Nov. 6, 2014
Junior midfielder/tri-captain Cari Roccaro (East Islip, New York/East Islip) led the Notre Dame representatives as a first team all-ACC selection, with sophomore midfielder Morgan Andrews (Milford, New Hampshire/Milford) and junior defender/tri-captain Katie Naughton (Elk Grove Village, Illinois/Elk Grove) claiming spots on the conference’s second team. Senior forward Lauren Bohaboy (Mission Viejo, California/Santa Margarita) and sophomore goalkeeper Kaela Little (Tulsa, Oklahoma/Bishop Kelley) earned all-ACC honors for the first time, being named to the all-conference third team. Defender Sabrina Flores (Livingston, New Jersey/Livingston) rounded out the Notre Dame honorees among the top conference newcomers on the ACC’s all-freshman team.
Notre Dame’s five all-conference selections were tied for the second-most among ACC teams, matching ACC co-regular-season champion North Carolina, Virginia and Virginia Tech. ACC Women’s Soccer Championship top seed Florida State paced the league with six total players named to the three all-conference teams.
“We are extremely proud of our all-conference honorees for their accomplishments this season,” Notre Dame head coach Theresa Romagnolo said. “Being recognized among the best players in a strong conference like the ACC is a reward for the hard work put in by those who were selected. It also shows the drive and determination of our entire team, raising the bar for our collective goals and objectives entering postseason play.”
The Fighting Irish closed the regular season with a 7-2-1 mark in ACC matches, earning results in eight of the final nine contests in conference play, as part of a 12-4-2 overall record. Notre Dame began conference championship week ranked eighth in the most recent Soccer America poll and 10th in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/Continental Tire top 25.
Roccaro earned an all-ACC first team citation for the second consecutive season, becoming the ninth player in Notre Dame program history to be named a three-time all-conference first team selection. Roccaro was tabbed to the all-BIG EAST Conference first team as a freshman in 2012, also taking home the BIG EAST Rookie of the Year award following her inaugural collegiate season.
Logging a start in all 14 matches played in the Notre Dame midfield since returning from a stint as captain of the United States Under-20 Women’s National Team at August’s FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Canada, Roccaro scored two goals (both in ACC matches) and added one assist during the regular season. The Fighting Irish tri-captain opened her 2014 goal account by connecting on a dramatic 84th minute equalizer from more than 30 yards out against No. 4/5 Virginia on Oct. 5. Roccaro added her first winning tally of the campaign three matches later at Syracuse (Oct. 18), driving home the go-ahead goal in the 69th minute of a 2-0 Notre Dame road victory.
Andrews, the 2013 ACC Freshman of the Year, has enjoyed a stellar sophomore campaign by notching six goals and adding five assists for a team-high 17 points. Along with her assists and point total lead, Andrews currently paces all Notre Dame players in shot attempts (60), shots on goal (30), and is a perfect 3-for-3 in penalty kick scenarios this season.
Named to the TopDrawerSoccer.com Team of the Week on four different occasions thus far in 2014, Andrews was credited with three assists over the season’s first two matches before breaking through for her first goal of the year at No. 16/21 Santa Clara (Sept. 5). Andrews converted her first penalty kick attempt as part of a two-goal effort against Toledo (Sept. 14), later adding a goal and an assist in Notre Dame’s ACC opener against No. 9/8 North Carolina (Sept. 20). The Fighting Irish midfielder also chipped in a goal and an assist in a conference road victory at Pittsburgh (Oct. 9) before adding a PK score in a home triumph over Miami (Oct. 12).
A teammate of Roccaro’s on the U.S. U-20 WNT squad that competed over the summer at the U-20 Women’s World Cup, Naughton has been the most durable Notre Dame player in her third season patrolling the Fighting Irish back line. Starting at center back in each of the season’s first 18 matches, Naughton has been the only player on the field for all 1,670 plus minutes of game action for Notre Dame in 2014. She has added a career-high four goals from her defender position, all successful headers off Notre Dame set pieces.
Selected twice to the TopDrawerSoccer.com Team of the Week this season, Naughton scored Notre Dame’s first match-winning goal in the 42nd minute of the regular season opener at Illinois on Aug. 22. A defensive anchor in each of the team’s 11 total shutouts, Naughton was named a finalist for the espnW Women’s Soccer Player of the Week award on Sept. 10 before claiming the top national accolade the week of Oct. 1. She contributed the lone Notre Dame goal in the 63rd minute of a 1-1 draw at Boston College on Nov. 1, ensuring the ninth unbeaten road regular season record in program history (6-0-2).
Bohaboy became a first-time all-conference performer after pacing all Notre Dame attackers with seven goals during the regular season, adding a team-high three game-winning goals. The Fighting Irish striker hit her stride during ACC play, scoring four goals in her final five conference starts while spearheading Notre Dame victories at Pittsburgh and at Alumni Stadium against No. 20 Clemson (Oct. 23) and Louisville (Oct. 26).
After opening her 2014 scoring account with Notre Dame’s first two-goal effort of the year in a win over Oakland on Aug. 24, Bohaboy scored only once during her next 10 matches. She erupted during the second half of the ACC slate, earning the conference’s top in-season honor as the ACC Co-Player of the Week on Oct. 28 after tallying the only two Notre Dame goals in a pair of 1-0 wins over Clemson and Louisville.
Little emerged as one of the top goalkeepers in the ACC in just her second collegiate season, posting a 12-3-2 record with a 0.57 goals-against average in 17 starts. Little enters the ACC Championship as the conference’s leader in save percentage (.855), adding the second-most solo shutouts (11) and second-best GAA among all league goalkeepers.
Little was the first Notre Dame goalkeeper ever to be named ACC Player of the Week on Sept. 30 after shutting out No. 2/3 Virginia Tech (Sept. 25) and Wake Forest (Sept. 28) during a key conference road swing. Also recognized as a finalist for espnW Player of the Week honors after the stellar weekend performance, Little ultimately allowed only three goals during her final 650 minutes in net the remainder of the regular season. She also established a new career-best shutout string of 528:32 that spanned from the final 20 seconds of the Oct. 5 tilt with No. 4/5 Virginia until the 79th minute at Boston College on Nov. 1.
Flores earned the start at left back in Notre Dame’s first 18 matches of her freshman season, logging her first two career assists over her first seven collegiate contests. Flores received the primary assist on successful Naughton corner kick conversions against both Texas Tech (Aug. 29) and Baylor (Sept. 12), adding six shot attempts of her own during the regular season.
Flores’ 1,597 total minutes played thus far in 2014 are the second-most on the Notre Dame roster behind Naughton. Flores, Naughton and Andrews are also the only Fighting Irish players who have started each of the team’s 18 matches this season.
No. 4 seed Notre Dame opens its second straight appearance at the ACC Women’s Soccer Championship on Friday at 5:30 p.m. (ET), colliding with No. 1 Florida State (16-1-1) in the tournament’s first semifinal matchup at the UNCG Soccer Stadium in Greensboro, North Carolina. Friday’s contest will air live on ESPN3 (WatchESPN).
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Coach of the Year: Mark Krikorian, Florida State
First Team
Second Team
Third Team
All-Freshman Team
— Tony Jones, Media Relations Assistant