Women's Soccer Players Moeko Morse, Reni Taiwo Named All-SSC
MELBOURNE, Fla. - Twenty-two women's soccer student-athletes have earned All-SSC honors for the 2019 season as the University of Tampa's Moeko Morse and Reni Taiwo each earned recognition.
League champions, Barry University and Rollins College, both place five athletes on all-conference teams. Voting for the awards was conducted among the conference's women's soccer coaches.
Morse, a sophomore forward from Chesapeake, Va., earns the award after being named the 2018 SSC Freshman of the Year. She concluded the season as the team leader with five assists and 11 points. She also netted three goals for the Spartans.
Taiwo, a junior defender from Raleigh, N.C., was also named all-SSC as a sophomore. She started all 15 games for Tampa in 2019, leading a defensive unit that concluded conference play with a 5-4-1 record. She also helped her team to four shutouts this season.
Kathryn O'Brien of Rollins is named Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year following 24 points from 10 goals and four assists in 14 games. The senior from West Springfield, Massachusetts, ranked Top-3 in SSC points per game (1.71), goals per game (.714), goals, and game-winning goals (4) during the regular season. O'Brien is the 12th women's athlete to win Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year in the same season, first since 20161. She is the second Tar to be named Player of the Year and third to be named Offensive Player of the Year2.
SSC Women's Soccer History: ALL-SSC Teams | Players & Coaches of the Year | Conference Champions | National Champions
Sophie Brundin earns Defensive Player of the Year accolades, marking the first time an Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University student-athlete has won the award. The product of Sundsvall, Sweden, led an Eagles defense that posted six shutouts and held opponents to less than a goal per game. Brundin started all 14 regular-season contests for ERAU and provided her team with three goals and assist.
Fellow Eagle, Marie Myhrvold Seim becomes the first in school history to win Freshman of the Year honors in women's soccer. The forward from Bergen, Norway finished Top-10 in every SSC offensive category, including points (17) and goals (6) in which she tied for seventh.
Sarah Dacey repeats as Coach of the Year after leading Barry to a share of the SSC regular-season title with Rollins College. Under Dacey, the Buccaneers collect back-to-back SSC championships and earn the top seed in the 2019 conference postseason tournament. The honor is a second for Dacey, ninth for Barry3.
Emma Heikkila of Nova Southeastern University highlights the repeat all-conference selections for 2019. The senior forward from Tornio, Finland becomes the first Shark to be named First Team All-SSC three consecutive seasons. O'Brien repeats as a First Team member from last season, while Hannah Christophe of NSU is selected to the First Team for the first time since 2016. O'Brien and Christophe, along with Morse from the University of Tampa, were named SSC Freshman of the Year in 2015, 2016, and 2018, respectively. Eckerd College's Casey Winn moves up to the First Team in 2019 after back-to-back Second Team accolades in 2017 & 2018.
Player of the Year: Kathryn O'Brien, Rollins
Offensive Player of the Year: Kathryn O'Brien, Rollins
Defensive Player of the Year: Sophie Brundin, Embry-Riddle
Freshman of the Year: Marie Myhrvold Seim, Embry-Riddle
Coach of the Year: Sarah Dacey, Barry
| 2019 Women's Soccer ALL-SSC First Team | ||||
| Pos. | Name | School | Yr. | Hometown |
| F | Kathryn O'Brien^#@ | Rollins | Sr. | West Springfield, Mass. |
| F | Anniina Sankoh | Lynn | So. | Helsinki, Finland |
| F | Marie Myhrvold Seim | Embry-Riddle | Fr. | Bergen, Norway |
| F (AL) | Hannah Christophe‡$ | Nova Southeastern | Sr. | Brampton, Ontario |
| M | Emma Heikkila^~ | Nova Southeastern | Sr. | Tornio, Finland |
| M | Moeko Morse† | Tampa | So. | Chesapeake, Va. |
| M | Minda Forsblom | Barry | Fr. | Hollviken, Sweden |
| D | Paige Napolitano | Nova Southeastern | Sr. | Odessa, Fla. |
| D | Sophie Brundin | Embry-Riddle | Sr. | Sundsvall, Sweden |
| D | Emma Lillback | Barry | Fr. | Stockholm, Sweden |
| G | Casey Winn*# | Eckerd | Sr. | Fort Myers, Fla. |
| - | ||||
| 2019 Women's Soccer Second Team | ||||
| Pos. | Name | School | Yr. | Hometown |
| F | Karina Williams | Palm Beach Atlantic | Jr. | Dallas, Texas |
| F | Sarah Wignall* | Barry | Sr. | Port St. Mary, Isle of Man |
| F | Meg Mosley | Rollins | So. | Ormond Beach, Fla. |
| M | Julia Olsson | Embry-Riddle | Jr. | Stockholm, Sweden |
| M | Natasha Hudson | Barry | Fr. | Nottingham, England |
| M | Bailey Tran | Rollins | Fr. | Glen Allen, Va. |
| D | Reni Taiwo* | Tampa | Jr. | Raleigh, N.C. |
| D | Gianna Merigliano | Rollins | Jr. | Jupiter, Fla. |
| D | Gabriela Moreira*# | Nova Southeastern | Sr. | Miramar, Fla. |
| G | Maddie Hart-Pomerantz | Barry | Jr. | Arcata, Calif. |
| G (AL) | Elena Beasley | Rollins | Fr. | Stafford, Va. |
^ = 2018 First Team All-SSC
* = 2018 Second Team All-SSC
† = 2018 Freshman of the Year
~ = 2017 First Team All-SSC
# = 2017 Second Team All-SSC
$ = 2016 First Team All-SSC
‡ = 2016 Freshman of the Year
@ = 2015 Freshman of the Year
(AL) = At-Large Selection
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1 Arielle Kabangu, Saint Leo (2013 & 2016)
2 Lindsay Giblin was named POY & OPOY in 2007, and POY in 2006. Brenna Mckee was named OPOY in 2012 and 2014.
3Sarah Dacey (2018-19), Denise Brolly (2013-15), Kyleene Carter-Weiss (2002, 2004), Mike Neveu (1999-00)