NEW ORLEANS – ULM sophomore forward Skylar Blaise has been named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year to headline the league’s 2025 all-conference teams and individual awards following a vote by the league’s 14 head coaches.
Blaise becomes the first ULM player to earn the Sun Belt’s top individual honor after scoring a league-leading 12 goals for the conference’s regular season champion who was also the only unbeaten team in league play. Blaise became ULM’s all-time scoring leader with 23 goals, as the senior captain ranks second in the conference with 27 points and is tied for the most game-winning goals with four. A two-time Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week in 2025, the San Jose, Calif., native scored six goals in the Warhawks’ final six matches while accumulating 14 points during that span. Additionally, Blaise ranks first among all players in goals (8) and points (19) against Sun Belt opponents, while holding the No. 2 spot in shots (37) and ranking third in shots on goal (18) in conference play.
James Madison sophomore forward Ginny Lackey – the 2024 Sun Belt Player of the Year – added to her trophy case as 2025 Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year. Lackey tallied a conference leading 28 points on 11 goals and six assists, while her four game-winning goals place her in a tie for the league lead. Lackey became the first Sun Belt player to log back-to-back seasons with at least 25 points since South Alabama’s Charde Hannah in 2014-15. An All-America choice as a freshman, Lackey led all Sun Belt players with three multi-goal games this season, including a three-goal effort in the Dukes’ 3-2 conference home win over Louisiana on Oct. 10.
Old Dominion junior center back Ashlynn Kulha becomes the first player in conference history to earn multiple Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year honors while taking home the award for the second year in a row. Kulha served as a leader for a Monarchs’ back line comprised freshmen and sophomores. The junior started every game and played almost every minute this season for an ODU defensive unit that ranks second in the Sun Belt in total goals allowed (14) and goals against average (0.88) this season. The Monarchs’ defense held opponents to just 24 shots on goal in conference play and finished the regular season with a +13 goal differential against Sun Belt opponents which ranks second in the conference.
Louisiana freshman Miku Kurihara secured the inaugural Sun Belt Midfielder of the Year award after leading the Ragin’ Cajuns in both goals scored (6) and points (14) during conference play. An attacking midfielder, Kurihara finished tied for the team lead in total goals scored (7) and was second in points (16). The freshman tied a single-match, school record with eight points while recording the sixth hat trick in school history to complement two assists in a win at Troy on Oct. 24.
South Alabama redshirt senior goalkeeper Sierra Giorgio was tabbed Sun Belt Goalkeeper of the Year as the last line of defense for a unit that allowed just four goals in 10 conference matches. Giorgio ranks No. 16 nationally in goals against average (0.61), No. 20 in shutouts (8) and No. 25 in save percentage .846) while leading the Sun Belt in the latter two categories. She closed the regular season with seven shutouts in conference play including a six-save effort against Marshall and what proved to be the only scoreless outing by Texas State all season. With Giorgio’s leadership, the Jags are just two shutouts shy of tying the program record for total shutouts (12) and consecutive shutouts (7).
Louisiana redshirt junior forward Salma Elhaimer becomes the first player in program history to be named Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year. Elhaimer joined the Ragin’ Cajuns as a key piece on the team’s offensive unit in 2025 following three seasons at McNeese State. The Tomball, Texas native started 16 of the 17 games in which she appeared and was third on the team in both goals scored (6) and points (15) this season. Elhaimer tallied 10 points against Sun Belt foes with four goals and two assists.
Louisiana redshirt freshman forward Carson Glenn secured the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year award after leading the team in scoring with 18 points on seven goals and four assists. Glenn’s emergence played a major part in Louisiana’s offensive transformation in 2025, which resulted in the Ragin’ Cajuns scoring 22 goals as a team in conference play to tie for the league lead after finishing third-to-last with just eight goals in 2024. Glenn scored 14 of her 18 points in conference play with five goals and four assists. The Lewisville, Texas native had a streak where she scored a goal in four consecutive league matches and had a five-match streak with at least one point. Glenn closed the regular season ranked fourth among all Sun Belt players in both goals scored and points.
In just his third season leading ULM, Roberts led the Warhawks to their first regular season conference championship in program history as just the 10th team in league history to go unbeaten in Sun Belt play. Under Roberts’ leadership, ULM’s 11 total wins are the most for the program since 2004, as the Warhawks’ six Sun Belt victories are their most since joining the conference in 2006. Picked seventh in the Sun Belt’s Preseason Coaches’ Poll, the Warhawks closed the regular season unbeaten in 13-consecutive matches while the defensive unit registered six shutouts on the year.
Old Dominion led the way with a league-leading six all-conference team selections as one of eight programs with multiple honorees. ULM and South Alabama had five picks apiece, followed by Marshall (4), James Madison (3), Louisiana (3), Texas State (3) and Georgia State (2).
Georgia State junior striker Aaliyah Faddoul earned All-Sun Belt First Team honors for the third consecutive season, as App State graduate forward Izzi Wood also collected All-Sun Belt recognition for the third time in her career.
Five others received All-Sun Belt Conference accolades for the second time in their careers, including Kulha, Lackey, James Madison senior defender Jordan Yang, Old Dominion senior midfielder Andrea Balcazar Algarin, and Texas State senior forward Mady Soumare.
The 2025 Sun Belt Women’s Soccer Championship kicks off Monday, November 3 at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex in Foley, Ala.
2025 Sun Belt Conference Women’s Soccer Awards
Player of the Year
Skylar Blaise, ULM (Sr., F, San Jose, Calif.)
Offensive Player of the Year
Ginny Lackey, James Madison (So., F, Manchester, England)
Midfielder of the Year
Miku Kurihara, Louisiana (Fr., M, Chigasaki, Japan)
Defensive Player of the Year
Ashlynn Kulha, Old Dominion (Jr., Holly Springs, N.C.)
Goalkeeper of the Year
Sierra Giorgio, South Alabama (R-Sr., GK, Vaughan, Ontario, Canada)
Newcomer of the Year
Salma Elhaimer, Louisiana (R-Jr., F, Tomball, Texas)
Freshman of the Year
Carson Glenn, Louisiana (R-Fr., F, Lewisville, Texas)
Coach of the Year
Will Roberts, ULM (3rd Season)
All-Sun Belt Conference First Team
F – Skylar Blaise, ULM (Sr., San Jose, Calif.)
F – Aaliyah Faddoul, Georgia State (Jr., Ontario, Canada)
F – Carson Glenn, Louisiana (R-Fr., Lewisville, Texas)
F – Ginny Lackey, James Madison (So., Manchester, England)
M – Helen Alormenu, Texas State (So., Accra, Ghana)
M – Andrea Iljkic, South Alabama (R-So., Littleton, Colo.)
M – Miku Kurihara, Louisiana (Fr., Chigasaki, Japan)
D – Libby Holmes, ULM (Jr. Shefford, England)
D – Ashlynn Kulha, Old Dominion (Jr., Holly Springs, N.C.)
D – Victoria Meza, Texas State (Jr., San Salvador, El Salvador)
GK – Sierra Giorgio, South Alabama (R-Sr., Vaughan, Ontario, Canada)
All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team
F – Bailey Fisher, Marshall (Sr., Hurricane, W.Va.)
F – Zamiyah Hill, South Alabama (R-Fr., Panama City, Fla.)
F – Mady Soumare, Texas State (Sr., Paris, France)
M – Marcella Alves, Marshall (Gr., Lagoa Santa, Brazil)
M – Jeanette Fieldsend, James Madison (R-So., Indiana Trail, N.C.)
M – Gry Boe Thrysoe, Old Dominion (Gr., Klarup, Denmark)
D – Fernanda Dantas, Marshall (So., Salvador, Brazil)
D – Eefje Botjer, Coastal Carolina (So., Schiffdorf, Germany)
D – Reese Gordon, Georgia State (Sr., Jacksonville, Fla.)
D – Jordan Yang, James Madison (Sr., Clifton, Va.)
GK – Jen Handy, ULM (So., Barnsley, England)
All-Sun Belt Conference Third Team
F – Ashley Economopoulos, Old Dominion (Fr., Grantville, Va.)
F – Salma Elhaimer, Louisiana (R-Jr., Tomball, Texas)
F – Izzi Wood, App State (Gr., Hickory, N.C.)
M – Andrea Balcazar Algarin, Old Dominion (Sr., Mexico City, Mexico)
M – Margret Edda Bjarnadottir, ULM (Sr., Reykjavik, Iceland)
M – Melina Descary, South Alabama (Sr., Montréal, Canada)
M – Yuliia Khrystiuk, Old Dominion (Sr., Vinnytsia, Ukraine)
D – Amelia Campanella, South Alabama (Jr., Ottawa, Canada)
D – Kajsa Ekstrom, Marshall (Sr., Umea, Sweden)
D – Beth Strutton, ULM (So., Thornton-Cleveleys, England)
GK – Ellie Goodrich, Old Dominion (Jr., Alexandria, Va.)