BURNSVILLE, Minn. – For the third time since 2008 Minnesota State University, Mankato was picked by the league’s coaches to win the NSIC in the preseason poll.
The Maverick’s Brittany Henry was tabbed as the NSIC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year while teammate Lauren Somers was selected as the NSIC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
Minnesota State is coming off a second place league finish, their second ever NSIC Tournament Championship and a run at the NCAA Regional Tournament last season.
The Mavericks received 11 first place votes and tallied 221 points, ranking them nine points ahead of Winona State (212), who received the other five first place votes. Minnesota Duluth was ranked third by the coaches as they picked up 191 points. St. Cloud State came in fourth in the poll with 166 points followed closely by Augustana in fifth with 165 points.
The 2012 NSIC Soccer Regular Season Champion will be determined by a 15-game league schedule, with a win earning a team three points and a tie one point.
2012 NSIC Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll
|
1 |
Minnesota State (11) |
221 |
|
2 |
Winona State (5) |
212 |
|
3 |
Minnesota Duluth |
191 |
|
4 |
St. Cloud State |
166 |
|
5 |
Augustana |
165 |
|
6 |
Bemidji State |
151 |
|
7 |
U-Mary |
148 |
|
8 |
Upper Iowa |
129 |
|
9 |
Concordia-St. Paul |
118 |
|
10 |
Minot State |
99 |
|
11 |
Southwest Minnesota State |
74 |
|
12 |
MSU Moorhead |
71 |
|
13 |
Wayne State |
53 |
|
14 |
Sioux Falls |
52 |
|
15 |
Northern State |
51 |
|
16 |
Minnesota, Crookston |
19 |
first place votes in ( )
NSIC Offensive Preseason Players of the Year
#6 Brittany Henry
F, Sr.,
Stillwater, Minn.
Mahtomedi HS
Minnesota State
Henry, the 2011 NSIC Offensive Player of the Year, was named First Team All-NSIC last season as she led the league in points with 34. She scored 14 goals and added six assists after playing in 23 games and tallying seven game-winning goals. Henry was also named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week twice last season as she led the NSIC in shots (87) and in goals (14). Henry was also a member of the NSIC All-Tournament Team, named a member of the Daktronics First Team All-Central Region and the NSCAA First Team All-Central Region.
NSIC Defensive Preseason Players of the Year
#20 Lauren Somers
D, Sr.,
Bloomington, Minn.
Jefferson HS
Minnesota State
Somers, a NSCAA All-Central Region Second Team member, started in every game on the backline last season for the Mavericks. She was named All NSICSecond-Team with two goals and three assists on the backline that gave up just 0.46 goals per game. Somers was also a member of the NSIC All-Tournament Team after scoring the game winning goal in the quarterfinals against Bemidji State.
2012 NSIC Players to Watch
Augustana College
#10 Jessie Huff (F, 5-6, Sr., Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview HS)
#32 Ellie Westemeyer (D, 5-9, So., Overland Park, Kan. / Blue Valley NW HS)
Bemidji State
#18 Mary O’Brien (F., 5-9, So., Maplewood, Minn. / North HS)
#26 Sam Lumberg (D, 5-4, Jr., Woodbury, Minn. / Woodbury HS)
Concordia-St. Paul
#12 Amanda Olsen (F, 5-3, Sr., Cottage Grove Minn. / Park HS)
#22 Kim Sauberlich (D, 5-6, Sr., Appleton, Wis. / North HS)
University of Mary
#3 Michelle Jones (M, 5-9, Sr., Hamilton, Mont. / Hamilton HS)
#1 Ashley Akers (GK, 5-10, Sr., Casper, Wyo. / Natrona County HS)
Minnesota, Crookston
#10 Nikki Hammond (F, 5-4, Jr., Nelson, Minn. / Alexandria HS)
#15 Jenson Crots (D., 5-6, Sr., Chesterton, Ind. / Chesterton HS)
Minnesota Duluth
#19 Maureen Stormont (F, 5-9, So., Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater HS)
#3 Kelsey Gratz (M/D, 5-5, Sr., Eagan, Minn. / Eagan HS)
Minnesota State UNiversity, Mankato
#23 Nicole Dooher (F, 5-7, Sr., New Hope, Minn. / Armstrong HS)
#33 Molly McGough (GK, So., Centennial, Colo. / Araphoe HS)
MSU Moorhead
#10 Amanda Wurdeman (F, 5-7, Jr., St. Michael, Minn. / St. Michael-Albertville HS)
#15 Ashley Swanson (M, 5-7, Sr., Lino Lakes, Minn. / White Bear Lake)
Minot State
#10 Zoe Fisher (CM, 5-6, So., Cambridgeshire, England / St. Ivo HS )
#1 Marie Torres (GK, 5-11, Sr., San Bruno, Calif. / Burlingame HS)
Southwest Minnesota State
#9 Autumn Hayes (M, 5-10, So., La Crescent, Minn. / La Crescent HS)
#0 Sonya Smith (GK, 5-5, So., Anoka, Minn. / Anoka HS)
Sioux Falls
#12 Desiree Parmenter (F, 5-6, So.,Temecula, Calif. / Temecula Valley HS)
#17 Micole Jones (D., 5-4, Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D. / Roosevelt HS)
St. Cloud State
#6 Mary Morhardt (M, 5-5, Sr., Gilbert, Ariz / Highland HS)
#00 Kenzie Hanzlik (GK, 5-8, Jr.., Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater HS)
Upper Iowa
#2 Elizabeth Kaluzinski (F, 5-7, Sr., Belvidere, Ill. / Belvidere HS)
#7 Kelsey Taldone (D, 5-3, Jr., Crystal Lake, Ill. / South HS)
Wayne State
#3 Mallory Hoyt (M, 5-5, So., Glenwood, Iowa / Glenwood HS)
#18 Macy Hagen (CB, 5-7, Jr., Bellevue Neb. / Bellevue East HS)
Winona State
#13 Jennifer DeRoo (F, 5-4, Jr., Anoka, Minn. / Anoka HS)
#4 Rebecca McCoy (D, 5-9, Jr., Eagan, Minn. / Eagan HS)
#NSIC#