MAC Announces Women's Soccer Player of the Week
MAC Defensive Player of the Week
Maureen Kennedy, Bowling Green
Defender, Junior, Cypress, Calif. (Los Alamitos)
Bowling Green junior defender Maureen Kennedy scored three points and helped the Falcons to a pair of shutout wins as BGSU improved to 4-0-0 in Mid-American Conference play for the first time in school history. Kennedy scored the Falcons’ second goal of the night vs. Northern Illinois, as BGSU scored three times in the first half en route to a 3-0 victory. Then, in a matchup of the only two remaining MAC unbeaten, Kennedy helped the BG defense keep yet another clean sheet, and she assisted on the clinching goal in a 2-0 win over Western Michigan. Kennedy had the primary helper on Erica Hubert’s late goal that capped the scoring. She was part of a defense that allowed the opponents just 17 total shots, and only eight on goal, in 180 minutes of action. BGSU has outscored opponents, 10-0, in MAC play, and Kennedy has been involved in the scoring of four of BG’s 10 goals (one goal, three assists), while keeping the opponents off the scoreboard during those 360 minutes. On the year, she has nine points on two goals and five assists. Kennedy now has career totals of seven goals, 19 assists and 33 points. Just a junior, she is fifth in school history in career assists. Kennedy has a five-game point-scoring streak, with a goal and five assists as BGSU has gone 5-0-0 during that time. BGSU has tied the school record for consecutive shutouts, with five. The Falcons have not allowed a goal in 451:54, the second-longest shutout streak in program history.
MAC Offensive Player of the Week
Erica Hubert, Bowling Green
Forward, Senior, Welland, Ontario, Canada (E.L. Crossley)
Bowling Green senior forward Erica Hubert had four points and was a disruptive force to BG opponents all weekend as the Falcons won a pair of games to improve to 4-0-0 in the Mid-American Conference for the first time in program history. Hubert assisted on the Falcons’ second goal of the night vs. Northern Illinois, as BGSU scored three times in the first half en route to a 3-0 victory. Then, in a matchup of the only two remaining MAC unbeatens, Hubert was involved in the scoring of both goals, with a goal and an assist in a 2-0 win vs. Western Michigan. The assist came on what proved to be the winning goal in the 78th minute of play. She headed down the left side of the pitch, blowing by a defender in the process, took the ball to the end line and hit a cross into the box that was converted by teammate Chelsee Washington. Hubert capped the scoring in the final minutes, racing past a defender to reach a long ball forward, then tapping it past the WMU ‘keeper with the outside of her foot to seal the win. On the season, Hubert is tied for the team lead in goals (6), assists (5) and points (17). She has career totals of 33 goals, 10 assists and 76 points, ranking second on the BG career lists in both goals and points. Hubert has a total of seven points in the last three matches, and she has 14 points over the last six contests, as BGSU is unbeaten (5-0-1) in that span.
Other Nominees
Paige Culver, Defender
Senior, Oakville, Ontario (St. Thomas Aquinas)
Kent State senior All-American defender Paige Culver was instrumental in a Golden Flashes defense that only allowed one shot on goal all weekend en route to a weekend sweep over Ball State and Miami. The held down the back line against Ball State as the defense only allowed two total shots in a Friday night 1-0 win. The RedHawks were only able to muster one shot on goal in Sunday's 4-1 win and Culver recorded her first assist of the season, setting up Kent State's second goal. The Golden Flashes won both conference games this weekend to even their MAC record to 2-2.
Morgan Britain, Central Michigan
Goalkeeper, Sophomore, Wolverine Lake, Mich.
Sophomore goalkeeper Morgan Britain shined in her first start in five games, recording a shutout in Central Michigan's 1-0 road victory over Akron. In the face of 14 Zips shots, Britain tallied five saves to earn her first career clean sheet and second career win. The MAC victory moved the Chippewas to 3-1 in conference play and helped keep them within one game of first place Bowling Green.
Gurjeena Jandu, Buffalo
Defender, Junior, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Junior defender Gurjeena Jandu had another strong weekend defensively for the Bulls as they improved to 9-2 overall and 3-1 in MAC play after a pair of victories. Jandu was all over the pitch on Friday as she helped the Bulls secure their sixth clean sheet of the season as Central Michigan was able to notch seven shots on goal with only a couple being dangerous opportunities. Jandu was able to shut down one of the most dangerous forwards in the conference in Lexi Pelafas as UB cruised to the 2-0 win. On Sunday, Jandu had another strong defensive match as she helped limit the Eagles to just five shots on goal in their 2-1 overtime victory. The junior capped her nice afternoon with an assist on Kaitlyn Walsh's game-winning goal in the 95th minute. On the year, Jandu and the Bulls have held their opponents to just 10 goals scored through 11 matches while she is also enjoying a career-year on the offensive end of the pitch, chipping in with a career-best two goals, six assists and 10 points. She has also played a team-high 997 minutes on the year.
Kaylin Williams, Eastern Michigan
Goalkeeper, Senior,Kansas City, Mo. (Winnetonka)
Senior Kaylin Williams turned in another fantastic weekend to lead Eastern Michigan to a 1-1-0 record. Williams racked up nine saves, while allowing just one goal in a pair of OT matches. Williams' weekend started off with a thrilling 1-nil overtime win at Akron, Sept. 28. The shutout gave Williams her third clean sheet of the season, while her three-save effort propelled her past the 300-save mark. She is just the fourth Eagle in program history to total 300-or-more saves. The weekend came to a close with a six-save showing at Buffalo in which Williams and the Eagles' defense held one of the top offenses in the MAC to just a goal through regulation. In the closing minute of regulation, Williams sacrificed herself to cutoff one last try by the Bulls to send the match in overtime.
For her career, Williams now holds the EMU records for minutes played and shots faced. Additionally, she ranks fourth in saves, fifth in shutouts, and eighth in goals against average in Eastern laurels."
Sydney Malham, Ohio
Goalkeeper, Sophomore, Nashville, Tenn. (Franklin Road Academy)
Sophomore keeper Sydney Malham helped the Bobcats to a 1-0-1 weekend this week. Malham got the start on Friday against Miami, recording her third shutout of the season and her first in MAC play. Malham did not allow a goal in 90 minute of work, making five saves on 10 total shots faced. Her efforts helped the Bobcats improve to 4-5-2 overall and 2-1-1 in the MAC.
Sammi Corcoran, Ball State
Defender, Freshman, Dexter, Mich. (Dexter)
As a freshman, Sammi Corcoran continues to help anchor a solid back line for Ball State. She aided the Cardinals in giving up only one goal per match this week, particularly in the tie at Ohio to win BSU a point on the road. Corcoran even aided in the offensive efforts with a shot against the Bobcats. The true freshman has established herself as a leader on defense for the Cardinals.
Vital Kats, Kent State
Midfielder, Sophomore, Toronto, Ontario
Kent State sophomore midfielder Vital Kats scored two goals goals in the same game for the first time in her career and led the Golden Flashes to a weekend sweep behind five points. Kats scored her first goal against Miami to give Kent State the lead in the 46th minute when she beat the RedHawks goalkeeper from 15 yards out in the top of the net. The Toronto, Ontario native scored again in the 72nd minute scoring on a shot from the middle of the field. She recorded an assist as well on a corner kick goal in Kent State's 4-1 win.
Madison Costner, Central Michigan
Forward, Senior, Dublin, Ohio (Dublin Jerome)
Senior forward Madison Costner came through in the clutch on Sunday, netting the game winner and lone goal of the contest in a key MAC road win at Akron. Costner's score, her fourth of the season, came just after halftime, in the 48th minute off an assist from Amanda Britain. Costner ranks second on the team in goals (4) and third in points (10). The game winner was the fifth of her career.
Hannah Scafaria, Toledo
Forward, Senior, Kalamazoo, Mich.
Senior captain Hannah Scafaria continued her season of dominance this weekend by scoring three goals through two games for Toledo. In Friday's match against Western Michigan, the Rocket's were down 2-0 when Scafaria netted points in the 76th and 79th minutes to tie things up. Her two goals brought her season total to 10, making her the first Rocket to score at least 10 goals in a season since 2016. In the Rockets' 5-1 stomping of NIU on Sunday, Scafaria scored the opening goal five minutes into the match, netting her 11th of the year; She also assisted in UT's final goal of the game. Scafaria is the forth Rocket in program history to net 11 goals in a season, and the first since 2011.
With the weekend outing, the captain leads the conference in scoring by three goals, and averages 0.92/game. She's also second in shots/game (4.33), points (23), and points per game (1.92). Nationally, Scafaria is ranked second for total goals, fifth for goals per game, and 11th for total points.
Carissima Cutrona, Buffalo
Forward, Senior, Williamsville, NY (Williamsville South)
Senior forward Carissima Cutrona continued her dominant play this weekend for the Bulls as they were able to collect a pair of MAC victories over Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan. Cutrona finished off her weekend with two goals, an assist and eight shots as she proved to be the best player on the field at all times. On Friday, Cutrona came out flying early for the Bulls as she netted a goal just 19 seconds into the match after a great individual effort. She took a Marcy Barberic feed, darted to the right and beat the keeper back to the left post for the eventual game-winner. Later in the match, Cutrona notched her eighth assist of the season on Adrianna VanCuyck's goal in the 82nd minute to cement the Bulls 2-0 victory. On Sunday, Cutrona was all over the field for the Bulls as she was able to tie the match, 1-1, in the 49th minute as she beat the Eastern Michigan keeper to the left corner of the goal. She finished off Sunday's match with a game-high five shots, four on goal in the 2-1 overtime victory. With her two goals this weekend, Cutrona moved into sixth place on the Bulls all-time scoring charts with 28 career goals. She now has a career-high 24 points on eight goals and a career-best eight assists on the year.
Kristin Nason, Eastern Michigan
Midfield, Redshirt junior
Redshirt junior Kristin Nason kept up her hot start to Mid-American Conference play, Sept. 28-30, pacing the EMU offense in a 1-1-0 weekend. Nason recorded two assists to lead the Green and White. Her weekend began with an assist on Eastern’s game-winning goal in overtime, to down Akron, 1-0. She closed out EMU’s roadtrip with an assist in Eastern’s 2-1 overtime match against Buffalo. Having recorded a point in each of Eastern’s last four matches, Nason has pieced together the longest point streak since Sept. 5-28, 2014. She has tallied three goals and added two assists over that stretch for a total of eight points.
Sydney Leckie, Ohio
Midfielder, Junior, Medina, Ohio (Medina)
Junior midfielder Sydney Leckie (Medina, Ohio), helped the Ohio soccer team (4-5-2, 2-1-1 MAC) continue their strong start to Mid-American Conference play. The Bobcats went 1-0-1 with weekend, defeating Miami (2-8-1, 0-4-0 MAC), 1-0 on Friday (Sept. 28), and tying with Ball State (5-3-2, 1-2-1),1-1 on Sunday (Sept. 30). Overall, Leckie registered one goal on three shots this weekend, recording one shot on goal for a .333 shot on goal percentage. On Friday against Miami, Leckie registered one shot, however, on Sunday, Leckie was the difference maker in the tie against Ball State. With the Bobcats trailing 1-0 late in the second half, Madelyn Kah and Sarina Dirrig would set up Leckie as she streaked down the left side of the field, sliding her the ball to push just past the diving Cardinal keeper, tying the game at 1-1in the 84th minute, and helping secure one point for the Bobcats in the standings.
Tatiana Mason, Ball State
Midfielder, Freshman, Ann Arbor, Mich. (Skyline)
Tatiana Mason scored her team-leading fourth goal for Ball State in a 1-1 draw at Ohio on Sunday afternoon. The true freshman continued to build on her solid rookie season and now leads Ball State with nine points on the year. Mason took two shots on the week and put both of them on goal. Her score was key in BSU securing a point on the road in Athens. She continues to be one of the top freshman in the conference on the season.
