Hawkeye Fan Shop — A Black & Gold Store | 24 Hawkeyes to Watch 2018-19
IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa junior midfielder Natalie Winters was voted as the Hawkeye soccer program’s Most Valuable Player during its annual team banquet.
Winters was also named the Offensive Player of the Year, while senior defender Morgan Kemerling earned Defensive Player of the Year and the Hawk Award.
Freshman Riley Whitaker was voted as the team’s Newcomer of the Year.
Winters, a Plymouth, Michigan, native earned the first team MVP and Offensive Player of the Year honor of her career. This is the second team award she has earned during her career, as she earned Newcomer of the Year honors in 2016. The junior midfielder was a third-team All-Big Ten and third-team all-region selection after leading the Hawks in goals (5), assists (3), points (13), shots (49), and shots on goal (21).
Kemerling earned her third Defensive Player of the Year honor and second Hawk Award of her career. The Aurora, Illinois, native played 90 or more minutes as Iowa’s central defender in 16 of the Hawkeyes’ 18 games this season, logging 1,678 minutes.
The Hawk Award is presented to players that are strong in the classroom, community, and on the soccer field. It honors a player that displays hard work, dedication, and selflessness, and has a desire to improve on a daily basis.
Freshman defender Riley Whitaker earned Newcomer of the Year honors after starting 17 games. She registered one goal, one assist, three points, and put five of her six shots on goal.
The Hawkeyes finished the 2018 season with an overall record of 8-7-3, going unbeaten at home with a record of 7-0-3.
