Towson, Monmouth Split Major Awards for 2023 CAA Women’s Soccer Season
Miles McQuiggan
RICHMOND, Va. (Oct. 25, 2023) – Towson and Monmouth split the six major regular season awards in CAA Women’s Soccer with Towson taking four and Monmouth grabbing the other two.
For Towson,
Nia Christopher was unanimously selected as the league’s Attacking Player of the Year,
Jasmine Hamid collected Midfielder of the Year honors,
Riley Melendez repeated as Goalkeeper of the Year, and
Katherine Vettori was named Coach of the Year by her peers. Monmouth’s
Lauren Bruno garnered Defensive Player of the Year accolades and
Liza Suydam was tabbed as the CAA’s Rookie of the Year.
Christopher ranks 13
th in the nation in goals (12) and assists (9), while her 33 points through the conclusion of the regular season rank seventh in the country. The senior from Bermuda has helped lead Towson to a +29 goal differential that is 13
th nationally.
Hamid is the CAA’s leading scorer entering the conference tournament with 13 goals in 2023. The senior from Virginia is eighth nationally in the scoring column and 11
th in total points with 29.
Melendez is the first back-to-back Goalkeeper of the Year since the award was instituted in 2019. The senior from Virginia recorded a 0.598 goals-against average and .828 save percentage in the regular season to help Towson to the regular season title. She recorded eight solo shutouts as Towson held opponents to a league-low 10 goals.
Vettori steered the Tigers to a record-setting regular season, as Towson won its first CAA regular season title and enters the CAA Championship with 13 wins, one shy of the program single-season record. Towson is the CAA’s top team in goals per game, goals-against average, and goal differential in 2023.
Bruno is Monmouth’s second Defensive Player of the Year in as many seasons for the Hawks in the CAA. The senior from New Jersey has helped anchor a Monmouth backline that has produced 10 shutouts in 16 games, including seven straight to open CAA play. Bruno has added three assists at the offensive end.
Suydam has started all 16 games for Monmouth and ranks sixth on the team in minutes played. Her five goals are tied for the most by a CAA freshman and the top mark for the Hawks this fall and she has added two assists for a Monmouth side that has finished in the top three in each of its first two years in the league.
The three All-CAA teams feature 12 of 13 league members, while the CAA All-Rookie Team includes players from 10 programs.
2023 All-CAA Women’s Soccer
First Team
| Name |
School |
Class |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Vivian Akyirem |
Northeastern |
So. |
F |
Kumasi, Ghana |
| Phoebe Canoles |
Towson |
R-Sr. |
F |
Baltimore, Md. |
| Nia Christopher |
Towson |
Sr. |
F |
Devonshire, Bermuda |
| Wiktoria Fronc |
Hofstra |
So. |
F |
London, England |
| Jasmine Hamid |
Towson |
Sr. |
M |
Alexandria, Va. |
| Jessie Hunt |
Northeastern |
Sr. |
M |
Edina, Minn. |
| Alexis Legowski |
Northeastern |
R-Sr. |
M |
South Hadley, Mass. |
| Lauren Bruno |
Monmouth |
Sr. |
D |
Manalapan, N.J. |
| Kerry Pearson |
Stony Brook |
Sr. |
D |
Merrick, N.Y. |
| Nicole Sellers |
William & Mary |
Sr. |
D |
Fairfax Station, Va. |
| Riley Melendez |
Towson |
Sr. |
GK |
Springfield, Va. |
Second Team
| Name |
School |
Class |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Ivey Crain |
William & Mary |
So. |
F |
Milton, Ga. |
| Reilly Rich |
Stony Brook |
Sr. |
F |
Ilion, N.Y. |
| Casey Touey |
Drexel |
Jr. |
F |
Rockledge, Pa. |
| Annalena O’Reilly |
Drexel |
R-Sr. |
M |
Ardmore, Pa. |
| Dagny Run Petursdottir |
Hofstra |
So. |
M |
Kópavogur, Iceland |
| Liza Suydam |
Monmouth |
Fr. |
M |
Lancaster, Pa. |
| Louise Hayden |
Hofstra |
Sr. |
D |
Bjärred, Sweden |
| Delaney Lappin |
Drexel |
Sr. |
D |
Corbin City, N.J. |
| Laney Peabody |
Campbell |
R-Sr. |
D |
Solana Beach, Calif. |
| Shae Yocum |
Charleston |
Jr. |
D |
Point Pleasant, N.J. |
| Cassie Coster |
Monmouth |
Jr. |
GK |
Poughquag, N.Y. |
Third Team
| Name |
School |
Class |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Kayla Burroughs |
UNCW |
Jr. |
F |
Asheboro, N.C. |
| Loren Gehret |
Monmouth |
Fr. |
F |
Elysburg, Pa. |
| Grace Gelhaus |
Elon |
Fr. |
F |
Woodstock, Conn. |
| Linn Beck |
Stony Brook |
So. |
M |
Frankfurt, Germany |
| Aimee Hodgson |
Hofstra |
So. |
M |
Carnforth, England |
| Demi Pierre |
Towson |
Gr. |
M |
Gävle, Sweden |
| Lily Dunbar |
Drexel |
Gr. |
D |
Columbia, Md. |
| Chloe Ferreira |
Monmouth |
Sr. |
D |
Warren, N.J. |
| Maja Hansson |
Towson |
Sr. |
D |
Sandviken, Sweden |
| Constanze Viehmann |
Delaware |
So. |
D |
Ladenburg, Germany |
| Kyla Burns |
Delaware |
Sr. |
GK |
Ruby, N.Y. |
Attacking Player of the Year: Nia Christopher, Towson *
Midfielder of the Year: Jasmine Hamid, Towson
Defensive Player of the Year: Lauren Bruno, Monmouth
Goalkeeper of the Year: Riley Melendez, Towson
Rookie of the Year: Liza Suydam, Monmouth
Coach of the Year: Katherine Vettori, Towson *
*-Unanimous Selection
CAA All-Rookie Team
| Name |
School |
Class |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Maddie Aughe |
Northeastern |
Fr. |
D |
Hingham, Mass. |
| Ashley Bell |
Stony Brook |
Fr. |
F |
Babylon, N.Y. |
| Loren Gehret |
Monmouth |
Fr. |
F |
Elysburg, Pa. |
| Grace Gelhaus |
Elon |
Fr. |
F |
Woodstock, Conn. |
| Viktoria Hankova |
UNCW |
Fr. |
M |
Pieštany, Slovakia |
| Sasha McTiffin |
Hofstra |
Fr. |
D |
Manchester, England |
| Willa Pratt |
Delaware |
Fr. |
M |
Sauquoit, N.Y. |
| Liza Suydam |
Monmouth |
Fr. |
M |
Lancaster, Pa. |
| Alyssa Tucker |
Campbell |
Fr. |
F |
Raleigh, N.C. |
| Shea Vidovic |
Charleston |
Fr. |
M |
Brecksville, Ohio |
| Molly Widderich |
William & Mary |
Fr. |
D |
Mebane, N.C. |
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