Grace Soccer Players Honored
WINONA LAKE – After putting the finishing touches on a stellar season, the Grace College women’s soccer players were given several national awards for the 2013 campaign.
Freshman Meredith Hollar and sophomore Carianne Sobey highlighted the Lady Lancers’ award haul when they were named honorable mention for NAIA All-American.
Hollar, who was also named the Crossroads League Offensive Player of the Year, tallied 11 goals. The freshman forward, a former star and record holder at Warsaw Community High School, was lauded as an NCCAA First Team All-American – the only freshman to appear on the 11-player All-American squad. She recorded eight goals in eight CL regular-season contests before suffering an injury late in the season.
Sobey, who earned the CL’s Midfielder of the Year award, picked up NCCAA Second Team All-American honors. The sophomore midfielder handed out 10 assists to go along with three goals, leading the league with seven assists in CL play.
Carmen Barnhill concluded her outstanding four-year career with NCCAA Third Team All-American recognition. The senior goalkeeper helped the Lady Lancers notch seven shutouts and a 12-7-3 record.
The Lady Lancers advanced to the NCCAA National Championships for the third straight season, advancing to the national semifinals for the second consecutive year under head coach Michael Voss. Grace also posted the squad’s best record in league competition, compiling a 7-1-1 mark in the Crossroads League. Emily Hickerson and Meghan Wiles were given NCCAA All-Tournament Team honors after Grace’s tournament run.
Additionally, a total of eight Lady Lancers were named NAIA Scholar-Athletes: Hannah Alcorn, Keeley Booher, Carmen Barnhill, Emily Hickerson, Jalisa Thayer, Holly Bennett, Kelsey Christner and Kaitlan Wiles. In order to be nominated by an institution’s head coach or sports information director, a student-athlete must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale and must have achieved a junior academic status to qualify for this honor.
Holly Bennett was also a Second Team honoree for Capital One CoSIDA Academic All-America®.