Senior Allison Hu earned the Southeastern Conference Scholarship Athlete of the Year honor along with Ole Miss forward Rafaelle Souza, two of several all-conference awards announced Monday. Alyssa Diggs, Dominique Richardson and Candace Johnson also received honors, which are voted on by the league’s coaches. Diggs and Richardson earned spots on the All-SEC first team and freshman Candace Johnson was named to the all-freshman team.
Hu, a defender from St. Charles, Mo., holds a 4.0 grade point average in Health Sciences. She has started all 19 games for Missouri and has played every minute this season, the only Tiger field player to do so.
Mississippi’s Souza holds a 3.72 grade point average in Engineering.
Diggs is tied for second in scoring on first team, having 15 points on seven goals and an assist. She ranks sixth in the SEC in goals per game, seventh in points per game and ninth in total goals. This is Diggs’ second time receiving an all-conference first team honor. Last year she earned All-Big 12 first team honor as well.
Richardson has received three career conference honors. She earned an All-Big 12 second team honor last year and was named to the Big 12 All-Newcomer Team in 2010. She has started all 19 games this season and has recorded four goals and an assist for nine points.
Other SEC award recipients include midfielder Holly King (Defensive Player of the Year), Florida midfielder/forward Erika Tymrak (Offensive Player of the Year) and Alabama midfielder Merel van Dongen (Freshman of the Year).
Florida’s Becky Burleigh was named SEC Coach of the Year for the fifth time.
Missouri begins the 2012 SEC Tournament on Wednesday, Oct. 31 in Orange Beach, Ala. They face four-seed Kentucky in the quarterfinals at 7:30 p.m.
First Team All-SEC
Tatiana Coleman, Auburn – F, 5-8, So., Boca Raton, Fla.
Holly King, Florida – M, 5-9, Sr., Ashburn, Va.
Jo Dragotta, Florida – M, 5-8, Sr., Tampa, Fla.
Erika Tymrak, Florida – M/F, 5-5, Sr., Bradenton, Fla.
Arin Gilliland, Kentucky – D, 5-8, So., Lexington, Ky.
Alyssa Diggs, Missouri – F, 5-4, Jr., Coppell, Texas
Dominique Richardson, Missouri – M, 5-6, Jr., Fullerton, Calif.
Hannah Wilkinson, Tennessee – F, 5-11, So., Whangarei, New Zealand
Jordan Day, Texas A&M – GK, 6-0, So., Gilbert, Ariz.
Annie Kunz, Texas A&M – F, 6-0, So., Golden, Colo.
Meghan Streight, Texas A&M – D/M, 5-5, So., McKinney, Texas
Second Team All-SEC
Pia Rijsdijk, Alabama – F, 5-9, So., Numansdorp, Netherlands
Merel van Dongen, Alabama – M, 5-8, Fr., Amsterdam, Netherlands
Allie Chandler, Arkansas – F, 5-3, Sr., Mesquite, Texas
Christen Westphal, Florida – D/M, 5-6, Fr., Brecksville, Ohio
Torri Allen, Georgia – D, 5-4, Jr., Stafford, Va.
Jade Kovacevic, LSU – F/M, 5-6, Fr., Georgetown, Ontario, Canada
Mandy McCalla, Ole Miss – M/F, 5-8, Jr., Fayetteville, Ga.
Rafaelle Souza, Ole Miss, Ole Miss – F, 5-7, Jr., Salvador, Brazil
Elisabeth Sullivan, Mississippi State – F, 5-5, Jr., Memphis, Tenn.
Sabrina D’Angelo, South Carolina – GK, 5-8, So., Welland, Ontario
Ali Hall, Tennessee – D, 5-8, Sr., Hawthorn Woods, Ill.
Shea Groom, Texas A&M – F, 5-6, So., Liberty, Mo.
All-Freshman Team
Katie Bourgeois, Alabama – F, 5-5, Fr., Katy, Texas
Merel van Dongen, Alabama – M, 5-8, Fr., Amsterdam, Netherlands
Ashleigh Ellenwood, Arkansas – F, 5-9, Fr., Michigan City, Ind.
Kala Faulkner, Auburn – D, 5-5, Fr., Alpharetta, Ga.
Christen Westphal, Florida – D/M, 5-6, Fr., Brecksville, Ohio
Kelli Hubly, Kentucky – F, 5-9, Fr., Elk Grove, Ill.
Courtney Raetzman, Kentucky – M, 4-11, Fr., Elk Grove, Ill.
Jade Kovacevic, LSU – F/M, 5-6, Fr., Georgetown, Ontario, Canada
Candace Johnson, Missouri – D, 5-10, Fr., Dallas, Texas
Jackie Tondl, Texas A&M – D, 5-9, Fr., Omaha, Neb.
Cheyna Williams, Vanderbilt – F, 5-7, Fr., Hampton, Ga.
Coach of the Year
Becky Burleigh, Florida
Offensive Player of the Year
Erika Tymrak, Florida
Defensive Players of the Year
Holly King, Florida
Freshman of the Year
Merel van Dongen, Alabama
Co-Scholar-Athletes of the Year
Rafaelle Souza, Ole Miss
Allison Hu, Missouri
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