(Story courtesy of the Centenary Athletics Department)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The United Soccer Coaches have named Centenary junior Kyra Montes the Women's Division III National Player of the Week.
The forward becomes only the second women's soccer player in SCAC history – and the first in five seasons – to win national player of the week honors from the United Soccer Coaches (formerly the National Soccer Coaches Association of America).
Centenary finished undefeated in three matches this past week and are now 4-0 this season – the Ladies best start to a year in the NCAA Division III era.
"This is an incredible honor for Kyra and our Ladies Soccer program," said head coach Greg Cathell. She's been a game changer for us this year and playing at a very high level. Her teammates are putting her in the position to be successful, and she is converting at a high rate. We are incredibly proud of Kyra for receiving this accolade, but we will celebrate as a team, as this is truly a team effort."
Montes had a hand in 7-of-10 goals scored this week, finding the back of the net five times and adding a pair of assists. She scored the first goal of the game, which proved to be the game winner, in Centenary's 3-0 triumph against Millsaps September 5.
In the SCAC opener against Texas Lutheran, in which Centenary faced a 2-0 deficit in the first half, Montes assisted on the Ladies first goal of the game before scoring the equalizer early in the second half. The Bulldogs retook the lead just minutes later, but Montes assisted on another equalizer in the 83rd minute. Centenary went on to win 4-3 in double overtime on freshman Amy Moreno's first goal of her collegiate career.
Centenary once again faced a 2-0 deficit on Sunday against Schreiner, but Montes netted her first collegiate hat trick to complete the Ladies' perfect weekend in conference action. After the Mountaineers went up 2-0 in the second half, Montes scored on a pass by sophomore teammate Pamela Fonseca. She tied the game in the 83rd minute on a through ball by Moreno. Montes scored when she beat the keeper and put the ball into an open net.
In the 95th minute, Centenary received a penalty kick, in which Montes was chosen to attempt. The Mountaineers goalie went the right direction, but Montes lofted the ball over the keeper to give the Ladies their second straight overtime victory.
She is now 2-2 in her Centenary career in penalty kicks.
For the season, Montes has six goals, three assists, 15 points, and 20 shots; all of which leads the SCAC. For her collegiate career in a Ladies uniform (18 games), Montes has nine goals, five assists, and 23 points.
Centenary returns to action Tuesday night when it takes on Dallas at CE Byrd High School. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:45 p.m.
