SPARTANBURG, S.C. – ETSU forward Sarah Zadrazil became the Bucs’ first-ever Southern Conference Player of the Year and Samford’s Olivia Cole was named the SoCon Defensive Player of the Year in voting conducted by the league’s 10 head coaches. UNCG’s Caylin Prillaman was selected the SoCon Freshman of the Year, while Samford’s Todd Yelton was named the SoCon Coach of the Year for the second straight season.
The league coaches voted on a pair of all-conference teams, an all-freshman team and the four individual awards. They were not allowed to vote for themselves or their own players. The all-conference first and second teams include 11 players each, voted on by position, while the all-freshman team consists of 11 players with no consideration for positions.
SoCon regular-season champion Samford paced the league with seven all-conference players, including five on the first team. UNCG followed with five picks, three of them on the first team, and ETSU, Furman and Mercer had three all-conference picks each.
ETSU’s Zadrazil scored 21 points on seven goals and seven assists this season, all of which rank third in the league, in just 15 matches played. The senior from St. Gilgen, Austria, leads the SoCon with six game-winning goals this season and is the active NCAA Division I leader in career assists per game (0.69). She led an offense that ranked second in the league in points, goals and assists and helped the Bucs to a fifth-place finish in the league standings.
Cole has started all 19 of Samford’s contests, anchoring a Bulldog defense that set a SoCon record by allowing just one goal in league play. The junior defender from Orlando, Fla., helped Samford post 10 shutouts on the season and set a school record with 763 consecutive scoreless minutes spanning 10 matches. Cole has also contributed on the offensive end, notching a career-high three goals and an assist for a career-high seven points on the year.
UNCG’s Prillaman becomes the Spartans’ seventh freshman of the year and first since Tabitha Padgett took the honor in 2009. The rookie from High Point, N.C., is second on the squad in both goals (five) and points (12) and has notched a pair of game-winning goals this year. Prillaman was the league’s player of the week on Oct. 20 after scoring twice in as many games, including the game-winner in a 1-0 victory over Mercer.
Samford’s Yelton earned his second straight coach of the year nod and third of his SoCon career after guiding the Bulldogs to the regular-season title for the second straight season and third time overall. Yelton has directed Samford to a 14-5-0 record and an 8-1-0 league mark and saw his squad rattle off a nine-match winning streak that spanned more than a month. He has his team in the SoCon Women’s Soccer Championship semifinals for the third straight season and seventh time in eight seasons since joining the league in 2008.
Cole was joined on the all-conference first team by Bulldog teammates Malcanisha Kelley (forward), Taylor Borman (midfielder), Alissa Hansen (defender) and Anna Maddox (goalkeeper). Samford forward Jermaine Seoposenwe and midfielder Anna Allen earned spots on the second team.
UNCG put forward Chesney White, midfielder Georgia Brown and defender Zoe Fishman on the first team, while Furman forward Carlie Couch and midfielder Stephanie DeVita, a two-time SoCon Player of the Year, round out the team. DeVita, a senior, will wrap up her storied career as the SoCon’s all-time leading goal-scorer and is the active DI leader in career points (153) and goals (65) entering the SoCon semis.
Mercer, the defending SoCon tournament champion, placed a trio of players on the second team in midfielders Maddie Clark and Katelyn Dimopoulos and keeper Maggie Cropp. Forward Simona Koren and midfielder Paola Roversi of ETSU and defenders Ashley Eddleman and Regan Lehman of UNCG also earned the distinction, as did Furman defender Emily Graves and Western Carolina forward Kelly Pannell.
Four squads put two players each on the all-freshman team, led by UNCG with Prillaman and Gabbi Charles. ETSU (Irina Brutsch and Emily McKerlie), Mercer (Jorden Christensen and Haley McDuffee) and Samford (Ella Baggett and Kaitlyn Orman) also had multiple selections, while Furman’s Amani Bright, Western Carolina’s Sayres McKenna and Wofford’s Hayley Younginer complete the team.
Samford, Furman, UNCG and Mercer, the top four seeds, respectively, have advanced to the semifinals of the Southern Conference Women’s Soccer Championship, which will take place at Furman’s Stone Soccer Stadium on Friday, starting at 5 p.m. Both matches will appear live on the SoCon Digital Network. The championship match will take place Sunday at 1 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN3.
2015 Women’s Soccer All-Conference Team
Player of the Year – Sarah Zadrazil, Sr., F, ETSU
Defensive Player of the Year – Olivia Cole, Jr., D, Samford
Coach of the Year – Todd Yelton, Samford
Freshman of the Year – Caylin Prillaman, F, UNCG
First Team
F Sarah Zadrazil, ETSU
F Carlie Couch, Furman
F Chesney White, UNCG
F Malcanisha Kelley, Samford
MF Stephanie DeVita, Furman
MF Georgia Brown, UNCG
MF Taylor Borman, Samford
D Zoe Fishman, UNCG
D Olivia Cole, Samford
D Alissa Hansen, Samford
GK Anna Maddox, Samford
Second Team
F Simona Koren, ETSU
F Jermaine Seoposenwe, Samford
F Kelly Pannell, Western Carolina
MF Paola Roversi, ETSU
MF Maddie Clark, Mercer
MF Katelyn Dimopoulos, Mercer
MF Anna Allen, Samford
D Emily Graves, Furman
D Ashley Eddleman, UNCG
D Regan Lehman, UNCG
GK Maggie Cropp, Mercer
All-Freshman Team
Irina Brutsch, ETSU
Emily McKerlie, ETSU
Amani Bright, Furman
Jorden Christensen, Mercer
Haley McDuffee, Mercer
Gabbi Charles, UNCG
Caylin Prillaman, UNCG
Ella Baggett, Samford
Kaitlyn Orman, Samford
Sayres McKenna, Western Carolina
Hayley Younginer, Wofford
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