Three Cowgirl Soccer Players Earn All-Mountain West Honors

Three Wyoming Cowgirl soccer players earned post-season recognition Tuesday. Sara Paul, Liz O’Reilly and Lucie McDowell were named to College Sports Madness All-Mountain West teams.

Paul and O’Reilly were named first team all-conference, while McDowell was named to the second team.

“I’m happy for these three to be honored for their efforts this season,” said Wyoming coach Pete Cuadrado. “They fought hard every game to get the ball into the net or they found ways to distribute it to their teammates to earn assists. The three being honored is a reflection of a total team effort to push the ball up field.”

Paul finished 12^th in the nation in total assists with 10 this season. She led the MW in that category. Her 10 assists also broke the all-time program record for assists in a single season, topping O’Reilly’s eight from 2010 and Amanda Lathrop’s eight from 2008. Starting every game this year, the Calgary, Alberta native scored two goals along with her assists for a team-high 14 points. As a sophomore, she had 35 shot attempts, including a program record nine against Fresno State, and 17 shots on goal in 2012.

O’Reilly, a junior, became the program’s all-time record holder in assists for a career with 19. She surpassed Lathrop’s total of 15 from 2005-08, following seven assists this season. Starting 17 games this year, the St. Clair, New South Wales, Australia native added three goals to total 13 points in 2012, taking 26 shots with 13 on goal. She tallied the game-winning goal against Utah Valley one minute into overtime to lift the Cowgirls to a 4-3 win.

McDowell tied for the team lead with five goals this season in 17 games. She also had three assists fora total of 13 points. The Queensland, Australia native took 34 shots with 20 on goal for a .588 shot-on-goal percentage. The sophomore also notched the game-winning goal against Weber State for a 1-0 victory and had the team’s lone goal against Utah State in a 1-1 draw.

San Diego State’s Megan Jurado was named the MW Offensive Player of the Year by CSM, while Aztec goalie Rachel Boaz was named the Defensive Player of the Year. Boise State’s Brooke Heidemann was given the Freshman of the Year honor, while SDSU’s Mike Friesen was named Coach of the Year.

The Cowgirls finished the 2012 season with an 8-8-2 overall record and broke the all-time program record for goals in a single regular season as they tallied 30 for the year.