NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - La Salle's Maci Bower and Saint Louis' Hannah Friedrich have been named the Atlantic 10 Conference Women's Soccer Co-Players of the Week, the league announced Monday. Billiken teammate, Mary Niehaus was named Defensive Player of the Week, while La Salle's Danielle Rooney earned Rookie of the Week accolades. The awards are for games played Oct. 21-27 and are the final awards of the regular season.
Bower, a Millville, Pa., product scored three goals in two games last week (six points) for the Explorers. In the 3-2 comeback win against Dayton, she scored the game-tying and game-winning goals five minutes apart to clinch a home playoff match for La Salle. She also added a goal in a loss to Massachusetts. The senior forward leads the Explorers and is second in the A-10 with 10 goals (21 points) and has scored in each of the last four games. Bower moves into a sixth-place tie with Lisa McDermott '89 for goals all-time (27) at La Salle.
Friedrich scored the game-winning goal - her school-record and league-leading seventh game-winner of the season - in the 84th minute as the Billikens beat George Washington, 2-1, to claim the A-10 regular-season title Sunday. The sophomore from St. Louis, also recorded the first multi-goal game of her collegiate career with two goals and an assist in a 4-0 win over Richmond last week.
Niehaus made a career-high nine saves to help the Billikens defeat George Washington 2-1 and clinch the A-10 regular-season title on Sunday. The senior keeper from St. Charles, Mo., also had three saves in a shutout win over Richmond.
In Sunday's 3-2 comeback win over Dayton, Rooney had a career day, scoring four points on a goal and a pair of assists, contributing to all three of the Explorers' goals. The rookie from Merchantville, N.J., got La Salle on the board first, cutting the Flyers' lead in half in the 49th minute. She then assisted on both the game-tying and game-winning goals by teammate Maci Bower to clinch the final hosting spot in the A-10 Championship.
The eight-team championship begins on the campuses of the top four seeds, then heads to the Billikens' Hermann Stadium for the semifinals and finale, Nov. 8-10. For complete coverage of the 2019 Atlantic 10 Women’s Soccer Championship, log on to the Championship Central at here.