ALTOONA, Pa. — Penn State Altoona student-athletes took both of this week’s Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference women’s soccer awards, as Dee Dee Abbott of Waldwick, New Jersey, was named the Defensive Player of the Week and Mallorie Smith of Bellefonte, was chosen as the Offensive Player of the Week.
Abbott and Smith both played starring roles for the Penn State Altoona women’s soccer team in a pair of home games against AMCC opponents last week. The Lions ended their regular season schedule with a 4-0 victory over La Roche University on Tuesday night, then cruised to a 7-0 win over Hilbert College in an AMCC Tournament first-round game on Saturday afternoon.
Abbott, a defender, helped lead a Penn State Altoona defensive unit that posted shutouts of La Roche and Hilbert last week, allowing just six shots on goal combined. She also netted her first collegiate goal while assisting on another during the Lions’ win over La Roche.
Smith, a forward/midfielder, had a big game in her team’s win against La Roche, scoring her second hat trick of the season and third of her career by putting three goals on the board. She followed that up by finishing with a goal and an assist in the Lions’ postseason tournament victory over Hilbert.
Penn State Altoona women’s soccer is 6-6-5 overall this season, including a 3-2-2 mark in the AMCC during the regular season. Following its AMCC Tournament win over Hilbert, the fourth-seeded Lions will travel to face top-seed Pitt-Greensburg in a semifinal-round matchup this Wednesday, Nov. 2, at 2 p.m.