ERIE, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend women's soccer team took three of the four Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) top honors, while eight student-athletes were named All-Conference, announced on Tuesday.
Jordan Oberlander (Waterford, PA/Fort LeBoeuf) was named Offensive Player of the Year, Rachel Weyand (Butler, PA/Butler) earned Defensive Player of the Year and head coach Patrick O'Driscoll was selected Coach of the Year. O'Driscoll picked up his fifth Coach of the Year award after leading the Lions to the AMCC regular-season championship with a 9-0 record along with winning their seventh straight and 13th overall AMCC Title.
Oberland, Weyand and Olivia Belack (Upper St. Clair, PA/Upper St. Clair) were selected to the first team, while Amanda Donohue (Cranberry Township, PA/Seneca Valley) and Sami Lowry (Pittsburgh, PA/Pine-Richland) were chosed to the second team. Laura Schaefer (Erie, PA/General McLane), Gionna Fonseca (Murrysville, PA/Franklin Regional) and Ania Gorski (Harborcreek, PA/Harbor Creek) earned third-team honors.
Oberlander is the third straight Behrend Offensive Player of the Year and the program's eighth overall. She led the conference this season with 17 goals and three assists for 37 points for an average of 4.11 points per game. The team captain recorded five of the nine game-winning goals, while producing a third of the team's goals in the AMCC. Oberlander set the program records for most goals and points in a season (30 goals, 66 points) and is currently ranked third in NCAA Division III statistics in goals and points. She has 11 multiple-goal games, including three hat tricks. Oberlander's best performance was three goals and one assist in a 6-0 win over D'Youville during the regular season.
Weyand is earning her second straight and program's fourth overall Defensive Player of the Year honors after earning the preseason accolades to start the 2017 campaign. She has helped the Lions defense only give up three goals in nine conference games for a 0.33 goals-against average. Weyand also aided in six shutouts in AMCC action and eight overall. She started in all nine games in AMCC play and 16 out of 18 overall.
Belack, captain and Preseason Player of the Year, has been chosen to the first team for the third consecutive season. She caps her career with her fourth straight All-AMCC nod. Belack was a second-team choice as a freshman. This season, she tied for fourth in the AMCC in points (16) and goals (6). Belack broke the school record for career assists (39). She leads the team in assists with eight and is second with goals (10) for 28 points.
Donohue is earning her first-ever all-conference nod thanks to the best season of her four-year career. The senior tied for fourth in the AMCC in points with 16, scoring five goals and dishing out six assists in nine contests. Donohue has played in every game this season. She ranks third on the team with eight goals and six assists for 22 points. She earned AMCC and ECAC Player of the Week this year for netting two game-winning goals for Behrend.
Lowry is also being recognized on the All-AMCC team for the first time. The senior team captain started every game and was instrumental in the 0.33 goals-against average in nine conference contests. Lowry has five assists overall and three in the AMCC games. She also helped the defense post nine shutouts.
Shaefer, Fonseca and Gorski join Lowry and Weyand as the defensive core of the team. All three were named All-Conference for the first time of their careers as a third-team choice. Shaefer and Gorski started every game and Fonseca missed one contest out of the 20 games played. In conference, the Lions only gave up three goals due to this strong backline. This is Gorski's first year starting in goal and she played nearly every minute of every game. She has made 79 saves for a .790 save percentage, while also posting a 1.03 goals-against average for a 15-4-1 record. The defense posted six shutouts in conference and nine overall.
