Women's Soccer | 12/1/2021 7:53:56 AM
Four student-athletes from the Empire 8 were named to the 2021 United Soccer Coaches Division III Region III team. Nazareth senior midfielder Mallory Ott and St. John Fisher senior forward Carli Kovarik were named to the second team, while Alfred senior midfielder Abigail Austin and Nazareth graduate student Caliegh Cahoon garnered third team accolades.
Kovarik was named the 2021 Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Year, while Ott was the Defensive Player of the Year. All four honorees earned Empire 8 first team accolades in 2021.
All four student-athletes are eligible for All-America honors, which will be announced in early December.
Ott, of East Syracuse, N.Y., started all 20 games for the Golden Flyers in 2021 as a central defender. She was named the Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year as the Golden Flyers limited the opposition to a 1.02 goals-against average with 10 shutouts. Nazareth finished 10-7-3 overall.
Kovarik, who was also the 2018 E8 Rookie of the Year, led all Empire 8 players in scoring in 2021, tallying 15 goals and 33 points. A native of Liverpool, NY, Kovarik tallied .882 goals per game and caps her career with her fourth all-conference recognition, after she was named an All-Empire 8 first team selection in 2018 and 2021 and garnered second team accolades in 2019 and last spring.
Austin, a native of Hornell, NY, is the first Saxon to earn All-Regional status since Nicole Lebo who earned it her junior season of 1996. She helped lead the Saxons to a record of 11-5-5 (5-1-2 Empire 8) and the program's best conference finish in school history, clinching the No. 2 seed in the Empire 8 playoffs after upsetting No. 1 seeded Nazareth College in the regular season finale. She totaled seven goals and one assist, finishing tied for second on the team in points with 15. Her goals were a team-high. Austin was named to the All-Empire 8 First Team for the first time in her career after earning All-Empire 8 Second Team twice in her prolific career as a Saxon.
Cahoon, of Sloatsburg, N.Y., returned for a fifth season after being granted an extra season of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She started regularly at midfield and contributed two goals and four assists in 2021 and completed her career with 13 goals and 13 assists in 74 games. She previously was recognized as a first-team Empire 8 Conference all-star for the third time in her career.
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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