Trinity's Loar; Austin College's Johnson headline 2010 All-SCAC Women's Soccer voting

Trinity's Loar; Austin College's Johnson headline 2010 All-SCAC Women's Soccer voting

SUWANEE, Ga. – In exclusive voting by the head women’s soccer coaches of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC), Trinity University’s Abigail Loar was selected SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Year while Austin College’s Ashleigh Johnson was named SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year. Complete Release

In the same balloting, Clara St. Urbain of Oglethorpe University was tabbed the league’s Newcomer-of-the-Year and Trinity head coach Lance Key was voted SCAC Women’s Coach-of-the-Year for the second consecutive season.

Abigail Loar, a junior forward from Littleton, Colo., led the league in scoring with 16 goals and 11 assists for 43 points, including five game-winners (tied for second in the SCAC). The 16 goals scored by Loar represent the most in a single-season by any conference women’s player since the 2005 season. After scoring a SCAC-high 15 goals last season, Loar is the first player since Centre College’s Erin Menard in 2005 and 2006 to lead the league in goals scored in consecutive seasons and just the fifth in the history of the league to accomplish the feat. Loar is the sixth Trinity player in the last seven years to earn at least a share of the league’s Offensive Player-of-the-Year award.

Loar received seven votes in the Offensive POTY balloting. Senior forward Brittany Garr of Centre and junior forward Alicia Plotky of Birmingham-Southern College received two votes each.

Ashleigh Johnson, a senior defender from Austin, Texas, was the best defender on the best defensive team in the league as Austin College led the SCAC in goals allowed (eight) and goals against average (0.46). Johnson successfully marked each team’s best forward (unfortunately some have of you had more than one) and was a big reason the ‘Roos posted 10 shutouts this season (second in the SCAC).  She is the first women’s soccer player from Austin College to receive one of the league’s major postseason awards since the ‘Roos joined the SCAC prior to the 2006 season.

Johnson received six votes in the Defensive POTY voting, while Trinity’s junior defender Allyson Thrall picked up two votes. Sophomore defender Amy Hebbeler of Centre, sophomore goalkeeper Sarah Nonaka of Southwestern University, and senior goalkeeper Lauren Palfrey of DePauw University each received one vote.

Clara St. Urbain, a first-year forward from Marietta, Ga., and the only freshman to finish in the top 10 among conference scoring leaders, netted eight goals and one assist for 17 points during the regular season. Her scoring effort was the most by an Oglethorpe player in over five years, and she played most of the season while injured. Since the league began recognizing a Newcomer-of-the-Year prior to the 2001 season, St. Urbain is the first player from Oglethorpe to earn the honor. In fact, with this honor, she becomes the first player from Oglethorpe to ever earn a postseason SCAC women’s soccer award.

St. Urbain received six votes in the Newcomer-of-the-Year voting, followed by first-year midfielder Angela Cotherman of DePauw and first-year defender Catey Hunter of Centre, who had two votes each. First-year defender Jennifer White of Trinity received the remaining vote for Newcomer-of-the-Year

Lance Key, in his seventh year as head coach at Trinity, led the Tigers to their 15th SCAC championship - the fifth under coach Key's leadership - with a 10-0-0 conference mark. Trinity, competing in its sixth NCAA postseason tournament in the past seven years, and 16th overall, defeated University of Puget Sound, 2-0, before falling to second-ranked Hardin-Simmons, 2-1, in NCAA second round play.

Key has posted a 106-15-10 record (.847) in his seven seasons at the helm of the women’s soccer program at Trinity – giving him the highest winning percentage among anyone who has ever coached in the SCAC in any team sport. The SCAC Coach-of-the-Year award is the fourth of his career.

Key received six votes from his peers in the COTY voting. Jay Hoffman of Centre and Joe Vari of Rhodes College received two votes each, and Alan Woods of Oglethorpe received the remaining vote.

For the complete 2010 All-SCAC Women's Soccer release, click here.