Nov. 7, 2007

Women's Soccer All-Conference Team

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Teammates Mandi Bäck and Niki Reed of Dayton have been named the Atlantic 10 Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively, in voting conducted by the league's head coaches.

In that same vote, Lindsey Ozimek of Charlotte earned Midfielder of the Year honors, Rhode Island's Jessica Babice garnered Rookie of the Year honors and Jon Lipsitz of Charlotte was selected as Coach of the Year. In a vote of the A-10's sports information directors, Ozimek was named the Student-Athlete of the Year.

Bäck becomes the third player in Dayton history to earn A-10 Offensive Player of the Year honors after scoring a team-high 14 goals and amassing 30 points, both good for second in the Conference. The sophomore forward enters this week's Atlantic 10 Championship (Nov. 8-11) leading the league in both shots (91) and game-winning goals (five), with four of her game-winning tallies coming in A-10 play.

A two-time A-10 Player of the Week selection, Reed ranks second in the Conference in shutouts (eight), third in goals against average (0.81) and sixth in saves (80). The Fairfield, Ohio, native has compiled a mark of 11-4-3 and registered four shutouts in league action.

The first-ever recipient of the A-10 Midfielder of the Year award, Ozimek leads the Conference with 11 assists and her 19 points are tops on the 49ers. The Charlotte, N.C., resident has also scored four goals, including a game-winner, on 43 shots.

A two-time A-10 Rookie of the Week selection, Babice totaled 16 points on seven goals and two assists. She led all A-10 freshmen with four game-winning goals, while her 66 shots ranked second on the team. The Groveville, N.J., native is the fourth player in program annals to garner A-10 Rookie of the Year honors.

Bäck, Ozimek and Reed are joined on the All-Conference first-team by teammates Dora Larusdottir and Deb Nelson of Rhode Island; Richmond's Sarah Hilt and Jessie Wolfe; Colleen Gibson of Dayton; Liz Fox of Saint Louis; La Salle's Kristin Hextall; and Emily Sedgwick of Duquesne.

The second-team is comprised of forwards Julia Bradenberg of Saint Louis, Fordham's Kim Boulos and Audra Mathews of Duquesne; midfielders Traci DePasquale of La Salle, Rhode Island's Thorunn Jonsdottir and Katie McDermott of Fordham; and backs Whitney Bryant of Charlotte, Fordham's Courtney Fedge, Kim Lisun of La Salle and St. Bonaventure's Kristin Sotak. The second-team keeper is Lauren Brown of Charlotte.

Babice headlines the All-Rookie team which consists of second-team members Bryant and McDermott; teammates Sarah Clark and Anna Cunningham of St. Bonaventure; Dayton's Kelly Blumenschein; Sam Huecker of Charlotte; Duquesne's Sam Kaiser; Alyssa Mautz of Saint Louis; George Washington's Jillian Morgan; and Kara Williams of Temple.

Ozimek earns Student-Athlete of the Year laurels for maintaining a 4.0 grade point average as a special education major. A three-time Academic All-Conference selection, the Charlotte, N.C., resident is a two-time ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America honoree. A three-time first-team All-Atlantic 10 honoree, the senior midfielder looks to lead the top-seeded 49ers to their first-ever A-10 Championship.

Ozimek is joined on the Academic All-Conference team by Saint Louis teammates Mary Green and Lauren Olson; Kaelyn Caldwell of Massachusetts; Dayton's Amanda Gallow; Kate Hudson of Richmond; Fordham's Catherine Huvane; Kristin Sotak of St. Bonaventure; George Washington's Nicole Trickett; Michelle Verzi of La Salle; and Xavier's Melissa Zimmerman.

Lipsitz earns the Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year award after leading Charlotte to its second consecutive regular season crown and the top seed in this week's A-10 Championship. The 49ers boast an overall mark of 14-4-1, including a 9-1-1 ledger in league action, and have outscored their opponents by a 37-11 margin on the year. The 1988 graduate of North Carolina is in his third season at Charlotte, where he has compiled a record of 38-18-3.