Three Tar Heels Named To ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Women's Soccer Team
Nov. 17, 2009
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Senior defender Kristi Eveland was named to the first team for the second straight year and senior defender Whitney Engen and senior goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris were tapped for the second team as the 2009 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Women's Soccer Teams were revealed Tuesday afternoon. The teams are selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
The Carolina women's soccer program has now had 20 selections to the Academic All-America Teams since 1983 and more remarkably has had 13 selections in just the past five years alone.
Eveland, a senior business administration major, was selected for the first team for the second year in a row. She has been nominated for the team each of the past three years. Engen and Harris, also seniors, were nominated for the team for the first time this year and made the second-team All-America squad on their first nominations.
Senior goalkeeper Beth Reed of the United States Naval Academy was named as the winner of the Academic All-America® of the Year award in the University Division. That is an award a Tar Heel player has won twice in the past four years - Heather O'Reilly in 2006 and Yael Averbuch in 2008. A mechanical engineering major with a 3.97 GPA, Reed ranks second in Overall Order of Merit among the 1,064 midshipmen in the Class of 2010.
Senior defenders Kristi Eveland of third-ranked North Carolina and Blakely Mattern of eight-ranked South Carolina joined senior midfielder Elizabeth Betterbed of the U.S. Military Academy and graduate student Theresa Ferraina of Loyola (Md.) University as repeat selections to the first team. Senior defender Emily Anderson of Texas and senior midfielder Hailey Beam of Charlotte, a pair of second team honorees last year, moved up to the first team in 2009. Second-ranked Portland was the only school with two Scholar-Athletes on the Academic All-America® first team. Junior defender Jessica Tsao and sophomore forward Danielle Foxhoven represent the Pilots on the first team. Senior midfielder Annamarie Hofstetter of Idaho State, senior midfielder Jackie Kondratko of Valparaiso and senior forward Kelley O'Hara of top-ranked Stanford complete the 2009 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® University Division Women's Soccer first team.
A business administration major with a 3.86 GPA, Eveland is a four-year starter for the Tar Heels, who have a 19-3-1 record this season. She has helped the Carolina defense post 16 shutouts in 2009 while allowing only 10 goals in 23 games. A native of Southlake, Texas, she helped guide North Carolina to its 20th Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament championship earlier this month.
Her defensive linemates, Engen (Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.) and Harris (Satellite Beach, Fla.), were both named to the second-team Academic All-America Team. Both Engen and Harris joined Eveland as members of the All-ACC Tournament Team in 2009 as part of a UNC defense that posted three shutouts in the ACC Tournament. Harris and Engen were both named first-team All-ACC in 2009 and Engen was honored as the Defensive Player of the Year in the ACC this season. Harris is currently a member of the full U.S. National Team and missed two games this fall training with the team. Harris currently ranks third in the nation in goalkeepers goals against average at 0.40. As a team, UNC ranks fourth nationally in goal allowed per game this season at 0.423.
In her career, Eveland has played in 103 games and started 100 of them while Engen has played in 101 games and started 99. During their careers Eveland, Harris and Engen have helped led a defense that has allowed only 54 goals in four years while the Tar Heels have compiled a 90-9-4 record in that time. The trio of UNC defensive standouts have started for two national championship teams in their first three years at Carolina and they have won four ACC Tournament titles and three ACC regular season championships.
North Carolina has advanced to the third round of the 2009 College Cup as the team has recorded seven shutouts in a row. The Tar Heels meet Maryland at 1 p.m. Saturday in the NCAA third round.
The 12 members of the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Women's Soccer first team have an average GPA of 3.90.
2009 ESPN THE MAGAZINE Academic All-America ®
Women's Soccer Team (University Division) as selected by CoSIDA
Second Team
Third Team |
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