Women's Soccer | November 2, 2023
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — The Atlantic 10 released the end-of-season awards for women's soccer Thursday afternoon, with four La Salle women's soccer student-athletes and head coach
Paul Royal receiving honors from the conference.
Royal was named the A-10 Coach of the Year for the fifth time in his career after guiding the Explorers to an 8-1-1 mark in A-10 play during the regular season to help them finish second in the conference standings after they were picked to finish eighth in the league. Since then, he has led the Explorers to their fifth A-10 Championship game in program history after they posted a 1-0 win over Dayton in Wednesday night's semifinal round and a 12-5-3 overall record that currently includes an 11-match unbeaten streak (10-0-1).
In addition, junior
Haley Gschrey and sophomore
Ricshya Walker were named to the A-10 All-Conference Second Team. The Explorers also saw sophomores
Elizabeth Estrada and
Justyce Hollenbach earn spots on the All-Rookie Team.
Gschrey garnered her All-Conference selection after leading the Explorers in goals (eight), points (16), shots (45) and shots on goal (18). The forward leads the A-10 in game-winning goals with six, ranks fourth in the conference in goals and is tied for fifth in points.
A year after making the All-Rookie Team, Walker stepped up to the All-Conference Second Team after tying for the team lead in shots on goal with 18 and scoring five goals on 37 shots this season. The forward had eight games in which she took two shots or more, including a career-high eight shots against George Washington on Sept. 21.
Estrada and Hollenbach made the All-Rookie Team after they became impact players on the Explorers' offense.
Estrada handed out four assists and scored three goals for 10 points. The forward/midfielder ranked in the top 10 in the A-10 in assists for most of the year and took 24 shots, 14 of which were on goal. She also scored the game-winning goal against Fordham on Oct. 12 in a 2-1 victory.
Hollenbach became a spark off the bench for the Explorers, scoring six goals, good for second on the team. The forward also took 19 shots, 12 of which were on goal, to lead the team in shot on goal percentage at .632.
The Explorers will look to add one more piece of hardware — the A-10 Championship — on Sunday when they travel to face top-seeded Saint Louis in the conference title game at Hermann Stadium in St. Louis.
