April 22, 2015
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The University of Notre Dame women’s soccer team gathered to commemorate its 2014 season at the program’s year-end banquet last weekend with many accomplishments to celebrate.
A 22nd consecutive NCAA Championship appearance, a pair of all-region selections, two scholar All-Americans and six all-Atlantic Coast Conference selections highlighted the most recent Fighting Irish campaign, and three players took home additional hardware during the banquet ceremony held in Purcell Pavilion’s Club Naimoli.
Defender Sabrina Flores was selected as Notre Dame’s Freshman of the Year, junior tri-captain Katie Naughton received the first Elizabeth Tucker (’14) Award and senior tri-captain Sammy Scofield was recognized as the team’s 2014 most valuable player.
Flores, named to Top Drawer Soccer’s Best XI Freshman second team and the ACC all-freshman team during her rookie season, started all 22 matches for Notre Dame as an outside back. She closed the year with three assists, the third-highest total on the Fighting Irish roster, and played a vital role in all 12 Notre Dame shutouts on defense.
Flores recently returned from her second stint this spring with the United States Under-20 Women’s National Team, where she trained alongside 2015 Notre Dame signee and future teammate Natalie Jacobs at the U.S. Soccer National Training Center in Carson, California.
Naughton enjoyed a stellar junior season at center back for Notre Dame, leading all Fighting Irish defenders with four goals scored over her 22 starts on her way to earning all-ACC second team accolades. Naughton’s durability was on full display throughout the year, as she was the only player on the Notre Dame roster to clock more than 2,000 cumulative minutes of playing time in 2014. Along with classmate and fellow tri-captain Cari Roccaro, Naughton was named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) all-Southeast Region second team and the NSCAA Scholar All-America third team.
Naughton and Roccaro will both take part in the U.S. U-23 Women’s National Team camp from April 26-May 3 in Lakewood Ranch, Florida. The camp will help select a 20-player roster that is set to compete in three friendly matches against Sweden, Norway and England in Norway during the month of May.
Scofield secured most valuable player recognition after serving as a cornerstone of Notre Dame’s defensive corps during her four-year career. She played all 88 matches she was eligible for during her Fighting Irish career, guiding Notre Dame to two NCAA Championship third round berths (2013-14) and a 2012 NCAA Championship quarterfinal appearance during her tenure.
Tucker, selected as the 2014 NCAA Woman of the Year in recognition of her numerous athletic, academic and philanthropic accomplishments during her time at Notre Dame, was on-hand as an award presenter along with three-time NSCAA All-America selection Kate (Sobrero) Markgraf (’98). Markgraf, who enjoyed a decorated tenure with the U.S. National Team after her standout collegiate career, currently serves as an advisor to the Notre Dame Monogram Club.
For more information on the Fighting Irish women’s soccer program, follow Notre Dame on Twitter (@NDsoccernews or @NDSoccer), like the Fighting Irish on Facebook (facebook.com/NDWomenSoccer) or sign up for the Irish ALERT text-messaging system through the “Fan Center” pulldown menu on the main page at UND.com.