Erie, Pa. - Jamie Schroter and Sarah Powell of the Mercyhurst women's soccer team have been honored as Daktronics All-America selections, announced Tuesday afternoon. Schroter was voted to the first team, while Powell earned second team honors. Schroter and Powell were the only PSAC players on either the First or Second Team.
Schroter, a sophomore defender from Mississauga, Ontario, was a threat on set pieces all year, excelling at taking corner kicks and free kicks from distance. She finished the season with a PSAC-high 16 assists to go with five goals for 26 points. Her 16 assists were the most by any player in NCAA division II this season. Schroter is the first Mercyhurst women's soccer player to be named Daktronics All-America First Team.
She scored a goal from beyond midfield on a free kick at Slippery Rock Oct. 21 and set up a Powell goal with a 60-yard blast at Lock Haven Oct. 1. Schroter also scored a goal directly from a corner kick at West Chester Oct. 4. She set a career high by recording four assists in the Lakers’ 6-0 win at Pitt-Johnstown Sept. 1. Schroter dished out two assists in Mercyhurst’s 5-2 PSAC quarterfinal win over Slippery Rock Nov. 4 and added three assists in the NCAA tournament. She played a gritty game in the Lakers' NCAA Quarterfinal match against Saint Rose Nov. 23, serving up assists from corner kicks on goals by Taylor Hilinski and Powell. Schroter tied for the team lead with nine assists as a freshman in 2007. She also earned first-team all-conference and all-region distinctions this season.
Powell, a senior forward from McKean, Pa., capped a prolific career by scoring nine goals and one assist in six postseason contests in 2008 on the way to career highs in goals (24), points (55), game-winning goals (seven) and multiple-goal games (eight). She was named first team All-PSAC West this season, her fourth all-conference honor, and earned all-region for the third season in a row. In addition, Powell earned honorable mention Academic All-District.
She had a stretch of four consecutive games with two goals in each, beginning in the Lakers' 5-2 win over Slippery Rock in the PSAC Quarterfinal and lasting through Mercyhurst's 3-0 win over The Rock in the NCAA second round Nov. 16. That stretch of games is the best in recent program history. Powell finished the season fourth in the nation in total goals and tied for fourth in total points. She assisted on Karla Vogt's game-winning goal in the first round of the PSAC tournament and scored game-winners in the Lakers' next three postseason victories. She scored a game-tying goal in her final game, Mercyhurst's NCAA Quartefinal match against Saint Rose. Powell led the PSAC in goals and points. She amassed 73 goals and 42 assists for 188 career points in 86 games, ranking in the top five in program history in each category.
The Daktronics All-America team is voted on by sports information directors from NCAA Division II member institutions. The nominating process takes place during the season, with voting taking place on a regional basis first, with first-team all region players earning nominations on the All-America ballot. There were 21 schools represented by 33 players on the All-America team. This is the third year that Daktronics has sponsored an All-American team for NCAA Division II women's soccer. The NSCAA also releases an All-American team, voted on by coaches from member institutions, which will be released at a later date.
The last Mercyhurst women's soccer player to be named to the Daktronics All-America Team was Finella Annand, who made the second team in 2006. Annand is also the last Laker to be named to the NSCAA/adidas All-America Team, earning second team honors in 2006.
No. 17 Mercyhurst made the NCAA Quarterfinal by winning the Atlantic Region championship game, a 1-0 thriller over No. 14 West Chester Nov. 21. The Lakers set a program record for games played at 24 and outscored opponents by a 2-to-1 margin on the season (56 goals for, 28 goals against). The team went 8-1-1 over its final 10 games, playing its best soccer down the stretch. Mercyhurst had two All-Americans, one Academic All-American (Hilinski) and five All-PSAC West players (Schroter, Powell, Christine Rehnert, Hilinski and Vogt).