Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Four Blue Raiders earn All-Conference, DePriest and Tillett Collect Highest Honors
10/30/2018 3:00:00 PM | Women's Soccer
IRVING, Texas – Ahead of the C-USA tournament, the Blue Raiders racked in several All-Conference USA accolades Tuesday as the conference office announced its superlative award winners and all-conference selections, which are voted on by the league's head coaches.
Freshman forward Hannah Tillett swept up three awards, being named as the C-USA Freshman of the Year as well as earning a spot on the All-Conference First Team and the All-Freshman Team. This is second year in a row that MT has earned Freshman of the Year, Peyton DePriest won the award last season.
Speaking of DePriest, the forward was named Offensive Player of the Year and to the All-Conference First Team. The sophomore lived up to the hype after she was voted Preseason Offensive Player of the Year prior to the start of the season. DePriest is just the second Blue Raider in program history to earn the Offensive Player of the Year award.
Additionally, senior defender Sydney Navarro earned her second-straight All-Conference Second Team honor while junior midfielder Amber Hoot was named to the All-Conference Third Team.
"When we get together as a team at the start of the season we don't talk about individual awards," said Head Coach Aston Rhoden. Certainly we talk to individual players about their goals for the season and all four of these girls had high expectations for the season. At the same time, these four fully understood that it is about the team first. I think that if you watch us play, you will see that. These four are players that are always fighting and always giving their best. I think that is a trademark of the whole team but these four carry it a step further every time they are on the field. It shows because they hardly ever get off the field. As a group, they have been instrumental in what we do. The great news about this group, outside of Sydney, is that they are very young. Hopefully, they will continue to grow and continue to help us be successful."
In her freshman campaign, Tillett has controlled the MT midfield and been a crucial part of the Raider attack. She started every game is tied for the team-lead in goals (11). Tillett leads the squad in shots (50), shots on goal (26), points (30) and game winning goals (three). She also currently leads the conference in points and goals. Tillett ranks in the top 20 in the country in points and points per game (1.76), which is also good for a top three mark amongst freshman in the nation.
"Hannah doesn't play like a freshman. She is a mature player with a great soccer IQ. She works hard and is a fierce competitor. I think for her to put up the numbers she did this year in as tough a league as C-USA is impressive. To be able to do it consistently was impressive in itself too. For the positon she plays, it demands a lot of running and she has been able to do that game in and game out. I am very pleased for her. She always wants the best for the team and always sets high expectations for herself. So I think for her to achieve these honors in her first year is a good building block for the rest of her career."
After starting off the year with injuries, DePriest proved why she was voted the Offensive Player of the Year. The sophomore garnered 11 goals in 11 games, including her first career hat trick at UTEP. She also had two assists, finishing the regular season with 24 points, 44 shots, 26 shots on goal and three game winning goals. She also finished first in the conference in points per game (2.18), goals per game (1.00). and shots per game (4.00).
"This award shows Peyton's quality. I think we could have seen so much more from her if she hadn't had a set back at the beginning of the year in terms of her injuries. She continues to work hard and continues to put a lot of time and effort in making her team and herself better. For her to be recognized in the preseason and to fulfill that expectation is great for her and great for our program."
"I think Peyton thrives under pressure. She is another fierce competitor. In situations where it calls for somebody to make a difference, Peyton is always that player."
Navarro caps off a stellar career for the Blue Raider being the team's leader on defense. Navarro helped the squad to six clean sheets and earned her first career Defensive Player of the Week award this season as MT shutout LIU Brooklyn in non-conference play.
Navarro also worked to help the offense, scoring two goals. One was a game winner to top Charlotte in early October. She also picked up an assist.
"Sydney has done very well, I think she is one of the top defenders in the league. You can look at her minutes played and her game winning goal this season and it's easy to see why she should be one of the standout players in the league."
Like Tillett, Hoot also helped control the Blue Raider midfield. The junior takes most MT free kicks and corner kicks while also winning balls in the midfield and disturbing to the forwards. Hoot had three assists on the year and took 31 shots.
"I'm happy for Amber because she has been really one of our most consistent performers all season and hardly ever gets off the field. To see her get recognized by the coaches for that is a great honor."
Hoot, Navarro, DePriest, Tillett and the rest of the Blue Raiders will face off in the opening round of the C-USA Conference Tournament tomorrow, Oct. 31 against No. 2 seed Florida Atlantic at 10:30 a.m.
2017 C-USA WOMEN'S SOCCER AWARDS
Offensive Player of the Year
Peyton DePriest, Middle Tennessee
Midfielder of the Year
Lianne Mananquil, Rice
Defensive Player of the Year
Dominique James, North Texas
Goalkeeper of the Year
Kelsey Daugherty, UAB
Freshman of the Year
Hannah Tillett, Middle Tennessee
Coach of the Year
Patrick Baker, Florida Atlantic
All-Conference USA First Team
F: Peyton DePriest, Middle Tennessee
F: Megan Greene, Charlotte
F: Ambere Barnett, WKU
MF: Lianne Mananquil, Rice
MF: Mary O'Hara, Florida Atlantic
MF: Hannah Tillett, Middle Tennessee
MF: Nomvula Kgoale, Louisiana Tech
D: Dominique James, North Texas
D: Ebba Blomqvist, Florida Atlantic
D: Ola Akinniyi, Southern Miss
GK: Kelsey Daugherty, UAB
All-Conference USA Second Team
F: Iris Achterhof, Old Dominion
F: Aaliyah Nolan, North Texas
F: Annie Walker, Rice
F: Marah Abu-Tayeh, Marshall
F: Kamilah Mustafa, UAB
MF: Miah Zuazua, Southern Miss
MF: Nicole Roseland, WKU
MF: Sarah Gorham, WKU
D: Sydney Navarro, Middle Tennessee
D: Riley Orr, Charlotte
D: Emily Roberts, Old Dominion
GK: Jennifer Ocampo, Florida Atlantic
All-Conference USA Third Team
F: Taylor Torres, North Texas
F: Ellis Patterson, UTSA
F: Elisha Holmes, Florida Atlantic
F: Julia Grainda. Charlotte
F: Berklee Peters, North Texas
MF: Erin Mikesha, Rice
MF: Amber Hoot, Middle Tennessee
MF: Carla Morich, Old Dominion
D: Carissa Sanders, North Texas
D: Ashley Seltzer. Marshall
D: Elizabeth Doll, Louisiana Tech
D: Alex Maxson, Florida Atlantic
GK: Kelsey Brann, North Texas
Conference USA All-Freshman Team
Ambere Barnett, WKU
Hannah Tillett, Middle Tennessee
Hailey Landrus, Florida Atlantic
Kelsey Brann, North Texas
Delaney Schultz, Rice
Olivia Durham, Southern Miss
Alexandra Augustyn, Louisiana Tech
Jojo Ngongo, UTEP
Sanda Geiselhart, Charlotte
Lexi Bolton, UTSA
Kaydeen Jack, FIU
