Christie Shaner and her Notre Dame teammates have allowed just nine goals, 31 shots on goal and 25 corner kicks in 14 games this season.

Christie Shaner Named To Soccer America National Team Of The Week

Sept. 21, 2005

Notre Dame junior defender Christie Shaner has been named to the Soccer America national team of the week, after playing a lead role in Notre Dame’s dominating wins over DePaul (6-0) and Michigan. Shaner is the fourth different Notre Dame women’s soccer player to be named to a national team of the week during the 2005 season, with no other team producing more than two different national honorees thus far in ’05.

Shaner (Ambler, Pa.) – whose corner-kick header helped produce the first goal vs. Michigan – was named to the BIG EAST Conference weekly honor roll, after again shifting from her left back spot to a central defender position (where she played for much of the ’03 season). The veteran leader of the Notre Dame defense took on an even greater role in the weekend action, as the Irish coped with playing minus three top defensive players (each out to injury or illness): senior goalkeeper Erika Bohn, junior central defender Kim Lorenzen and junior defensive midfielder Jill Krivacek.

Shaner’s stout defensive play helped the Irish dominate the Blue Demons and Wolverines, with a 9-0 scoring edge and a 48-5 shot margin in the two games (24-3 in shots on goal). Notre Dame also attempted 14 of the 15 corner kicks in the weekend action. The team’s season stats now include a 41-5 scoring edge (avg. 5.4-0.7), plus 173-28 in shots (21.1-3.9), 105-15 in shots on goal (12.9-2.0) and 50-8 in CKs (5.9-1.1).

An all-BIG EAST performer during the 2003 and ’04 seasons, Shaner has missed just one game in her Notre Dame career (58 of 59 GP), appearing in 56 straight. The 2003 BIG EAST co-rookie of the year joins another Notre Dame defender, fifth-year right back Candace Chapman, as leading contenders for the 2005 BIG EAST defensive player-of-the-year award – in addition to emerging as a top candidate for All-America and Academic All-America honors (she carries a 3.46 cumulative GPA, as a design major).

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Christie Shaner again is a leading member of Notre Dame’s strong play in the air.

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Three other Notre Dame players – freshman forward Kerri Hanks, senior forward Katie Thorlakson and junior midfielder Jen Buczkowski – have received national team-of-the-week honors in the 2005 season. There are more than 300 teams currently competing in Division I women’s soccer but the Irish are the only one to produce more than two different national honorees this season.

Soccer America named Hanks the national player of the week after the second-semester freshman opened her college career by totaling seven goals and an assist at the season-opening Vermont Classic (she also was named to the “Elite Feet Team of the Week,” as selected by the Soccer Buzz women’s soccer website.

One week later, Soccer Americanamed Thorlakson to its national team of the week while Buczkowski received the same honor from Soccer Buzz. Thorlakson totaled three goals and three assists in wins over nationally-ranked teams Florida and Maryland, earning offensive MVP honors ND’s Inn at Saint Mary’s Classic. Buczkowski was named defensive MVP of that tournament, after helping the outscore Florida and Maryland 10-1 (with a 46-8 edge in total shots, 27-4 in shots on goal and 12-5 in CKs). She set up the game-winning goal vs. Maryland, playing a pass to Thorlakson that led to a Hanks rebound goal.