West Babylon, N.Y. – Bridgeport junior forward Maegen Doyle was named East Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year on Monday (Nov. 5) in a coaches’ vote after a spectacular season of offense for the Purple Knights. Teammate Anisha Hill earned ECC Rookie of the Year honors while Mercy’s Rebecca Conway claimed Defensive Player of the Year laurels. LIU Post goalie Hillevi Eklow was named Goalkeeper of the Year for the second consecutive season; Bridgeport head coach Magnus Nilerud claimed conference Coach of the Year honors for a seventh time in his tenure as the patroller of the sidelines for the Purple Knights.
Doyle scored a conference-best 21 goals and 45 points this season in helping guide Bridgeport to the 2018 ECC Women’s Soccer regular-season championship. The junior from England scored just four goals in the first eight games of the year---including two games that she did not play in---before scoring seventeen goals in the next ten games for UB. This included back-to-back hat tricks, and Doyle also led the conference with nine game-winning goals and four penalty kick markers.
After a run to the NCAA Final Four last season, Mercy was just as stingy on the back line in 2018. With Conway leading the charge, the Mavericks allowed a conference-low 12 goals and maintained a 0.72 goals-against average. The native of Lindenhurst, N.Y. also scored three goals and totaled seven points for the Mavericks as the squad was consistently ranked in the top-25 all season and near the top of the regional rankings.
Hill had a strong debut season with the Purple Knights, scoring seven goals and totaling 16 points. Both marks were top-ten within the conference and five of the rookie’s seven markers were scored in conference games including a goal in the East Coast Conference semi-final win over Daemen.
Eklow was one of the more consistent goalkeepers in the conference all season, earning her second consecutive ECC Goalkeeper of the Year Award. Eklow started all 17 of the Pioneers’ games going into the ECC Championship game and is in the top-five in the conference in minutes (1578:20), goals allowed (13), goals-against average (0.74), save percentage (.827), wins (12) and shutouts (9).
Nilerud picked up his third ECC Coach of the Year honor in the last four years and seventh in his tenure at Bridgeport with the Purple Knights running to a 13-4-1 overall record and an 8-1 mark in conference play. UB won the 2018 ECC regular-season championship and was a mainstay within the regional and national rankings.
2018 ECC Women’s Soccer All-Conference
First Team
F – Jamie Boyar, Jr., Daemen
F – Maegen Doyle, Jr., Bridgeport
F – Haley Noble, Sr., Mercy
M – Gabrielle Clark, Jr., LIU Post
M – Celia De Pablo Esteban, So., Daemen
M – Elin Eklund, Jr., Bridgeport
M – Natalia Elizarraras, Jr., Mercy
B – Annie Bjork, Fr., Bridgeport
B – Rebecca Conway, Sr., Mercy
B – Karoline Vieira, Sr., Bridgeport
GK – Hillevi Eklow, Sr., LIU Post
Second Team
F – Nara DaCosta, Jr., Bridgeport
F – Julia Duffy, Jr., LIU Post
F – Casey Luongo, So., NYIT
M – Nikki Bermudez, So., NYIT
M – Fernanda Castro, Fr., Mercy
M – Anisha Hill, Fr., Bridgeport
M – Erin O’Connor, So., LIU Post
B – Samantha Gordon, So., LIU Post
B – Jess Hawley, Sr., NYIT
B – Alice Schonfeldt, R-Jr., LIU Post
GK – Melissa Torres, So., Mercy
Third Team
F – Hannah Franco, Fr., NYIT
F – Kendra Oldroyd, Fr., LIU Post
F – Anicia Reyes, Fr., Mercy
M – Terese Markelund, Fr., LIU Post
M – Mekenzi Moreau, So., St. Thomas Aquinas
M – Karin Oberg, Fr., Bridgeport
M – Maggie Thibault, Fr., NYIT
B – Sydney Cooper, Fr., Mercy
B – Sam D’Agostino, So., Daemen
B – Trista Seara, Jr., Mercy
GK – Jennifer Wendelius, Sr., Bridgeport
Offensive Player of the Year: Maegen Doyle, Jr., F, Bridgeport
Defensive Player of the Year: Rebecca Conway, Sr., D, Mercy
Goalkeeper of the Year: Hillevi Eklow, GK, LIU Post
Rookie of the Year: Anisha Hill, Fr., M, Bridgeport
Coach of the Year: Magnus Nilerud, Bridgeport
