Women's Soccer places record seven players on All-NACC First Team
WAUKESHA, Wis. – The Concordia University Wisconsin Women's Soccer team posted an unbeaten mark in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference regular season with a dominant run. On Thursday, the Falcons were rewarded again for those efforts as they set a NACC record with seven players being named First Team All-NACC. All in all the Falcons had nine players earn some sort of honors with the league releasing the awards Thursday.
Head coach Ryan Middendorf was named the NACC Coach of the Year as CUW took home three of the four major awards in the league. Joining Middendorf was NACC Defensive Player of the Year, junior Faith Palmreuter and NACC Freshman of the Year, Josie Dombrowski.
Palmreuter (Frankenmuth, Mich.) and Dombrowski (Bartlett, Ill.) helped lead a Falcons defensive unit that was dominant in NACC play. The Falcons posted a league-high nine shutouts, while also owning a 0.76 goals against average. The two center backs were a big part of that defensive unit, and were also both named to the All-NACC First Team for their efforts.
Middendorf earned his first NACC Coach of the Year honors after leading the Falcons to a perfect NACC regular season. The year also saw him earn his 150th career win and 100th conference victory as the Falcons posted another successful campaign in his tenure.
Five other players joined Palmreuter and Dombrowski on the All-NACC First Team. Those players included seniors Carley Pfannerstill, Emily Ciesielczyk, and Jaclyn Theune, as well as sophomore Tabitha Ortiz, and freshman Kayla Schlosser.
Pfannerstill (Grafton, Wis.) was once again one of the top offensive players in the conference. She scored a career-best 18 goals and finished third in the conference with 45 points. It was also a season that saw Pfannerstill reach 50 career goals. She had multiple scores in seven matches, five of those coming during the NACC regular season. The First Team honors marked the third straight year Pfannerstill received the accolade, as she was also named to the Second Team her freshman year.
Ciesielczyk (Waukesha, Wis.) earned her second career First Team honors, as she too earned some sort of All-NACC accolade in each of her four seasons, being a Second Team selection in 2014 and 2012. The senior midfielder scored five goals and added four assists this seasons as arguably the top midfielder in the NACC.
Theune (Oostburg, Wis.) was another top midfielder in the conference, earning her first All-NACC selection. The senior, who captained the 2015 squad along with Pfannerstill and Ciesielczyk, recorded eight points for the third time in her career. He had three goals, two of those coming in a regular season win against Aurora.
Ortiz (Plainfield, Ill.) led the NACC in goals allowed (five), goals against average (0.51) and save percentage (.861) in an impressive sophomore season. The goalkeeper had three shutouts and never allowed more than one goal in any of her starts this season. She finished the year with a 7-0-2 record in nine starts.
Schlosser (Germantown, Wis.) had an impressive first season with the Falcons as she ranked second on the team in both points (33) and goals (11). The freshman added 11 assists and recorded at least one point in 12 of the team's final 14 matches, including multiple points in nine of those.
Two other freshmen joined Dombrowski on the All-Freshmen Team, those being Nicole Ciesielczyk (Waukesha, Wis.) and Ashley Johnson (Chesterfield, Mich.). Ciesielczyk scored four goals this season, two of those being game-winners in league matches against Wisconsin Lutheran and MSOE. Johnson had a goal and an assist and provided the Falcons with yet another quality midfielder this season. Her lone goal was a game-winner in a 1-0 win over Trinity International. It should also be noted that Schlosser was not eligible for the All-Freshman team as those players are just players in their first year removed from high school.
