GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – In a season full of historic moments and accolades for the Colorado Mesa women's soccer program, the Mavericks hadn't grabbed multiple RMAC weekly honors in the same week so far this season. Until now, that is.
The Mavs grabbed two of the RMAC's three weekly awards as
Kylie Wells took home RMAC Offensive Player of the Week honors for the first time in her career while
Keely Wieczorek was named the RMAC Goalkeeper of the Week for the third time this season. The recognition for both players comes after the Mavericks improved their 2023 record to 11-0-1 with a pair of shutout wins over Fort Lewis and Western Colorado.
Wells earned the honor after placing her fingerprints all over CMU's 5-0 rivalry win over Western Colorado last Sunday, netting two goals and adding an assist against the Mountaineers. Wells opened the scoring with a fantastic solo goal in the 21
st minute, dribbling the ball nearly half the length of the field down the left wing before chipping the goalie with a controlled finish towards the far post. Less than 10 minutes later, Wells assisted on CMU's second goal, threading a ball through the WCU defense that
Sauvelyne Randel finished to make it 2-0. Wells added her second goal of the game in the 63
rd minute, corralling a long ball over the top from
Madison DeHerrera and scoring to make it 4-0 Mavs.
Wells has been on fire of late, with all three of her goals this season coming in CMU's last three matches. She has recorded 19 shots over her last four games, with nine of those on goal.
Wieczorek was flawless in net, making eight saves over the two wins while recording her fifth and sixth solo shutouts of the season. Wieczorek matched a career-high with five saves in the Western Colorado match and made three stops against Fort Lewis. The freshman leads the RMAC with a 0.35 goals-against average and her six shutouts and ranks second in the conference with an .879 save percentage.
With her third win, Wieczorek becomes the first Maverick goalkeeper to win three awards over her career. She already became the first CMU goalie to win multiple RMAC awards in the same season, accomplishing that feat within the first two weeks of her collegiate career. Wieczorek joins Colorado School of Mines defender Natalie Rouse, who took home this week's Defensive Player of the Week, as the only three-time or more RMAC award honorees so far in 2023.
Colorado Mesa came in at No. 6 in the latest United Soccer Coaches national poll, dropping half a spot after being tied for fifth last week with Hawaii Hilo, who remains No. 5. The Mavericks are the top-ranked team in the South Central region and are leading the coaches poll regional rankings for the fifth consecutive week.
The Mavericks have an upcoming showdown with regional No. 3 and national No. 24 UCCS this Thursday at 5 p.m. before facing CSU Pueblo on Sunday at noon.
