Women's Soccer 11/1/2023 11:00:00 AM Chris Brannick

Amaya Grace Named First Team All-MIAA, Six Bronchos Recognized

Central Oklahoma Has Six Players Recognized For Efforts With All-MIAA Postseason Awards

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The MIAA announced Wednesday its annual postseason awards for women's soccer and six Central Oklahoma players earned recognition for their play during the 2023 season.

READ THE MIAA RELEASE HERE

Amaya Grace was named First Team All-MIAA and Emma Nicholas was named Second Team All-MIAA. Madison Linavong, Kassidy Collins, Linsey Gordon, and Avery Holland were all named Honorable Mention All-MIAA.

Grace came back for a fifth year and the graduate student from Little Elm, Texas ranked among the best in the MIAA. Grace ranked second in goals both scored (10) and points (22). She also ranked ninth in both shots (41) and shots on goal (21).

Grace scored a goal in eight games, including six goals in the last four games of the season. That stretch ended with a hat trick on the final day of the season. Grace was named MIAA Offensive Player of the Week earlier this week after her recent offensive outburst. She also earned Second Team All-MIAA in 2022.

Nicholas, a true freshman from Tulsa, had an assist in her first career game and scored her first goal in her third career game. She was instrumental in the middle of the field and played 1,347 minutes, appearing in every game this season and making 16 starts.

Linavong served a similar role distributing the ball in the middle this season for the Bronchos. The junior from Allen, Texas and now three-time All-MIAA recipient. She earned Honorable Mention as a freshman and Third Team All-MIAA as a sophomore. Linavong had two assists in 1,058 minutes this fall.

Three of four backline players were all honored in Collins, Gordon, and Holland. The trio played over 4,300 minutes this season and helped the Bronchos to six shutouts.

Collins scored a goal in the season finale and was named MIAA Defensive Player of the Week. She is also a three-time award winner in the MIAA. Collins earned Second Team All-MIAA as a second-year freshman in 2021. She was Honorable Mention in 2022 as well.

Gordon earns the honor for the first time in career at UCO. The steady center back from Sapulpa is just under 4,000 career minutes holding the line for the Bronchos.

Holland, like Grace, returned for a fifth year this fall and was key on defense. The Moore, Oklahoma and former Rose State outside back earned Honorable Mention for Central Oklahoma for the second year in a row. In three years at UCO, Holland has played 4,183 minutes.

Central Oklahoma has produced 73 all-conference award winners a combined 126 times in 25 years. With this year's honorees, UCO has 48 All-MIAA selections since joining the league in 2012.

The Bronchos are competing for another league championship this weekend. UCO is the No. 7 seed in the MIAA Women's Soccer Championship and will play at No. 2 seed Central Missouri Friday at 4 p.m. After four first-round quarterfinal matches Friday, the semifinalists will meet in Wichita on Thursday, Nov. 9. The final is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 11 at 8 p.m. from Stryker Sports Complex.

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Players Mentioned

#7 Kassidy Collins: D; 5' 6"; Junior

#5 Linsey Gordon: D; 5' 5"; Junior

#3 Amaya Grace: F; 5' 2"; Senior

#27 Avery Holland: D; 5' 6"; Senior

#11 Madison Linavong: MF; 5' 7"; Junior

#13 Emma Nicholas: MF; 5' 4"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#7 Kassidy Collins
: 5' 6"; Junior
: D

#5 Linsey Gordon
: 5' 5"; Junior
: D

#3 Amaya Grace
: 5' 2"; Senior
: F

#27 Avery Holland
: 5' 6"; Senior
: D

#11 Madison Linavong
: 5' 7"; Junior
: MF

#13 Emma Nicholas
: 5' 4"; Freshman
: MF