TDS Women’s Team of the Week: Oct. 20

by TopDrawerSoccer

October 20, 2015

All season long, one of the best goalkeepers in the country has backstopped a premier defense in New Jersey.

U.S. youth national team netminder Casey Murphy kept it going over the past week for Rutgers, leading the Scarlet Knights to a pair of shutout wins to earn the TopDrawerSoccer.com Player of the Week award. See full details below, plus the latest Team of the Week.

Please send future nominations to college@topdrawersoccer.com.

TDS Player of the Week: Casey Murphy, Rutgers

GK Casey Murphy, Rutgers – Already with an impeccable defensive record in 2015, Murphy’s excellent season in goal continued for the Scarlet Knights, picking up shut out victories against Ohio State and Penn State. Murphy played every minute the two wins, making seven saves total.

D Maddie Friedmann, Mississippi – It was a week to remember for the Ole Miss women’s soccer program, nabbing back-to-back wins over Top 10 sides South Carolina and Auburn. Friedmann played 90 minutes in both games, adding an assist against Auburn.

D Christina Gibbons, Duke – Switched to a central defensive role for the first time this season against North Carolina, Gibbons helped lead a Duke defensive effort that limited the Tar Heels to four shots on goal. Duke’s 1-0 win was the first against UNC since 2005, and just the third in program history.

D Jessica Hiskey, Mississippi – Like Friedmann, Hiskey played every minute at the back for the Rebels in the pair of 2-0 victories over the Gamecocks and Tigers.

M Rose Lavelle, Wisconsin – The resurgence continued for the Badgers, which took over first place in the Big Ten with home wins against Michigan and Michigan State. Lavelle played every minute of both games, netting the game-winning goal against the Spartans on Sunday.

M Samantha Witteman, California – The Redondo Beach native had a hand in all three Golden Bear goals this week, scoring the game-winning goal against Santa Clara and assisting in both of Cal’s goals in a 2-0 win against Utah. She played all 90 minutes in both wins.

M Megan Connolly, Florida State – FSU blitzed Louisville, scoring three times in the game’s first 13 minutes, eventually winning 3-1. Connolly was involved in every goal, scoring the first, helping keep the play alive for Cheyna Williams to add the second, before serving in a corner kick that Megan Campbell headed home for the third.

M Jill Mulholland, Hofstra – The midfielder scored a pair of goals as the Pride edged Northeastern 2-1, a critical match in the race for the regular season Colonial Athletic Association title.

F Nikki Faris, Oregon State – Faris had a hand in both goals as Oregon State picked up a big home victory against UCLA. She opened up the scoring with an 18th minute strike, before setting up the eventual game-winning strike in the 84th minute.

F Sam McGuire, Connecticut – The Huskies kept rolling in American Athletic Conference play, as McGuire provided the winning margins in road wins over Memphis and Tulsa.

F Maddie McCormick, UNC Wilmington – McCormick played a huge role in UNCW’s offense surge in CAA play, scoring a hat trick and adding an assist in an 8-0 win over Towson. She also was played significant minutes in a 3-0 win over James Madison.

Honorable Mention: F Colby Ciarrocca (Rutgers), F Alani Johnson (Virginia Tech), F Imani Dorsey (Duke), D Indigo Gibson (California), F Makenzy Doniak (Virginia), D Bianca St. Georges (West Virginia), F Kayla Adamek (UCF)