SAN FRANCISCO -- USF women's soccer midfielders
Jessica Nakae and
Amanda Whittle represented the Dons on the 2015 West Coast Conference All-Academic team, announced by the conference on Friday. This was the first time either student-athlete has earned first-team all-academic honors, but both were honorable mention choices last season.
Nakae (Torrance, Calif. / South HS) is a junior kinesiology major boasting a 3.86 GPA. She has been a fixture in the Dons' midfield this season, scoring just two goals, but one of which was a clutch game-winner in the 82
nd minute to help the Dons upset then-No. 5 BYU on Sept. 22. Nakae has also contributed three assists this season. She took home WCC Player of the Week honors on Oct. 27, while also being named to the Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Week that same week.
Whittle – a teammate of Nakae's at South High School in Torrance, Calif. – is also a junior kinesiology major with a 3.83 GPA. She is among the WCC leaders in assists this season with five, which also marks a career best for her. Whittle has scored three goals, including two game-winners on the year.
The Dons also had three student-athletes named all-academic honorable mention: sophomore
Sonja Giraud (marketing – 3.43), junior
Ali Schaffer (finance – 3.60) and senior
Madalyn Schiffel (entrepreneurship & innovation – 3.50).
Nakae, Whittle and the rest of the Dons (13-3-3, 7-1-0) head to Portland on Saturday night for a 7 p.m. kickoff that will determine whether or not USF clinches its first-ever WCC title and earns the program's first NCAA Tournament berth. The Dons need at least a tie to clinch the conference crown.
At the conclusion of each athletic season, the WCC selects an all-academic squad for each WCC-sponsored sport. To be considered, a student-athlete must maintain at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average, while also being a significant contributor to her team. This season no fewer than 62 WCC women's soccer student-athletes met the criteria for selection easily outdistancing the 53 eligible in 2014.
2015 WEST COAST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S SOCCER ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM| Name | School | Class | GPA | Major |
| Sarah Chambers Gardner | BYU | Sr. | 3.88 | Chemical Engineering |
| Michelle Craft | San Diego | Sr. | 3.80 | Biology |
| Heather Johnson | Gonzaga | Sr. | 3.77 | Business Administration |
| Parkes Kendrick | Portland | Jr. | 4.00 | Mathematics |
| Jessica Nakae | San Francisco | Jr. | 3.86 | Kinesiology |
| Bizzy Phillips | BYU | So. | 3.98 | Chemistry Education |
| Julia Sherwood | San Diego | Jr. | 3.96 | English |
| Andi Tostanoski | Santa Clara | Sr. | 3.58 | Biology |
| Julie Vass | Santa Clara | Jr. | 3.98 | Economics |
| Bri Visalli | Pepperdine | So. | 3.75 | Economics |
| Amanda Whittle | San Francisco | Jr. | 3.83 | Kinesiology |
2015 WCC WOMEN'S SOCCER ALL-ACADEMIC HONORABLE MENTIONShayda Ansari, Pacific; Hailai Arghandiwal, Santa Clara; Courtney Assumma, Pepperdine; Karley Baggerly, Gonzaga; Julia Beck, Pacific; Jocelyn Blankenship, Loyola Marymount; Ellie Boon, Portland; Sarah Carter, Gonzaga; Megan Crosson, Santa Clara; Flannery Davis, Saint Mary's; Haylee DeGrood, Portland; Hannah Diaz, Saint Mary's; Samantha Dion, Saint Mary's; Alyssa Edenstrom, Portland; Ebony Ezeji, Pacific; Jill Farley, Loyola Marymount;
Sonja Giraud, San Francisco; Eliza Hard, Pacific; Kristin Hayman, Gonzaga; Ashley Hatch, BYU; Jenna Holtz, Santa Clara; Paige Hunt, BYU; Jessica Imbrie, Saint Mary's; Megan Keeth, Santa Clara; Caitlyn Kretzschmar, San Diego; Noelle La Prevotte, Portland; Valerie Laforge, Saint Mary's; Amanda LeCave, Pepperdine; Sophia Leksan, Loyola Marymount; Cassidee Lynch, Saint Mary's; Julia McDonald, Saint Mary's; Elena Medeiros, BYU; Michele Murphy Vasconcelos, BYU; Cassidy Nicks, Loyola Marymount; Kellie Peay, Santa Clara; Lena Perry, Pacific; Stephanie Ringwood, BYU; Kristen Rodriguez, Pepperdine;
Ali Schaffer, San Francisco;
Madalyn Schiffel, San Francisco; Meghan Schoen, Pepperdine; Hannah Seabert, Pepperdine; Heather Seybert, Saint Mary's; Cheyenne Somers, Pacific; Callie Taylor, Loyola Marymount; Hannah Terry, Pacific; Jaime Turrentine, Saint Mary's; Kat Uhl, Santa Clara; Ariel Viera, Portland; Dani Weatherholt, Santa Clara; Anne Whipple, Saint Mary's
