DALLAS – On Tuesday afternoon, Conference USA announced its weekly award winners for women’s soccer. A pair of Florida Atlantic University student-athletes were named to the honors, with Bri Austin being named Offensive Player of the Week and Amanda Martin being named Defensive Player of the Week.
Bri Austin
Austin scored a goal and tallied an assist in FAU’s 2-0 win over Charlotte on Sunday. The graduate student forward assisted on Morgan McDonald’s goal in the first minute, then scored the insurance tally in the 66th minute. Austin leads FAU in goals (5) and points (14), while ranking tied for third in goals and fourth in points in the conference this season.
“I am honored to be named C-USA Offensive Player of the Week,” Austin said. “These moments wouldn’t be achievable without the hard work and dedications from my teammates and coaches. I’m excited to see what God has in store for our team as we move into the second half of our conference schedule.”
“Bri had two quality games last week – at Rice on Thursday and in our home game Sunday versus Charlotte,” FAU head coach Patrick Baker said. “We needed her to perform well, and she did. She showed great composure on the insurance goal on Sunday. She has been good for us all year and has been consistent in creating chances and scoring goals. We needed three points on Sunday, and to keep a clean sheet then score two goals is a good recipe for success.”
Amanda Martin
Martin spearheaded the FAU defensive efforts this past week. Martin played the full 90 and held down the backline as center back in the 2-0 shutout win over Charlotte, FAU’s sixth shutout of the season. Martin also went the full 90 minutes in FAU’s 1-0 defeat against Rice, where the Owls only allowed four shots. Martin has been an anchor of the FAU defensive line that ranks third in Conference USA in goals allowed with only 13 in 14 games (.93 per game).
“I am honored to be recognized as the Defensive Player of the Week by Conference USA, but I know that this could not be accomplished without my team and our coaching staff,” Martin said. “I want to thank the coaching staff for their guidance and support throughout my time here at FAU, but most importantly, I want to thank my teammates who have been with me every step of the way. Like any other year, our program is looking to succeed, but this year especially will be different as it will be our last year playing at the collegiate level for many of us. With the amount of time and effort we all dedicate, being surrounded by such an amazing group of people makes it all worth it. With that being said, we will continue to work towards the program’s goal, which is winning championships.”
“Amanda had two very good performances last week versus Rice and Charlotte,” Baker said. “Her heading presence against Rice dealing with the bigger services was of the highest level, and she read the game very well. Against Charlotte, she won a number of one-on-one individual duels and helped keep a clean sheet for a very important shutout. We are excited she received some recognition for two really good performances.”
UP NEXT
Austin, Martin and the Owls will return to action Friday, Oct. 7, against UTEP. That will also be FAU’s senior night, which will be held pregame beginning at 6:30 p.m.
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