This photo-op at the BIG EAST banquet featured head coach Randy Waldrum with four Irish players who took home major awards that night and who now are among the final 15 candidates for the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy (from left, Katie Thorlakson, Kerri Hanks, Jen Buczkowski and Candace Chapman).

Irish Become First Team Ever To Earn Four Major BIG EAST Women's Soccer Awards In Same Season (full wrapup)

Nov. 3, 2005

MILWAUKEE, Wis. – Notre Dame became the first women’s soccer team ever to earn four of the BIG EAST Conference major awards, with those players leading the way as the Irish also earned distinction as the first team ever to produce 10 all-BIG EAST performers in the same season.

Senior forward Katie Thorlakson earned BIG EAST offensive player of the year, the fourth ever to repeat that honor, while fifth-year right back Candace Chapman picked up her second career BIG EAST defensive player-of-the-year award (also in ’02) – becoming the third player ever to repeat the defensive honor.

Junior Jen Buczkowski added the BIG EAST’s top midfielder award and freshman forward Kerri Hanks became the Notre Dame program’s fifth player to earn the BIG EAST rookie-of-the-year award.

The above four Irish players collected first team all-BIG EAST honors while two others were second-team picks: freshman midfielder Brittany Bock and junior defender Christie Shaner (her third career all-BIG EAST honor). Senior goalkeeper Erika Bohn, sophomore forward Amanda Cinalli and junior forward/midfielder Lizzie Reed were third team all-BIG EAST selections, with freshman central defender Carrie Dew adding honorable mention designation.

BIG FOUR – The 2005 Notre Dame team became the first ever to produce four major BIG EAST award winners: senior F Katie Thorlakson (top offensive player), 5th-year right back Candace Chapman (top defensive player), junior Jen Buczkowski (top midfielder) and freshman F Kerri Hanks (rookie of the year) … five previous teams featured three major awards winners, including three ND teams led by BIG EAST coach of the year Randy Waldrum: in 1999 (defensive player Jen Grubb, rookie Vanessa Pruzinsky), in ’03 (defensive player Melissa Tancredi, rookie Christie Shaner) and in ’04 (Thorlakson and Tancredi) … no previous ND player had featured more than two players among the BIG EAST major award winners … UConn’s 1995 team featured the BIG EAST coach (Len Tsantiris), offensive (Kerry Connors) and defensive (Sara Whalen) player of the year … the 1997 season saw Seton Hall’s Betty Ann Kempf named coach of the year while Kelly Smith was named the league’s top rookie and offensive player of the year …

COUNT TO 10 – Notre Dame’s 2005 squad is the first ever to produce 10 all-BIG EAST selections, besting the nine from the ’96 Irish squad … Marquette was second with six selections on the 2005 all-BIG EAST teams while UConn and West Virginia had five each (the four semifinalists accounted for 26 of the 38 total selections) … ND teams have yielded the five highest all-BIG EAST totals in the history of the awards, as the 1995, ’97 and ’98 teams all featured eight honorees … in addition to the four major award winners (all 1st team), ND’s other 2005 all-BIG EAST performers include a pair of 2nd-teamers (freshman M Brittany Bock and junior D Christie Shaner), plus three from the 3rd team: senior G Erika Bohn, sophomore F Amanda Cinalli and junior F/M Lizzie Reed … freshman central defender Carrie Dew rounded out the ND’s picks as an honorable-mention selection … Notre Dame’s impressive 1996 roster included six all-BIG EAST 1st-teamers – senior M Cindy Daws, freshman D Jen Grubb, junior M Holly Manthei senior G Jen Renola, junior D Kate Sobrero, freshman M Jenny Streiffer – plus three more on the second team: sophomore M Shannon Boxx, sophomore F Monica Gerardo and senior F Amy VanLaecke.

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Nine of the 10 all-BIG EAST honorees in 05 w-soc (front, from left) Lizzie Reed, Brittany Bock, Jen Buczkowski, Katie Thorlakson and Candace Chapman; (back row, from left) Amanda Cinalli, Christie Shaner, Kerri Hanks and Carrie Dew (not pictured: Erika Bohn).

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FOUR-TIME HONOREES – Chapman is the fourth ND player to be named all-BIG EAST four times (she was 1st team as a defender in ’01 and ’02, then missed ’03 due to injury and was 3rd team all-BE as a forward in ’04) … Grubb (’96-’99) and Makinen (’97-[’00) each were 1st team all-BIG EAST in four straight seasons (the first players from any BIG EAST team ever to earn that distinction) … Warner was a 1st-teamer in ’00, ’02 and ’03 and a 2nd-team pick in ’01 … five ND players have been 1st team all-BIG EAST three-plus times: Manthei (’95-’97), Grubb, Makinen, Warner and Chapman.

FANTASTIC FROSH – Hanks, Bock and Dew comprise the first group of three ND freshmen ever to receive all-BIG EAST honors … the ’95-’97 ND teams each featured a pair of freshmen who were all-BIG EAST selections: Boxx (2nd team) and Gerardo (1st) in ’95; F Meotis Erikson and M Anne Makinen in ’96 (both 1st team); and Grubb and Streiffer in ’97 (both 1st team) … Hanks is the ninth ND freshman to be a 1st team all-BIG EAST pick, joining Gerardo, Erikson, Makinen, Grubb, Streiffer, F Amy Warner (’00), Chapman (’01) and Cinalli (’04) in that distinction … Hanks and Bock are the first pair of ND freshmen to be on the all-BIG EAST 1st/2nd teams since Grubb and Streiffer in ’97 … a total of 13 ND freshmen now have earned all-BIG EAST honors (those mentioned above, plus Shaner as a 2nd-team pick in ’03).

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Candace Chapman is the fourth Notre Dame player ever to be a four-time all-BIG EAST performer.

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FORWARD TRIO – Thorlakson, Cinalli and Hanks are the fifth trio of forwards from the same team to earn all-BIG EAST honors, including three others from ND: Streiffer, Gerardo (both 1st team) and VanLaecke (2nd team) in ’96 followed by Jenny Heft, Gerardo (both 1st team) and Streiffer (2nd team) in ’98, and then Thorlakson, Chapman and Hanks in ’04. Connecticut also produced three 1st-team forwards in 1995 (Jana Carabino, Kerry Connors and Christy Rowe).

ONE-TWO PUNCH – Thorlakson and Chapman pulled off the offensive/defensive double that had been achieved just three times previously in the 11-year history of the BIG EAST women’s soccer awards, by Connors and Whalen with the ’95 and ’96 UConn teams and then by Thorlakson and Tancredi in ’04.

BIG EAST AWARD HISTORY – A total of 23 ND players now have combined for 42 first team all-BIG EAST honors since ’95, with that group including seven defenders combining 14 first-team awards, four midfielders (11 awards), nine forwards (14 awards) and four ‘keepers … Irish players now have combined to win seven of the past nine BIG EAST defensive player-of-the-year awards … ND’s previous recipients include Sobrero (’97) and Grubb (’98, ’99), Chapman (’01) and Tancredi (’03,’04) … previous ND freshmen to be named the BIG EAST rookie of the year include: Gerardo (’95), Streiffer (’96), Pruzinsky (’99) and Shaner (’03).

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Kerri Hanks became Notre Dame’s fifth BIG EAST rookie of the year.

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DYNAMIC DUO – Notre Dame produced a pair of 1st-team forwards for the third consecutive season (Thorlakson and Cinalli in ’04; Warner and Mary Boland in ’03).

REPEAT AFTER ME – ND’s 10 honorees included five who earned previous all-BIG EAST honors: Chapman (1st-team D in ’01, ’02; 3rd-team F in ’04), Thorlakson (1st team in ’04), Buczkowski (1st team in ’04), Shaner (2nd team in ’03, 3rd team in ’04) and Cinalli (1st team in ’04).

NOTRE DAME POSTSEASON AWARD NOTES – 2005 BIG EAST HONORS (p. 2; Nov. 4, 2005)

• Katie Thorlakson – entered the week ranked 1st in the nation in assists (26), 4th in points (56) and 15th in goals (15) … she is the nation’s only player with at least 14G-14A and could become the first ever to post multiple 20G-20A seasons (23G-24A in ’04) … her 56 points ranks 9th in ND history … has totaled 25 points (6G-13A) during current 8-game point streak … has G/A on 47% of team’s goals in ’05 (41 of 87) … averaging a goal for ever 4.0 shots she takes in ’04 … also converting 1G for every 2.3 shots on goal (15 of 35) … has totaled 15 pts (4G-7A) in six ’05 games vs. top-25 teams … has scored (3) or assists (9) on 12 of ND’s 17 gamewinning goals in ’05 … shares ND record with 51 career GW points(16 GWGs, 19 GWAs) … ranks 8th in NCAA record book with 64 career assists … her 168 career points rank 7th in ND history (4th with 64A, 9th with 52G) … set ND record for points in a season opener (2G-4A vs. UNH) … other top games include 2G-1A vs. #11 Florida and South Florida, 2G-2A vs. DePaul, 1G-3A vs. Georgetown in the BIG EAST quarterfinals and 1G-2A vs. #25 Maryland and Gonzaga … 17th Div.-I player ever to reach 50G-50A in her career (52G-64A), with five reaching 60-60 … has appeared in all 89 games of her ND career … had 24A in ’04 and now 26 in ’05, joining Manthei as only players in D-I history to post 23-plus assists in multiple seasons … ranks 4th in ND history with 38 career postseason points (12G-14A) … leads the BIG EAST in ’05 assists while ranking 2nd in points and goals, 3rd in shots (60) and 5th in gamewinning goals (3)

• Candace Chapman, Christie Shaner and Carrie Dew – lead an ’05 defense that has allowed just 10 goals (0.53 GAA), 76 total shots (4.0/gm), 35 shots on goal (1.8/gm) and 32 corner kicks (1.7/gm) with deficits in just two games (totaling 77 minutes) … Dew (1,607; 85 per gm), Shaner (1,400; 74/gm) and Chapman (1,324; 70/gm) lead the ’05 team in minutes played … Chapman is the 21st ND player ever to reach 20G-20A in her career (20G-23A), including 2G-8A in ’05 … she ranks 4th on the BIG EAST assists list and carries active streaks of 46 consecutive games played and 35 starts … Chapman’s top scoring games in ’05 include 1G-1A vs.UConn (she also scored vs. Villanova) … Shaner has picked up assists in ’05 vs. Florida and Michigan and has logged a team-high 3,609 minutes during the past two seasons (avg. 74/gm) … Chapman and Dew are the only players to start every game in ’05 … Dew’s 3G include scores vs. Maryland, Cincinnati and UConn … Shaner has appeared in 67 consecutive games (playing in 69 of 70).

• Kerri Hanks – ranks 4th in the nation with 22 goals (6th in ND history, one shy of ND freshman record), also 3rd nationally in points (57) and assists (13) … set ND record for goals in consecutive games (3G-1A vs. UNH, 4G vs. UVm) … leads the BIG EAST in points, goals and shots (115), also 2nd in assists and gamewinning goals (5) … her other top games include 1A-1A vs. Cincinnati, 2G vs. Maryland, 2G-2A vs. DePaul … 1G-2A vs. Georgetown and then 2G-1A vs. GU in the BIG EAST quarterfinals … tied ND record for goals in a game … quickest ND player ever to 10G (4 GP) … scored for 1-0 overtime win at Rutgers.

• Jen Buczkowski and Brittany Bock – have led the Irish from the midfield as ND has rolled up an 87-10 scoring edge, plus a 24-4 average margin in shots per game (7-2 avg. corner-kick margin) … Bock ranks 4th on the team and 5th in the BIG EAST with 23 points (8G-7A), also 7th on the BIG EAST assists list … Bock’s top games include 2G vs. UNH and Seton Hall and 2A vs. Georgetown in the BIG EAST quarterfinals … also assisted on the Kerri Hanks overtime goal at Rutgers and scored on diving header in regular season vs. GU … Buczkowski has played all 70 games of her ND career and her 6G-6A in ’05 include 1G-1A vs. Gonzaga, DePaul and GU in the quarterfinal game (she also scored vs. Michigan and Marquette).

• Amanda Cinalli – ranks 4th on the BIG EAST scoring charts (26 pts, 6G-14A) but was relegated to 3rd team all-BIG EAST honors (after being 1st team in ’04) … her 14A rank 7th in the nation … has posted ’05 gamewinning goals in wins over #11 Florida (1A) and Georgetown … other top ’05 games include 1G-2A vs. UNH.

• Erika Bohn – missed month in middle of the season due to ankle injury … her 0.52 season GAA would be leading BIG EAST and ranked 14th in the nation but she has not logged the minimum minutes … the stellar ND defense has caused her to face just one shot on goal since returning from injury (in 311 minutes of action).

• Lizzie Reed – one of team’s top reserves who earned surprise spot on BIG EAST team, as senior M Annie Schefter and key defensive starters Jill Krivacek and Kim Lorenzen were overlooked by the BIG EAST coaches (both players missed a month due to injury or illness) … Reed has played in 17 games this season (3 GS), with her 2G-2A including goals vs. Seton Hall and Providence … ND is 12-0-0 with a 45-2 scoring edge in ’05 games started by Lorenzen.