Moanalua - right) and
Jessica Snell (Arroyo Grande, CA/Nipomo).
Each player started all 20 games for the Vulcans with Butin
contributing a point on one assist and Snell knocking in a goal for
two points.
Snell was an Honorable Mention last year while Butin was a Second Team choice in 2007 when she also was named Co-Newcomer of the Year.
Junior Emily Lambert (Guerneville, CA/El Molino) made her first foray into the All-PacWest realm by earning Second Team Midfield honors. She had nine points on three goals and three assists over 19 starts for the Vulcans. She also scored one game-winning goal.
Sophomore Gina Tumasone (Newhal, CA/West Ranch) picked up her first All-PacWest selection by earning Honorable Mention as a forward this year. She posted nine points on four goals and one assist with one game-winning score for the Vulcans.
Notre Dame de Namur rounded out the 2009 All-PacWest Women's Soccer Team with three selections, including two Honorable Mentions at the forward position.
Senior Sally Olsson (Hillsboro, OR/Century -
right) claimed her third straight PacWest Honorable
Mention award in 2009 by contributing 13 points on six goals and
one assist in 17 games. She tallied a pair of game-winning goals in
the process.
Freshman Alexis Tershay (Sunnyvale, CA/Fremont) joined her on the squad with 11 points on four goals and three assists over 18 games. Three of her four goals this year decided games in favor of the Argos, tying her for fourth in the conference in game-winners.
NDNU's top All-PacWest honor went to freshman Kimberly Wilhite (Castro Valley, CA/Castro Valley) who was named First Team Defender. She contributed seven points on two goals and three assists this year for the Argos.
