DENVER - Nevada freshman goalkeeper Marie Cove and Fresno State forward Nicole Gutierrez have been named the Western Athletic Conference Soccer Defensive and Offensive Players of the Week, respectively, for the week of Oct. 1.
This is the first career honor for Cove and the 12th time in program history a Nevada player has won a WAC Player of the Week Honor.
Cove, a native of Garden Grove, Calif. (Pacifica HS), earned her second career shutout in Sunday’s 3-0 route of in-state rival UNLV. With this shutout, Cove becomes the first true-freshman in program history to record multiple shutouts in a season over Division I opponents. She ended the weekend with nine saves and a 0.50 GAA, allowing just one goal in 180:00 minutes of play, helping lead the Wolf Pack to a 2-0 record over the weekend. Cove also put forth a solid performance in goal in Friday’s 4-1 win over UC Davis, marking the first time in program history that Nevada has recorded wins over both UNLV and UC Davis.
Gutierrez, a junior forward from Sacramento, Calif. (West Campus), led Fresno State to a 1-1 record in matches this weekend. She scored four goals, moving her total to six on the season, and leads the Bulldogs with 14 points. Gutierrez netted all three Bulldog goals and registered a hat trick in the 3-2 win over UTEP and added another goal in the 3-2 loss to in-state rival Cal-State Fullerton in Sunday’s match. Gutierrez is currently second in the WAC in both goals (6) and shots (29).
Other offensive nominees included: Shannon Saxton of Boise State registered the only Bronco goal in the 3-1 loss to Utah, tying the school record for goals in a season (11) ... Kelli-Anne Chang of Hawai’i posted three goals in two UH wins over Weber State and Hawaii Pacific, marking her second multi-goal performance of her Rainbow Wahine career... Anna Edmonds of Idaho notched one goal and one assist in two road losses, marking her fourth goal of the season and her first career assist... Kiva Gresham of Louisiana Tech scored the game-winning goal in a 1-0 over McNeese State, leading the Lady Techsters in both points (9) and goals (4) on the season ... Cristen Drummond of Nevada tallied five points on two goals and one assist, leading the Wolf Pack to back-to-back wins and the first wins in program history over both UNLV and UC Davis.
Other defensive nominees included: Mari Punzal of Hawai’i anchored the Rainbow Wahine backline and helped UH post back-to-back shutouts over Weber State and Hawaii Pacific, and was also a key element in the defense that did not allow a single shot versus Hawaii Pacific, marking a new school record ...Kelsey Manning of Idaho led the Vandals defense over the weekend, helping hold Oregon State to just nine shots on goal in the 2-1 double overtime loss to the Beavers...Tara Gavlak of Louisiana Tech recorded her second consecutive shutout in the 1-0 win against McNeese State, and also registered the first assist by a goalkeeper in Tech history in the win ... Alyssa Lowry of Utah State anchored the Aggie defense in the 1-0 shutout of Montana, and also scored her first career goal and game-winning goal in the victory.
