MOUNT PLEASANT - Seniors Liesel Toth and Claire Horton were named to the 2011 NCAA Division I All-Great Lakes Team last week, the National Soccer Coaches Association of America announced.
The Chippewas co-captains became the 16th and 17th Great Lakes All-Region Team selections in program history as Toth earned first-team honors and Horton was a third-team selection.
"It is great to see Liesel and Claire cap off their careers with this fantastic honor," head coach Neil Stafford said. "There are so many great players in this region of the country and for them to be recognized by other coaches is a credit to them and how they've played the game. For them to have won this award in the past speaks volumes about how consistent they have been as players, which is a very difficult task in itself."
Toth (Victor, N.Y./Victor HS) became the Chippewas' second first-team selection in three years, joining 2009 first-team honoree Bailey Brandon. The senior started all 21 games on a defense that posted a Mid-American Conference record by allowing just seven goals during the regular season. Toth was the MAC's Defensive Player of the Year, earned first-team All-MAC honors, and also was named to the Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District V Second Team.
She is just one of two players in program history to earn All-MAC honors four times and is the only player in program history to earn Great Lakes All-Region accolades three times, having been named a second-team selection in 2009 and 2010.
Horton (Royal Oak, Mich./Royal Oak HS) was named to the all-region third team for the second time in career, as she was also a third-team selection in 2009. The midfielder also started every game of her senior campaign and earned first-team All-MAC honors. She scored game-winning goals in back-to-back games versus Ball State and Eastern Michigan, and led the Chippewas with five assists in 2011.
Both Toth and Horton started every game of their careers, a streak that stretched to 87, and are part of the all-time winningest class in program history with 60 career wins. They claimed back-to-back Mid-American Conference regular season and tournament titles in 2009 and 2010, the first two in program history, and helped the Chippewas claim their first NCAA Tournament win in 2009 over No. 24 Purdue, 2-0.
