Aug. 16, 2001
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Santa Clara senior defender Danielle Slaton and junior midfielder Aly Wagner have been named candidates for the 2001 Hermann Trophy, college soccer's oldest and most prestigious player of the year award, the Hermann Foundation and TEAMtalk, Inc., announced today.
Wagner was named one of five finalists for last year's honor, while Slaton and former standout Heather Aldama were named semifinalists. Mandy Clemens became the first Bronco to be honored with the Hermann, when she was announced as the 1999 winner. Clemens was only the second SCU player to capture the title of national player of the year. Current assistant coach Brandi Chastain earned postseason honors following the 1990 season as she was named the 1990 ISAA Player of the Year.
The remaining 11 candidates for this year's award are: Christie Welsh of Penn State, Abby Wambach of Florida, Aleisha Cramer of BYU, UCLA's Mary-Frances Monroe and Stephanie Rigamat, Lauren Orlandos of Portland, North Carolina's Danielle Borgman and Jena Kluegel, Hope Solo of Washington and Texas A&M's Nicky Thrasher.
Final ballots will be distributed to all Division I college coaches, tabulated, and three women finalists will be announced on December 1. The winners of the 2001 Hermann Trophy will be announced at the College Cup, held December 8 in Dallas, Texas.
The candidates were chosen by a ballot of Division I college coaches and selected media. In a twist added to the selection process this year, two spots on the final ballot will remain open until October 1. At that time, a poll of coaches and media will be conducted to add the final two names to each of the 15-player ballots before the final voting is conducted. This is to ensure that any player having a stellar season will be eligible to win the prestigious player of the year award.
The Hermann Trophy, soccer's equivalent of the Heisman Trophy, has been given annually since 1967 to the nation's best male college soccer player. The women's award has been presented each year since 1988. The Hermann Trophy is named for Robert R. Hermann, the former Chairman of the Executive Committee of the old North American Soccer League and one of that ground-breaking league's founders.
For continuing coverage of the Hermann Trophy races, go to by Collegesoccer.com, the presenting sponsor of the Hermann Trophy for the next three years. TEAMtalk Media Group plc, the parent company of collegesoccer.com, is a world leader in custom content and professional services. Among the customers U.S.-based TEAMtalk, Inc. currently serves are The West Coast Conference, the Women's United Soccer Association, the Atlanta Beat, Washington Freedom, New York Power, Bay Area CyberRays, Amoco Racing, M&Ms Racing, and US Youth Soccer.
Sixth-ranked Santa Clara's quest to reach a fifth College Cup in six seasons begins August 31, when Cal Poly visits Buck Shaw Stadium at 7:30 p.m. Tickets may be purchased online by clicking here or by calling the athletic ticket office at 408-554-4660.
Women Hermann Award Candidates Bios
Danielle Borgman
UNC defender Danielle Borgman returns for her senior season with the Tar Heels. Borgman helped North Carolina claim its 16th NCAA title. She garnered All-Atlantic Coast Conference and NSCAA All-America and All-Southeastern Region accolades as well as earning two caps with the U.S. women's national team. Borgman's career goals total five.
Aleisha Cramer
Center midfielder Aleisha Cramer will begin her sophomore campaign at Brigham Young this fall. The 2000 Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year, Cramer tallied seven goals for the
Cougars and was named to the All-America, the All-MWC, and the All-West Region first teams. In March of 2001, Cramer captained the U.S. women's national team in the Algarve Cup in Portugal.
Jena Kluegel
A Tar Heel outside midfielder, Kluegel led the Atlantic Coast Conference and was second in the nation with 23 assists last year. Kluegel also earned All-ACC and NSCAA All-America and All Southeastern Region honors and was part of a UNC team that earned its 16th NCAA title. Kluegel, who has 17 career goals, competed with the U.S. women's national team in a two-game series in China in January, in the Algarve Cup in March, and in a recent Independence Day home-and-home series with Canada.
Christine Latham
Forward Christine Latham returns to Nebraska as the defending Big 12 Player of the Year. In 2000, Latham produced the second-best single-season offensive output (57 points) in Huskers' history as a sophomore en route to becoming the first underclassman to win the conference's player-of-the-year honor. The Canadian national team striker also earned All-America and All-Big 12 honors, was the Most Valuable Player of the Big 12 Tournament. In her two years at Nebraska, she has scored 35 goals.
Mary-Frances Monroe
A midfielder, Monroe will play her senior year at UCLA after spending three years at the University of Connecticut. As a Husky, Monroe recorded 45 goals and last season was named to the All-Big East first team and was tabbed an All-American for the third straight time. Monroe was also a finalist for the 2000 Hermann Trophy. In March, she was a member of the U.S. women's national team that competed in the Algarve Cup.
Lauren Orlandos
Orlandos will be a junior for the Portland Pilots this fall. In 2000, she was the West Coast Conference's Defender of the Year, and was a collegesoccer.com All-American, as well as all-Far West, and all-WCC honors. She was also named to the NCAA all-tournament team. She has scored a total of four goals for the Pilots.
Stephanie Rigamat
A creative forward, Rigamat will be a senior this fall, but will only be playing her second season with the UCLA Bruins. She redshirted the 1999 season after transferring from UC-Irvine. Last year, Rigamat led the Bruins in scoring and finished the season ranked third in the Pac-10. She also broke the UCLA single-season assists record with 11. She has scored 35 goals in her college career, and played with the U.S. women's national team in a two-game series in China in January as well as the Algarve Cup in Portugal in March.
Danielle Slaton
A two-time All-American defender, Slaton returns for her senior year at Santa Clara as a co-captain for the Broncos. Slaton, who has scored five career goals for SCU, missed nine matches in 2000 while with the U.S. Olympic team in Australia. She played on five tournament-winning teams with the U.S. women's national team, including the Australia Cup, the Algarve Cup, the CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup, the Pacific Cup, and the DFB Jubilee Tournament in Germany. This is her second nomination for the Hermann Trophy.
Hope Solo
Goalkeeper Hope Solo took the 2000 spring quarter off to train with the U.S. women's national team and returns this fall as a junior for the Huskies. Last year, she was named to the All-Pac-10 second team. In March of 2001, she joined the U.S. national team in the Algarve Cup, and in July helped the U-21s claim their third consecutive Nordic Cup title.
Nicky Thrasher
Midfielder Nicky Thrasher red-shirted last year with a knee injury and returns in 2001 as a fifth-year senior. As a junior, Thrasher was the leader in goals, assists, and points, and was named the Aggies Offensive Player of the Year. She also earned NSCAA All-Central Region and All-Big 12 honors. Over the course of her career she has scored 37 goals. This is her second Hermann Trophy nomination.
Aly Wagner
Wagner returns as a red-shirt junior for Santa Clara in 2001. Despite missing eight matches due to injury in 2000, Wagner earned NSCAA/adidas West Region second team honors and was also a collegesoccer.com second-team All-American. The 2000 Hermann Trophy finalist has tallied 13 goals for the Broncos. Wagner was an alternate for the 2000 U.S. Olympic squad and was also one of the last players cut from the 1999 U.S. Women's World Cup team.
Abby Wambach
A powerful forward, Wambach led the Gators in goals (23) and was awarded All-America and All-SEC accolades for the third consecutive year. She was also the SEC Player of the Year and the SEC Tournament Most Valuable Player. Wambach has 65 career goals to date. In July, she was the third-leading scorer in the Nordic Cup and helped the U-21 national team win its third consecutive title.
Christie Welsh
Though just a junior in 2001, forward Christie Welsh is the most decorated player in the Penn State soccer program's six-year history. A two-time NSCAA All-American and Big-10 Player of the Year, Welsh again led the Nittany Lions in scoring last year and has rewritten 13 scoring records in her two seasons Penn State. In her two-year career, Welsh has amassed 44 goals and was a finalist for the Hermann Trophy and the Honda Award. She was named Penn State's Athlete of the Year. Welsh competed with the U.S. national team in the Algarve Cup in March.