Veitner, Umstead and van Weezel Earn #BIGEASTfh Weekly Awards
NEW YORK – No. 1 Connecticut earns BIG EAST Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week after improving to 7-0 on the season, while Providence’s Manon van Weezel earns Freshman of the Week honors.
BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week
Charlotte Veitner, Connecticut, Sr., F
A week removed from winning BIG EAST and National Player of the Week honors, the senior forward continued to dominate on the offensive attack. In an otherwise scoreless first half, Veitner gave No. 1 UConn the 1-0 lead heading into the break over BIG EAST foe Old Dominion when she scored her seventh goal of the season in the 15th minute. The senior capped off a two-goal afternoon as the Huskies won their 18th consecutive conference match. Two days later UConn routed No. 20 Boston University, 8-1. Veitner paced a Huskies’ attack that set a single-game season high with eight goals. In the match, she tallied 11 points, scoring four goals and dishing out three assists in UConn’s fifth victory of the season over a top-20 opponent. Over the course of the two games, Veitner matched her season total through the opening five games with six goals, while adding three assists for a total of 15 points on the week. Through the opening seven games of the season, Veitner leads the conference with 28 points (12 goals, 4 assists) averaging 4.0 points per match.
BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week
Casey Umstead, Connecticut, Sr., D
For the fourth consecutive week, Umstead has earned a BIG EAST Player of the Week honor, earning Defensive Player of the Week for the third time this season. Umstead anchored a Huskies’ defense that opened up BIG EAST play in dominant fashion, shutting out Old Dominion 6-0. Outshooting the Monarchs 24-7, the Huskies earned their 18th consecutive victory over a conference foe. On Sunday, Umstead and the UConn defense once again acted as a brick wall, holding No. 20 Boston University to only 4 shots in an 8-1 victory against the Terriers. Through six games Boston averaged 13.8 shots per game, but was unable to anything going against Umstead and the rest of the UConn defense. In addition, the senior back added two points on the weekend, recording one assist in each contest.
BIG EAST Freshman of the Week
Manon van Weezel, Providence, Fr., D
Notching a total of five points in two games, the freshman back tallied a pair of goals and an assist. In the Friars’ BIG EAST opener against Temple, she earned the assist on the game-tying goal in the second half (2-2) en route to a 4-2 victory. On Sunday against UC Davis, van Weezel notched the first two goals of her collegiate career, including what proved to be the game winner. On the defensive side of the ball, Providence outshot their opponents 25-15 through both contests, with the Friar rookie being a pivotal part of that line.
BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Mallory Fortenbaugh, Liberty , So., D
Anchoring a strong defensive effort against Villanova and Kent State, Fortenbaugh and the Liberty defenders held their opponents to 18 shots, and earned a shutout victory against Villanova. On the offensive side of the ball, the senior back tallied a goal and three assists, for a total of five points on the weekend.
Agueda Moroni, Liberty, So., MF
Moroni tallied three goals and a pair of assists as the Lady Flames knocked off both Villanova and Kent State last week. In a 3-0 shutout victory against BIG EAST foe Villanova, Moroni scored a goal in the 30th minute off a penalty corner. On Sunday against Kent State, Moroni posted a six-point performance tallying two goals and two assists as Liberty routed the Golden Flashes 7-2.
Izzy Mendez, Providence, So., F/MF
Mendez scored the first points of her collegiate career this weekend (5 points) on two goals and one assist. She tallied what proved to be the game-winning goal (the first of her career) in the BIG EAST opener versus Temple. She followed the career milestone with one goal and an assist in the Friars’ 5-2 victory over UC Davis.
Rachael Mueller, Temple, Sr., MF
The senior had a hand on four of the Owls’ five goals, assisting on both of Temple’s goals in a 4-2 loss to Providence. In a 3-1 victory over Holy Cross, Mueller scored both the tying goal and game-winning goal against the Crusaders.
Margot van Hecking Colenbrander, UConn, Fr., D
The freshman back played two complete games, as the Huskies outscored their opponents 14-1 and only gave up 11 shots in both contests against Old Dominion and No. 20 Boston University. In the first conference matchup of her career, van Hecking Colenbrander added a pair of insurance goals in the second half as the Huskies won their 18th consecutive conference match.