Notre Dame fifth-year defender Monica Gonzalez (Richardson, Texas) has earned second team All-America honors from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. Gonzalez and Irish freshman defender Candace Chapman (Ajax, Ontario) also were named to the NSCAA first team All-Great Lakes Region squad while junior defender Vanessa Pruzinsky (Trumbull, Conn.) repeated as a second team All-Great Lakes selection and sophomore forward Amy Warner (Albuquerque, N.M.) again was a third team all-region pick.
Gonzalez was one of six BIG EAST Conference players among the 34 named the NSCAA three All-America teams, tying the Atlantic Coast Conference for the most All-Americans from one conference. Five different BIG EAST teams produced NSCAA All-Americans, two better than any other conference (the ACC, Pac-10 and Big-12 each had three schools with All-Americans).
Gonzalez is the 12th Notre Dame women’s soccer player to earn All-America honors and the third Irish defender to be so honored, joining Kate Sobrero (’95-’97) and Jen Grubb (’96-’99) in that distinction.
Chapman-who also has been tabbed one of 12 finalists for national freshman of the year, according to the Soccer Buzz women’s soccer website-becomes the 10th Notre Dame women’s soccer player to be named first team all-region as a freshman, with that group including Sobrero and Grubb, plus midfielders Ragen Coyne (’92), Cindy Daws (’93), Holly Manthei (’94), Jenny Streiffer (’96) and Anne Makinen (’97) and forwards Rosella Guerrero (’92) and Meotis Erikson (’97)
Gonzalez and Chapman combined with Pruzinsky as just the second trio of Notre Dame defenders to be named all-region in the same season (they also earlier became the first three defenders from the same team to be named first team all-BIG EAST), with Grubb and Sobrero (both first team) joined by third teamer Kelly Lindsey in 1998.
Pruzinsky and Gonzalez also this week were nominated for Academic All-America honors, as were Notre Dame senior midfielder Mia Sarkesian and sophomore forward Amanda Guertin.
Gonzalez began her Notre Dame career as a forward before shifting to the defense beginning with the 2000 season. She returned in 2001 for a fifth year of eligibility, after missing all of the 1998 campaign due to a knee injury. The veteran was possibly the most consistent performer for Notre Dame during the 2001 season, despite making another position switch from outside defender to one of the central marking back spots. She continued to show her versatility by playing midfielder and forward at times during the 2001 season, when she started all 21 games while scoring once and adding two assists. She totaled 17 goals and 17 assists in 95 career games played, with 49 starts.
Gonzalez, Pruzinsky and Chapman combined with senior Lindsey Jones (South Bend, Ind.) and senior goalkeeper Liz Wagner to allow just 18 goals in 21 games during the 2001 season, including nine shutouts and eight others games with one goal allowed. Pruzinsky was joined this season by Gonzalez at the central back position while Chapman made an impressive transition to the right back spot in the defense (she played forward prior to her ND career).
Chapman also was a potent offensive threat while seeing some time at forward, ranking sixth on the team in scoring with eight points (three goals, two assists). She scored as both a defender and forward in the 4-0 win at Pittsburgh before converting the late gamewinner as a forward in the 2-1 win at Seton Hall.
Pruzinsky-a 2001 Missouri Athletic Club national player-of-the-year finalist-has started 71 of 72 games during her ND career and registered her first goal at Notre Dame in the 2-1 loss at Rutgers before scoring again in the NCAA loss to Cincinnati.
Warner was Notre Dame’s third-leading scorer in 2001 with 17 points (8G-1A), with her season highlights including the second goal in the 2-0 win over then-No. 25 Hartford, both goals in the 2-1 overtime win over Villanova, two goals in the 4-0 win at Miami and the first goal in the 3-0 BIG EAST semifinal win over Boston College.
Joining Gonzalez as second team All-America defenders were Portland’s Lauren Orlandos and North Carolina’s Catherine Reddick while the first-team defenders included UNC’s Danielle Borgman, Santa Clara’s Danielle Slaton and Casey Zimny of Connecticut.
In addition to Gonzalez and Zimny, the other BIG EAST players who received All-America honors included West Virginia senior forward Katie Barnes (1st team), UConn senior forward Aleza Borisjuk (2nd team), Rutgers freshman midfielder Carli Lloyd (3rd team) and Boston College sophomore midfielder Sarah Rahko (3rd team).
Full NSCAA All-America and All-Great Lakes Region teams are listed below.
2002 NSCAA Division I Women’s Soccer All-America Teams
First Team
Pos. | Name | Class | School | Hometown |
G | Emily Oleksiuk** | Sr. | Penn State | Willow Grove, PA |
D | Danielle Borgman** | Sr. | North Carolina | Cincinnati, OH |
D | Danielle Slaton*** | Sr. | Santa Clara | San Jose, CA |
D | Casey Zimny | Sr. | Connecticut | Rochester, NY |
M | Joanna Lohman | So. | Penn State | Silver Springs, MD |
M | Mary-Frances Monroe*** | Sr. | UCLA | Tariffville, CT |
M | Aly Wagner* | Jr. | Santa Clara | San Jose, CA |
F | Katie Barnes | Sr. | West Virginia | Mason, OH |
F | Christine Sinclair | Fr. | Portland | Burnaby, British Columbia |
F | Abby Wambach* | Sr. | Florida | Pittsford, NY |
F | Christie Welsh** | Jr. | Penn State | Massapequa, NY |
Second Team
Pos. | Name | Class | School | Hometown |
G | Hope Solo* | Jr. | Washington | Richland, WA |
D | Monica Gonzalez | Sr. | Notre Dame | Richardson, TX |
D | Lauren Orlandos | Jr. | Portland | Lake Forest, CA |
D | Catherine Reddick | So. | North Carolina | Birmingham, AL |
M | Alexa Borisjuk | Sr. | Connecticut | East Haven, CT |
M | Lori Lindsey* | Sr. | Virginia | Indianapolis, IN |
M | Marcie Ward | So. | Stanford | Alamo, CA |
F | Katy Cross | Fr. | Pennsylvania | Claremont, CA |
F | Stephanie Rigamat | Fr. | UCLA | LaCrescenta, CA |
F | Ann Thomas | Sr. | Cincinnati | Cincinnati, OH |
F | Kelly Wilson | Fr. | Texas | Odessa, TX |
Third Team
Pos. | Name | Class | School | Hometown |
G | Katie Carson | Sr. | Clemson | Asheville, NC |
D | Keisha Bell | Sr. | Florida | Spring, TX |
D | Danielle Murphy | Jr. | Florida | Seven Oaks, England |
D | Amy Sauer | Sr. | Stanford | Spring, TX |
M | Jena Kluegel* | Sr. | North Carolina | Mahtomedi, MN |
M | Carli Lloyd | Fr. | Rutgers | Delran, NJ |
M | Sarah Rahko | So. | Boston College | Londonderry, NH |
M | Katy Westfall | So. | Harvard | Johnsburg, IL |
F | Christine Latham* | Jr. | Nebraska | Calgary, Alberta |
F | Lindsay Gusick | Fr. | Virginia | Livonia, MI |
F | Nicky Thrasher | Sr. | Texas A&M | El Paso, TX |
F | Veronica Zepeda | So. | Santa Clara | Riverside, CA |
2002 NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region Teams
First Team
Pos. | Name | Class | School | Hometown |
G | Christy Hoffman | Sr. | Cincinnati | Cincinnati, OH |
D | Candace Chapman | Fr. | Notre Dame | Ajax, Ontario |
D | Monica Gonzalez | Sr. | Notre Dame | Richardson, TX |
D | Erin Showalter | So. | Dayton | Brunswick, OH |
M | Erin Blaedow | Sr. | Wisconsin-Milwaukee | West Allis, WI |
M | Anita Rapp | Sr. | Oakland | Lillehammer, Norway |
M | Amy Sullivant | Jr. | Michigan | Utica, MI |
F | Abby Crumpton | Jr. | Michigan | Rochester Hills, MI |
F | Andrea Cunningham | Jr. | Miami | Cincinnati, OH |
F | Kate Gordon | Jr. | Marquette | Sioux City, IA |
F | Ann Thomas | Sr. | Cincinnati | Cincinnati, OH |
Second Team
Pos. | Name | Class | School | Hometown | |
G | Katie Karlander | Jr. | Miami | Carmel, IN | |
D | Heather Herweh | Jr. | Cincinnati | Cincinnati, OH | |
D | Jennifer Miller | Jr. | Ohio State | Centerville, OH | |
D | Vanessa Pruzinsky | Jr. | Notre Dame | Trumbull, CT | |
M | Crystal Johnson | Jr. | Illinois State | Milton, Ontario | |
M | Colleen Joyce | Sr. | Illinois | McHenry, IL | |
M | Megan McKnight | Sr. | Dayton | Hamilton, OH | |
M | Amanda McMahon | So. | Marshall | Stillwater, MN | |
F | Liza Grubb | Fr. | Ohio State | Portage, MI | |
F | Tara Hurless | Fr. | Illinois | Rockford, IL | |
F | Annie Wayland | Jr. | Illinois State | St. Peters, MO |
Third Team
Pos. | Name | Class | School | Hometown |
G | Suzie Grech | So. | Michigan | Narbeth, PA |
D | Elise Berry | Jr. | Purdue | Worthington, OH |
D | Ann Dulecky | Jr. | Marquette | Wauwatosa, WI |
D | Heather Pederson | Jr. | Eastern Michigan | West Bloomfield, MI |
M | Danielle Altiero | So. | Miami | Upper Arlington, OH |
M | Kristen Jensen | So. | Marquette | Shorewood, IL |
M | Tesia Kozlowski | Fr. | Dayton | Westerville, OH |
F | Danielle Berkemeier | Jr. | Miami | Fairfield, OH |
F | Annie Gage | Sr. | Kentucky | Westerville, OH |
F | Jessica Hupe | So. | Eastern Michigan | Waynesville, OH |
F | Sarah Lynch | Jr. | Iowa | St. Charles, IL |
F | Amy Warner | So. | Notre Dame | Albuquerque, NM |