(Photo: Courtesy of Spring Arbor Athletics)
By, Chris Bauman | JTV Sports | December 8th, 2018
Spring Arbor, Michigan– The 2018 NAIA Women’s Soccer All-America Teams were announced Tuesday and Spring Arbor University had four players selected to the teams. Headlining the awards was Bethany Balcer (Hudsonville, MI / Unity Christian), who was named the 2018 NAIA National Player of the Year for the second time in as many seasons, and for the third time in her career.
Casandra Besteman (Hudsonville, MI / Unity Christian) and Malorie Henderlong (Crown Point, IN / Eastern Illinois) were both named to the All-America Second Team while Lauren Orr (Hudsonville, MI / Unity Christian) was recognized as an Honorable Mention selection. Besteman, a senior midfielder, Henderlong, a junior center back, and Orr, a senior midfielder, were the backbone of a Spring Arbor defense that recorded 16 shutouts in 2018 – the second-most in the country this season. The Cougars ranked first in the NAIA in goals allowed per game, conceding just 10 goals over 23 contests for a 0.43 goals against average.
Spring Arbor finished the season with an overall record 20-2-1 and advanced to the semifinal round of the NAIA Women’s Soccer National Championship for the fourth straight season. The senior class will go down as the winningest class in program history compiling an astounding 89-6-4 record, four Crossroads League championships, three national final appearances and two NAIA national championships.
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