NEW ORLEANS – James Madison freshman forward Ginny Lackey has been named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year to headline the league’s 2024 all-conference teams and individual awards following a vote by the league’s 14 head coaches.
Lackey is the first freshman in Sun Belt history to be named Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the same season. She closed the regular season tied for the Sun Belt lead in total points (29) and tied for second in total goals (11) despite not making her collegiate debut until the team’s sixth match of the season. Her nine goals scored in league matches led all Sun Belt players.
South Alabama sophomore midfielder Irene Campo became the fourth Jaguar in as many years and the fifth in the last six seasons to be named Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year. Campo started all 18 matches and led the Sun Belt with 12 goals, tied for first in points (29) and recorded five assists. Her point total ranks tied for 14th nationally, as her 12 goals rank 16th.
Old Dominion sophomore center back Ashlynn Kulha collected Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year honors after guiding a Monarch defense to a 0.82 goals against average and nine shutouts. She played every minute in all 18 matches while also adding a goal against James Madison on Sept. 29. Leading a field unit that also had three freshmen alongside her, Kulha was tabbed Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week in back-to-back consecutive weeks.
Old Dominion senior goalkeeper Emily Bredek was picked as the Sun Belt Goalkeeper of the Year for the second year in a row, becoming the first to accomplish the feat. Bredek was responsible for five of the team’s league-best nine shutouts and led the conference in goals against average (0.76) and save percentage (.805). She earned Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week one time and recorded at least five saves on three occasions, including a season-high nine stops in a 2-0 league win over Texas State on Oct. 18.
After playing one season at Mississippi State, sophomore midfielder Kaylie Smith transferred to Texas State where she blossomed into being named the Sun Belt’s Newcomer of the Year. Smith started all 19 matches and logged 1,314 minutes for the Bobcats while recording three goals and a team-high 5 assists on the season. She shared the team lead in goals (3), assists (3) and points (9) against conference foes and delivered the game-winning goal in a 1-0 victory at App State on Oct. 27.
Lackey collected James Madison’s first Sun Belt Freshman of the Year award after holding the nation’s longest scoring streak with at least one goal in nine-consecutive matches between Sept. 15 and Oct. 23. The Manchester, England native has netted five game-winning goals – a number that ranks tied for eighth nationally – while her 11 total goals are also tied for the second most by a freshman in NCAA Division I this season.
In just his third season in the Sun Belt and seventh overall as the head coach at James Madison, Joshua Walters led the Dukes to their first regular season conference championship as just the ninth team in league history to go unbeaten in league play. James Madison closed the regular season unbeaten in 11 consecutive matches. The Dukes rank eighth nationally in assists per game (2.76), 11th in points per game (7.24) and 13th in fewest fouls per game (6.47).
James Madison led the way with five all-conference team selections, including three first-team members and two more on the second team. Old Dominion was next with four honorees, followed by Texas State with three, as App State, Georgia Southern, and South Alabama had two selections apiece.
Bredek and Georgia State sophomore striker Aaliyah Faddoul earned All-Sun Belt First Team honors for the second consecutive season. Additionally, Campo, James Madison senior Lexi Vanderlinden, App State graduate forward Izzi Wood and ULM senior midfielder Mara Grutkamp collected All-Sun Belt recognition for the second time in their careers. Vanderlinden was a second-team choice in 2022, while the other three were second-team picks in 2023.
The
2024 Sun Belt Women’s Soccer Championship kicks off November 4 - 9 at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex in Foley, Ala.
2024 Sun Belt Conference Women’s Soccer Awards
Player of the Year
Ginny Lackey, James Madison (Fr., F, Manchester, England)
Offensive Player of the Year
Irene Campo, South Alabama (So., M, Santander, Spain)
Defensive Player of the Year
Ashlynn Kulha, Old Dominion (So., D, Holly Springs, N.C.)
Goalkeeper of the Year
Emily Bredek, Old Dominion (Sr., GK, Huntington Beach, Calif.)
Newcomer of the Year
Kaylie Smith, Texas State (So., M, Corpus Christi, Texas)
Freshman of the Year
Ginny Lackey, James Madison (Fr., F, Manchester, England)
Coach of the Year
Joshua Walters Sr., James Madison (7th Season)
All-Sun Belt Conference First Team
F – Aaliyah Faddoul, Georgia State (So., Ontario, Canada)
F – Ginny Lackey, James Madison (Fr., Manchester, England)
F – Mady Soumare, Texas State (Jr., Paris, France)
F – Izzi Wood, App State (Gr., Hickory, N.C.)
M – Irene Campo, South Alabama (So., Santander, Spain)
M – Mara Grutkamp, ULM (Sr., Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany)
M – Lexi Vanderlinden, James Madison (R-Sr., Seminole, Fla.)
D – Ashlynn Kulha, Old Dominion (So., Holly Springs, N.C.)
D – Kate Nicolson, South Alabama (Sr., Stirling, Scotland)
D – Jordan Yang, James Madison (Jr., Clifton, Va.)
GK – Emily Bredek, Old Dominion (Sr., Huntington Beach, Calif.)
All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team
F – Eleanor Ashton, Coastal Carolina (Fr., Manchester, England)
F – Amanda Attanasi, James Madison (Sr., Washington Township, N.J.)
F – Rhea Kijowski, Old Dominion (Sr., Waynesburg, Pa.)
M – Andrea Balcazar Algarin, Old Dominion (Jr., Mexico City, Mexico)
M – Smith Cathey, Georgia Southern (Sr., Madison, Ga.)
M – Ellie Garrison, App State (Fr., Trinity, N.C.)
M – Adaira Nakano, Southern Miss (Sr., Ontario, Canada)
D – Kennley Bradley, Texas State (Sr., Ogden, Utah)
D – Claire Casey, Georgia Southern (Fr., Williamston, Mich.)
D – Jamie Swartz, James Madison (Jr., Palmyra, Pa.)
GK – Katelyn Chrisman, Texas State (Sr., Belton, Texas)