Sept. 15, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - By helping take down a pair of programs from the state of Illinois, the No. 18 UCF women's soccer team claimed both Conference USA weekly awards, the league office announced Monday. Senior Hanna Wilde (Westlake, Ohio) earned the Offensive Player of the Week accolade, while freshman Aline Reis (Campinas, Brazil) was tabbed as the Defensive Player of the Week.
The Knights have now been honored by C-USA with at least one award every week this year in which it competed (UCF did not play during the first week the awards were handed out). Earlier, junior Yvonne George (Winter Springs, Fla.) claimed the offensive nod on Sept. 2, while this week marks the second-straight defensive honor for Reis as she also was named the award-winner Sept. 8.
Both players have been key performers for the Black and Gold, which own a 5-1-1 record and its highest national ranking since 1992 when it was No. 16 in the country. The Knights started the year at No. 29 by Soccer Buzz, but moved up to No. 18 by Soccer America when it released its new rankings Monday. Three other polls have yet to be released, meaning UCF could move even higher.
UCF is currently 5-0-1 in its last six matches, including two victories last weekend over Illinois State, 2-1, and No. 17 Illinois, 2-0. The Knights are also 2-1-0 vs. top-20 teams, defeating No. 19 Florida with the lone loss to No. 4 Florida State.
Wilde set up numerous scoring chances in the match against Illinois State. Eventually one of those chances paid off in the 28th minute when her crossing pass went straight to freshman Katie Jackson, who then found junior Courtney Whidden for the 1-0 lead. After a ISU second-half goal tied it, Wilde got into the box herself in the 73rd minute and put a pass from junior Nikki Moore past Katie Grill-Donovan for the game-winner. Two days later, Wilde led UCF with three shots against Illinois. The accolade from C-USA is Wilde's first career weekly award.
Earning her second-straight defensive honor, Reis totaled eight saves on the weekend to give her 38 stops in 2008. She turned aside four vs. the Redbirds in the 2-1 win, and four more against the Fighting Illini to earn her fourth shutout of the season. Reis, who is serving as UCF's first starting freshman goalkeeper since 1999, now has an .826 save percentage with a 1.11 goals-against average.
Set to conclude its three-match homestand, UCF welcomes Kansas, which was ranked at No. 18 last week, to the UCF Soccer Complex Friday at 7 p.m. Admission is free to the public.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to www.UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit www.UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
UCF's C-USA Weekly Award Winners
Sept. 2 - Yvonne George - Offensive
Sept. 8 - Aline Reis - Defensive
Sept. 15 - Aline Reis - Defensive
Sept. 15 - Hanna Wilde - Offensive