NORMAL, Ill. - Led by senior Meghan Boler and junior Shannon Durocher, who received first team all-Missouri Valley Conference honors, three other Illinois State soccer players were recognized by the league on Thursday evening at the Championship Banquet held in Omaha, Neb. Junior Shannon Duggan was awarded second-team all-conference status, and the freshmen pair of Shannon Eccleston and Ammanda Wisniewski were picked to the MVC All-Freshman team. It was the first all-conference honor for each of the five Redbirds.
Three additional Illinois State players were recognized, as Yvonne Northover, Kanisha Campbell and Andrea Shaw all claimed all-conference honorable mention nods.
Boler, a midfielder, came on strong in the second-half of the season, scoring three goals in the last four games for a total of four goals on the year. The senior co-captain also took sole possession of the career assists record at ISU in 2006, tallying five assists for a total of 13 in her career. The Wheaton, Ill., native led the team in points with 13 on the year.
The trio of Redbird defenders honored, Durocher, Duggan and Eccleston, helped to anchor a Redbird defense that held opponents to just 11.1 shots per game and a 0.85 goals against average (GAA). The strong line of defense also played a large part in the five shutouts posted by the `Birds on the year. Durocher started 17 of 18 games on the year, joined by marking defenders Eccleston (17 games played, six starts) and Duggan, who started all 18 games.
Wisniewski, a freshman forward, made an immediate impact on the Redbird front line. She scored both goals in ISU's shutout of Northern Illinois on Sept. 1, just the third game of her collegiate career. The Mundelein, Ill., native was voted the Missouri Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 4 for her performance. Wisniewski went on to score three additional goals on the year for a total of five, adding a single assist for eleven total points in 2006. She led the team in goals and shots (58).
Redbird head coach Pete Kowall was pleased with the recognition of his players.
"Its always nice to be recognized by the league. I think all five players are deserving of the honor." said Kowall. "Meghan had a very good year end and finished up her career nicely. Shannon (Durocher) had a very consistent year in the back. (Shannon) Duggan is the one player on our team who will mark out our opponents' top player and while that seems very simplistic, its not an easy thing to do. Shannon Eccleston is the fastest player on our team, so that allows her to be very useful and productive in the back. Again, Ammanda is a great forward and can shoot the ball very well.
"Four of the five named will be returning next year and will make a significant impact in the future," continued Kowall. "It will be (Shannon) Durocher and (Shannon) Duggan's last year, so it will be critical for them to improve and continue to make our team better."
The State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament semifinals kick off Friday afternoon in Omaha, with a 5 p.m. meeting between No.1 Drake and No. 5 Missouri State. The second semifinal game will follow, featuring No. 3 Evansville and No. 2 Creighton. The tournament championship game will be played on Sunday at 3:05 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
