OKLAHOMA CITY -- John Brown University captured three major awards and placed seven student-athletes on the All-Sooner Athletic teams, as junior Julia Lambert was named Co-Player of the Year, sophomore Marely Fonseca repeated as Goalkeeper of the Year, and Dr. Kathleen Paulsen earned her fourth Coach of the Year honor, the league office announced Thursday morning (Nov. 13).
The Golden Eagles finished unbeaten in conference play at 7-0-2, capturing its ninth regular-season title (2007, 09, 16, 17, 20, 21, 23, 24) behind the SAC's most productive offense and stingiest defense. John Brown outscored its opponents 34-4 in league play, leading the conference in both categories and posting one of the largest goal differentials in program history.
Lambert collected her third consecutive All-Conference nod and became just the sixth Player of the Year in program history after finishing fourth in the SAC in goals (7) and led the league in assists (5). Her 19 points, powered by three braces in conference play, ranked among the league's top three, helping power a balanced attack that scored in every match of the regular season.
Senior Aubrey Winter joined Lambert on the All-SAC first team, tallying six goals and four assists (16 points) to rank among the conference's top five in both categories. Freshman Bella Bingham also earned her first All-SAC selection, helping solidify a back line solidified by Fonseca's stellar campaign.
Fonseca led the league in goals-against average (0.44), clean sheets (6), and tied for the league lead in fewest goals allowed (4), while posting an .826 save percentage across all 810 minutes. The sophomore joins Kristen Morency '17 and Caitlin Logan '22 as the only multi-year winners of the SAC's top goalkeeping honor in program history.
On the second team, sophomore Tianna Jones finished tied for 10th in the SAC in goals (4) and in the top ten in assists (3), while sophomore Caitlin Hilson added two goals and an assist in nine starts. Sophomore Isabella Mendieta rounded out the group, contributing to a unit that posted six shutouts and allowed just four goals across nine league matches.
Paulsen's fourth Coach of the Year award punctuates another championship season in her 13th year at the helm. Since taking over the program in 2013, she has guided the Golden Eagles to seven regular-season titles and holds a 100-9-9 (.886) record in Sooner Athletic play.
John Brown defeated second-seeded Science & Arts (Okla.) in the Sooner Athletic tournament championship match to claim its sixth-consecutive tournament title and earned the league's lone automatic berth into the NAIA National Championships.
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