Dec. 7, 2009

Memphis, Tenn. - For the first time in program history, the University of Memphis women’s soccer program had four athletes recognized as National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-Central Region honorees.

“First and foremost, I want to give credit to these athletes,” head coach Brooks Monaghan said. “All four of these student-athletes are well deserving of their awards. We like to say here at Memphis that nobody gets awards without the help of their teammates. I think these awards speak volumes of the direction this program continues to go. Hopefully there will be more of these in the future.”

Juniors Kelsey Bakker, Vendula Strnadova and Ashley Berra were named to the All-Central Region first team. Sophomore goalkeeper Elise Kuhar-Pitters was named to the All-Central Region third team. Strnadova picks up the honor for the third-straight season while Bakker is honored for the second-straight season. Berra and Kuhar-Pitters are first time recipients of the awards.

Junior midfielder Vendula Strnadova picks up her second-straight first team All-Central Region selection. The Las Cruces, N.M. native connected for five goals and posted four assists on the 2009 season. Strnadova played an integral part in the midfield for the Lady Tigers and is the first player in program history to receive first team All-Central Region honors two times.

Junior defender Kelsey Bakker, the 2009 C-USA Defensive Player of the Year, headlined the defensive line that allowed 0.87 goals per game, which was second in C-USA. The Kennewick, Wash. native helped Memphis to a school record 12 shutouts. Bakker started 21 matches for the Lady Tigers and scored one goal on the season.

“Kelsey is very deserving of this award,” Monaghan said. “Kelsey was a rock on that defensive line for us. None of these awards come as a surprise, but you are very thankful for the peers that voted for these players. As a coach, I see these girls day in and day out and it comes as no surprise. They are very well deserving of the award and hopefully they will continue to grow as players.”

Junior forward Ashley Berra, the 2009 C-USA Offensive Player of the Year, picks up her first NSCAA All-Central Region honor after having a breakout junior season. Berra connected for a career high 15 goals and eight assists on the season. The Cordova, Tenn. native scored seven points in postseason play including one goal and three assists in the C-USA Tournament and one goal in the NCAA Tournament.

Sophomore goalkeeper Elise Kuhar-Pitters is the first goalkeeper in program history to be named to any NSCAA All-Central Region team. The third team selection finished with a school record 11 shutouts in goal. The Spokane, Wash. native finished the season with 15 victories and moved into second place in the program record books for the most goalkeeping victories in a career with 23.

“Elise was injured last year and this year was her first healthy season,” Monaghan said. “We were very confident she had the ability to get this award and fortunate for her she was able to stay healthy and perform consistently.”

The Lady Tigers tied with UCF for the most selections by C-USA members to the All-Central Region team with four. UTEP and Colorado College each had three selections and UAB had one selection.