FARMINGTON, Utah – Six Eastern Washington University women's soccer players received eight All-Big Sky Conference awards, the league office announced today (Nov. 1).
 
Taylor Matheny was named just the second Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year in program history. Madison Kem also earned the program's second Newcomer of the Year Honor.
 
Additionally, the two were named All-Big Sky first team along with teammate Sariah Keister. Mya Elder-Hammond and McKaley Goffard were named to the second team and Brooke Dunbar rounds out the honors with an honorable mention nod.
 
Matheny earns Eastern Washington's first Defensive Player of the Year award since 2006, when Tiera Como earned it in back-to-back seasons (2005, 2006). She also shares the award with Maddie Barkow from Northern Colorado, Mikayla Reed from Sacramento State and Caitlin Rogers from Montana.
 
The junior started all 18 matches for the Eagles this season and logged over 1,500 total minutes on the pitch. Matheny was a mainstay on Eastern's backline, helping the Eagles complete five shutouts during the season, including a program record four during conference play. She helped the Eagles lock down and only allow 21 goals all season, which is the second-least in program history. EWU only conceded five during conference action.
 
She was also a contributor offensively, scoring the game-tying goal in Eastern's draw over Northern Colorado in addition to one in a 2-0 win over Northern Arizona. The Richland, Wash., native also collected three assists on the season to total seven points. The accolades are the first of Matheny's career.
 
Kem, a freshman, is the program's first Newcomer of the Year recipient since 2007 when Jessica Blessard earned the honor. She started all 18 matches for the Eagles in her debut season, collecting over 1,600 minutes which was second on the team only to keeper Kelsee Winston.
 
In addition to helping the Eagles find momentum in the midfield, the Renton, Wash., native was key in pressure situations. She was called on to take two penalty kicks this season, one at Boise State and one at Portland State, and nailed both.
 
Keister, a junior, rounds out the first team picks for the Eagles. She led the Eagles in both points (13) and goals (6) all season while tallying an assist. She also ranked at the top of the conference all season in both shots (51) and shots on goal (23). The total number of shots currently ranks eighth all-time in program history for shots in a single season, while her 23 shots on goal is tied for 10^th.
 
Notably, the Lakewood, Wash., originator scored a game-winning goal in overtime during Eastern's season-opener at Nevada and the game-tying goal with 10 seconds left on the clock in a draw against Colorado State. She also scored two goals against North Dakota State and one in a 2-0 victory against Northern Arizona. This is the first postseason accolade of Keister's career.
 
This is the sixth-straight season that Eastern has had representation on the first team and the most since 2017 when the Eagles had four representatives.
 
Elder-Hammond, a sophomore, was named to the second team for her first Big Sky accolade of her young career. She appeared in all 18 matches for the Eagles and scored two goals with an assist for five points on the season. Her first multi-point game of her career came in a 3-2 win at CSU Bakersfield where she scored and assisted on Brooke Flores' game-winning shot.
 
The go-to player on set pieces and corner kicks, Elder-Hammond took 16 shots on the season with 11 on target for a .688 shots on goal percentage.
 
Goffard is a junior who also landed on the second team for the first time as an Eagle. The Kennewick, Wash., native had a breakout season as an outside left-back and recorded over 1,500 minutes of play up and down the pitch. She earned her first career point at Idaho State on an assist to Kendall Pope's game-winner and scored her first career goal in a 4-1 victory at Portland State. She appeared in and started all 18 matches in 2019.
 
Goffard was instrumental in a defensive capacity as well, helping the Eagles secure five shutouts during the regular season and only allowed five goals during conference play.
 
This is the first time since 2015 that the Eagles have placed members on the second team.
 
Dunbar rounds out the plethora of postseason awards for the Eagles with an honorable mention nod. The senior received Big Sky Player of the Week back on Oct. 15 after she scored two goals in a 3-0 shutout at Idaho State and the postseason selection marks the first accolade of her career.
 
The Santa Rosa, Calif., native ranked second on the team all season with 10 points, tallying four goals and two assists. Three of her goals and eight of her points came during conference play. A key score came in the final five minutes of play against South Dakota to send the game into overtime where the Eagles earned a draw.
 
Eastern Washington wrapped up the regular season with an overall record of 9-7-2 and 6-2-1 in conference play. The Eagles have locked in the No. 3 seed for the upcoming Big Sky Tournament, and will play No. 6 Portland State in the quarterfinals on Nov. 6 at 11 a.m. Pacific time in Greeley, Colo.