Sophomore Macy Hamblin of the Northern Kentucky University women’s soccer team has been named the Horizon League Women’s Soccer Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year, the League office announced.
Hamblin is joined by teammate Jessica Frey on the All-League first team, while freshman Taylor Spaulding earned All-Freshman team honors to round out NKU’s postseason awards as voted on by the league’s head coaches.
Hamblin, a forward, is tied with Frey for a League-high 20 points which matches NKU’s Division I single season record, set by Hamblin last season. Hamblin’s points are split among six goals and a League-leading eight assists as she has averaged 1.33 points per game.
The Cincinnati, Ohio, native, also leads the Horizon League with 76 shots, averaging 5.07 per game. Hamblin has been vital to the NKU offense that has outscored opponents 32-14 during the regular season.
As a sophomore, Hamblin is the youngest player to earn Horizon League Player of the Year recognition since Milwaukee sophomore Sarah Hagen earned the honor in 2009.
Joining Hamblin in providing key offensive production for the Norse this season is Frey, a fellow sophomore forward, who earned a spot on the All-League first team. In addition to her League-leading 20 points, Frey has posted a team-high seven goals and six assists.
Frey ranks in the top three in the Horizon League in six categories including shots (62), points (20), goals (seven), as well as per game stats.
Spaulding, a defender, was the third Norse to receive recognition in NKU’s first season as a member of the Horizon League. The Strongsville, Ohio, native was an All-Freshman team selection who has clocked 1,407 minutes on the season out of NKU’s 1,490 total minutes of play.
Spaulding and the NKU back line have held opponents to just 14 goals this season while posting six shutouts. The trio of standout players helped NKU to a 10-5-1 overall record and 6-2-1 mark in league play.
Frey earns Player of Week honors
For the second time this season, NKU women’s soccer’s Jessica Frey earned Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week honors after posting a goal and an assist against Green Bay on Friday, the league office announced.
Frey, who was recently named a College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District selection, has posted a Horizon League-best 20 points on the season. She is tied with teammate Macy Hamblin as both have matched NKU’s Division I era record for single season points.
Against Green Bay, the Cincinnati, Ohio, native scored the game’s first goal in the 54th minute. Freshman Brianna Frondorf gained possession and crossed the ball to Frey who attempted a shot that was deflected by goalkeeper Kelly Kent. Frey rebounded the deflection and scored from seven yards out for a 1-0 NKU lead.
Frey then teamed up with Hamblin for a double assist where the pair set up senior Maria Silbersack for the game-winner in the 63rd minute.
The match was the third occasion this season in which Frey has posted three or more points.
Norse men head to Evansville
The Northern Kentucky University men’s soccer team (8-4-4) will hit the road on Tuesday to take on Evansville (2-13-0) for its final nonconference match of the season. Links to live stats and the match audio broadcast will be available at NKUNorse.com
This will be the first meeting between Northern Kentucky and Evansville. The Purple Aces enter the match with a 2-13 overall record and a 0-6 mark in Missouri Valley Conference play. Mark Gonzalez leads Evansville offensively with 14 points on six goals and 2 assists. Greg Nevin has spent the most time in the net for the Purple Aces this season with a 0-9-0 record with 14 goals allowed, 36 saves and a goals-against average of 3.06.
This will be the ninth and final nonconference match of 2015 for the Norse. NKU is 4-3-1 against nonconference opposition this season. This is also the seventh first-time opponent Northern Kentucky has faced this season, with the Norse registering a record of 3-2-1 in those matches.
In its inaugural season in the Horizon League, Northern Kentucky carries a League mark of 4-1-3. The Norse are just one win shy of matching their previous Division I conference-best win total of five set in 2013, playing then in the Atlantic Sun Conference.
UIC sits atop the Horizon League standings with 20 points as the League enters the final week of the regular season. Northern Kentucky sits in second with 15 points followed by Wright (13 points) and Oakland (13 points). The top-six in the final standings advance to the Horizon League Championship Tournament, with the No 1 and No. 2 seed receiving a quarterfinal round bye, and the No. 1 seed hosting the semifinal (11/12) and final rounds (11/14). The third and fourth seeds would each host a quarterfinal match (11/9) at campus sites against the fifth and sixth seeds.
The Norse battled IUPUI to a 2-2 (2OT) draw on Oct. 28, at the NKU Soccer Stadium. Trailing 1-0 in the 39th minute, Daniel Lahav tied the match for NKU with an assist by Calvin Murphy. In the second half, IUPUI took the lead again 2-1 on a goal by Jared O’dell in the 56th minute. The Norse got the equalizer in the 87th minute when Yaw Addai found the net for his fourth goal of the season.
In the first overtime, each team recorded only one shot with IUPUI’s a shot on goal. Moving to the second overtime, the Jaguars outshot the Norse 3-2 but the NKU defense held on for its fourth draw of the season.
Northern Kentucky will hit the road for its season finale taking on Horizon League foe Milwaukee on Friday, Nov. 6, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
From NKU Athletics