2021 MIAC WOMEN'S SOCCER AWARDS

MINNEAPOLIS -- Augsburg University midfielder Jaelyn Nedelcoff (FY, Oregon, Wis./Oregon HS) was named the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Women's Soccer Rookie of the Year, leading a group of five Auggies to receive conference postseason honors, it was announced on Wednesday.

Nedelcoff is the second Auggie to earn the MIAC's rookie honor for women's soccer, since the award was established in 2015. Ashley St. Aubin earned the honor in 2016. Nedelcoff's honor is the seventh individual conference postseason award for an Augsburg women's soccer player in program history. In addition to her Rookie of the Year honor in 2016, St. Aubin was named MIAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2017, while Marie Fitzgerald was named MIAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2015, Oliva Muyres was named MIAC Player of the Year in 2014 and Astrid Larssen was named MIAC Player of the Year in 1996.

Augsburg forward Jennifer Bobaric (JR, Andover, Minn./Andover HS) and defender Jen Masello (SR, Darien, Ill./Downers Grove South HS) were named to the 22-member All-MIAC team for the 2021 campaign, while defender Molly Conners (SR, Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater HS) and forward/midfielder Ana Ortiz (SR, Waterloo/Iowa/Columbus Catholic HS) were named to the 22-member All-MIAC Honorable Mention squad. Ortiz was also named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team. Masello was an All-MIAC Honorable Mention honoree in 2019, while Conners was an All-MIAC honoree in 2019. It is the first conference postseason honors for Bobaric and Ortiz.

Nedelcoff made an immediate impact in her first season as an Auggie, starting all 16 games she played in as a midfielder, scoring five goals with two assists for 12 points, tied for second-most on the team in goals and third in assists. She scored a goal in Augsburg's 2-1 win over NCAA Division III national tournament participant Wisconsin-Superior on Sept. 10, scored the game-winning goal in the 85th minute in Augsburg's 2-1 triumph over St. Scholastica on Oct. 6, and had a goal and assist in Augsburg's 3-1 win over Concordia-Moorhead on Oct. 16. Nedelcoff played in 1,384 minutes (86.5 minutes per-game) of action this season, including 11 full-game efforts.

Bobaric was a scoring force for the Auggies this season, finishing with 10 goals and three assists for 23 points. Her 10 goals were second-most among MIAC players in overall statistics this season, while her 23 points were third-most. Bobaric had an explosive start to the season, scoring eight of the Auggies' 11 goals in the team's first nine games, including a three-goal hat trick in Augsburg's 3-1 win over Wisconsin-La Crosse on Sept. 7. She also had a two-goal, one-assist effort in Augsburg's 3-1 win over Bethel on Oct. 30. Bobaric played in 1,506 minutes (83.7 minutes per-game), starting all 18 games, with 10 full-game efforts. In her 33-game Augsburg career, Bobaric has 10 goals and four assists for 24 points, with five game-winning goals.

Augsburg's defensive sweeper (the last line of defense before the goalkeeper) throughout her career, Masello was the leader of an Auggie backfield that allowed just 25 goals this season, sixth-fewest among MIAC teams, with a 1.34 team goals against-average that also ranked sixth in the MIAC. Masello played in a team-high 1,607 minutes of action (89.3 minutes per-game) this season, with 14 full-game efforts. She scored two goals with two assists for six points this season. In her 57-game Auggie career, she played in 3,941 minutes (69.1 minutes per-game), with five goals and four assists for 14 career points.

Conners joined Masello as a mainstay in Augsburg's defensive corps, starting all 17 games she played, playing 1,435 minutes (84.4 minutes per-game), with 11 full-game efforts. She contributed three assists on the year. A transfer from Division I Northern Iowa, Conners played three seasons (43 games) at Augsburg and 45 in her collegiate career, finishing with 11 assists in 3,585 minutes played (79.7 minutes per-game).

A versatile attacker, Ortiz finished second on the team with 13 points and second with five goals, adding three assists in 14 games (14 starts). She scored three game-winning goals, including the lone goal in the 72nd minute in Augsburg's 1-0 win over Saint Mary's on Oct. 9, and scored the game-tying goal in the 89th minute in Augsburg's 1-1, two-overtime tie at Saint Benedict on Oct. 2. She played in 1,172 minutes (83.7 minutes per-game) this season, including eight full-game efforts. Ortiz played in 58 games (3,934 minutes, 67.8 minutes per-game) in her Augsburg career, scoring 11 goals with four assists for 26 points.

Ortiz was also named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team, as part of the conference's sportsmanship initiative. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition.

Under 23rd-year Augsburg head coach Mike Navarre, Augsburg finished 9-7-2 overall, 6-4-1 in MIAC play in 2021, its 10th season in the last 11 with nine or more wins. The Auggies earned a spot in the MIAC postseason playoffs for the seventh consecutive year and 12th time in program history.