COLONIA, NJ – Molloy sophomore defender Madison Keenan (Selden, NY), sophomore goalkeeper Elyse Muñoz (East Setauket, NY), freshman forward Jana Strait (Millersburg, PA), and head coach Steve Price alongside Daemen junior forward Kylie Miranto (North Tonawanda, NY) headlined the East Coast Conference women's soccer postseason awards, as voted on my the league's eight head coaches and announced on Wednesday afternoon ahead of the start of the 2024 ECC Women's Soccer Championship.
In all, Molloy led the way with an ECC-leading 10 All-Conference selections, including five First Team honorees. Mercy followed with eight All-Conference selections (two First Team) while Daemen had seven (two First Team), Queens had six (two First Team), and both Roberts Wesleyan and St. Thomas Aquinas landed two apiece.
Miranto repeated as the ECC's Offensive Player of the Year after leading the conference in points (27) and goals (11), both of which ranked in the top 20 nationally. Against ECC competition, the Daemen junior forward boasted an ECC-leading 19 points on an ECC-leading eight goals to go with three assists. A two-time ECC Offensive Player of the Week, Miranto recorded at least one point in nine of 16 matches this fall, including six ECC contests; highlights include six points on three goals against Staten Island, five points on two goals and one assist against St. Thomas Aquinas, and four points on two goals against D'Youville.
Miranto and the No. 2 Wildcats (8-8-0, 6-1-0 ECC) received a First Round bye for the ECC Championship and will face the winners of No. 3 Queens/No. 6 St. Thomas Aquinas in the Semifinals on Sunday, November 10.
Keenan was voted the ECC Defensive Player of the Year after totaling 11 points on four goals and three assists in 1,370 minutes, which included 13 full matches and and seven clean sheets. The Molloy sophomore back played the full 90:00 in all seven ECC wins this fall, anchoring a back line that conceded just three goals in conference play. On the offensive end, nine of Keenan's 11 points came on the road during the ECC portion of the schedule as she totaled four points on one goal and two assists at St. Thomas Aquinas, three points on one goal and one assist at D'Youville, and two points on a goal at Roberts Wesleyan.
Muñoz earned ECC Goalkeeper of the Year honors after going 10-4-2 and an undefeated 7-0-0 in ECC play. The Molloy sophomore led the ECC in goals against average (.903) and ranked second in save percentage (82.3) and clean sheets (7). The numbers stayed consistent throughout conference play, as Muñoz continued to lead all keepers in goals against average (.429) and clean sheets (4) against ECC opposition. The two-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week turned in a pair of standout performances with six saves in a 1-0 win over Daemen and eight saves in a 5-1 win over St. Thomas Aquinas.
Strait was tabbed the ECC Rookie of the Year after leading all conference rookies with 15 points on five goals and five assists. Eight of those points came on four goals in conference play, as the two-time ECC Rookie of the Week scored both goals in Molloy's 2-0 win over Mercy and added goals against D'Youville and St. Thomas Aquinas.
After leading the Lions to a 10-4-2 overall record and an undefeated 7-0-0 mark in conference play, Molloy head coach Steve Price has unanimously been selected the ECC Coach of the Year by his peers. The Lions are undefeated in their last nine matches (7-0-2) dating back to September 24 and have conceded just four goals during that span.
Keenan, Muñoz, Strait, Price, and Molloy earned the No. 1 seed heading into the ECC Championship that will run November 7 (First Round), November 10 (Semifinals), and November 17 (Final). The Lions received a First Round bye and will face the winner of No. 4 Mercy/No. 5 Roberts Wesleyan in the Semifinals.
2024 ECC Women's Soccer All-Conference
First Team
F - Ancksu Dixon, Mercy
F - Kylie Miranto, Daemen
F - Julia Ragone, Queens
M - Alessandra Borsellino, Molloy
M - Magda Carpenter, Daemen
M - Bella Juliano, Molloy
M - Isabella Muro, Molloy
D - Sarah Anderson, Queens
D - Madison Keenan, Molloy
D - Skyler Schwenkler, Mercy
GK - Elyse Muñoz, Molloy
Second Team*
F - Mikaela Barriga, Molloy
F - Amalie Steen, St. Thomas Aquinas
F - Jana Strait, Molloy
M - Erica Petrie, Queens
M - Alyssa Santiago, Mercy
M - Ramone Trentin, Daemen
M - Madita Zeitz, Daemen
D - Meghan Wetzel, Molloy
D - Nevada Hahn, Daemen
D - Emma Beattie, Molloy
D - Alyssa Diaz, Daemen
GK - Samantha Hines-Hirsch, Queens
GK - Rebecca Shultz, Daemen
Third Team
F - Alyssa Hackett, Roberts Wesleyan
F - Kaitlyn Maguire, St. Thomas Aquinas
F - Hailey Metzger, Mercy
M - Elizabeth Bowles, Mercy
M - Gabrielle Ciambella, Queens
M - Anna Deutscher, Mercy
M - Adriana Melgar, Queens
D - Amber Garcia, Mercy
D - Abigail Smith, Molloy
D - Emma Taylor, Roberts Wesleyan
GK - Anneliese Becker, Mercy
* Four defenders and two goalkeepers on Second Team due to a tie in the voting
Offensive Player of the Year: Kylie Miranto, Daemen
Defensive Player of the Year: Madison Keenan, Molloy
Goalkeeper of the Year: Elyse Muñoz, Molloy
Rookie of the Year: Jana Strait, Molloy
Coach of the Year: Steve Price, Molloy