WASHINGTON – The Georgetown University women's soccer team was selected as the preseason favorite to win the BIG EAST Conference, as announced by the office on Thursday. Two players were selected as the recipients for preseason player of the year awards and joined by two more who were named to the preseason All-BIG EAST Team.
The Hoyas earned nine first-place votes. Following Georgetown's 81 points in the poll was Butler with 72 points and the one remaining first-place vote. Marquette (59 points), Providence (55) and DePaul (52) rounded out the top five.
Junior
Meaghan Nally (Herndon, Va./South Lakes) earned BIG EAST Preseason Defensive Player of the Year while senior
Arielle Schechtman (Del Mar, Calif./La Jolla Country Day/UCLA) was selected as BIG EAST Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year. They were joined by seniors Amanda Caralon (Bayville, N.J./Central Regional) and
Caitlin Farrell (Wallingford, Conn./Choate Rosemary Hall) who earned spots on the preseason All-BIG EAST Team.
The BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, major awards and all-conference selections are based on ballots cast by the league's 10 head coaches, who cannot vote for their own teams or student-athletes.
The Hoyas completed the 2017 season with 14 wins and both the BIG EAST Regular Season and Championship titles for the first time in program history. The Hoyas were just the fourth team in league history to win back-to-back titles. The Blue & Gray enters the 2018 season ranked No. 22 in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll.
Nally was named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team last season and started in 20 games during the 2017 season. She finished with three goals and an assist and helped aid the Hoya defense, allowing just seven goals in 21 games and led the nation in shutout percentage.
Schechtman was named BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year and landed a spot on the first team last season. She had a 0.31 goals-against average as well as 37 saves with 17 shutouts as a senior. She was the season leader in the NCAA in shutouts with 17 in 2017 as well as sitting tied as the all-time leader at Georgetown in career shutouts with 32. Schechtman was also named to the BIG EAST All-Tournament Team in 2017.
Carolan was named to the second team in the Midwest region. She tallied nine goals with two assists for 20 points on the season to rank second on the squad. The forward was a First Team All-BIG EAST honoree.
Farrell earned a spot on the First Team All-BIG EAST last season with eight goals and three assists for 19 points to rank third on the squad. This included four game winners. The forward was also named to the BIG EAST All-Tournament Team.
The Blue & Gray will kick off the 2018 season on August 17 at 5 p.m. to take on Georgia in Blacksburg, Virginia as part of the Virginia Tech Tournament.
BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Georgetown (9) |
81 |
| Butler (1) |
72 |
| Marquette |
59 |
| Providence |
55 |
| DePaul |
52 |
| St. John's |
38 |
| Xavier |
34 |
| Villanova |
31 |
| Creighton |
18 |
| Seton Hall |
10 |
(first-place votes)
BIG EAST Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Paige Monaghan, Butler, Sr., F*
BIG EAST Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Meaghan Nally, Georgetown, Jr., D
BIG EAST Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year
Arielle Schechtman, Georgetown, Grad., GK
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team^
Paige Monaghan, Butler, Sr., F*
Annika Schmidt, Butler, R-Jr., D
Franny Cerny, DePaul, Sr., F*
Amanda Carolan, Georgetown, Sr., F
Caitlin Farrell, Georgetown, Sr., F
Meaghan Nally, Georgetown, Jr., D
Arielle Schechtman, Georgetown, Grad., GK
Carrie Madden, Marquette, R-Sr., F*
Katie Day, Providence, Sr., D
Kayla Steeves, Providence, Sr., M
Christina Bellero, St. John's, Jr., F
Samantha Dewey, Xavier, R-Jr., F
^extra player added due to a tie in voting
*unanimous selection
