Mari Punzal, a Kapa‘a native and graduate of Kamehameha Schools, earned a spot on the 2010 Western Athletic Conference preseason all-conference soccer team. The announcement was made Saturday following a vote by the league’s nine head coaches, according to a
Mari Punzal, a Kapa‘a native and graduate of Kamehameha Schools, earned a spot on the 2010 Western Athletic Conference preseason all-conference soccer team.
The announcement was made Saturday following a vote by the league’s nine head coaches, according to a news release from the University of Hawai‘i Athletic Department.
The UH women’s soccer team has been selected to finish sixth in the 2010 WAC Preseason Poll. Punzal will be a senior midfielder on the team.
Punzal is a two-time first-team all-WAC selection, earning back-to-back honors in her sophomore and junior seasons.
Entering her senior year, Punzal started all 58 matches in her career in the midfield and is one of two returning seniors on the squad with significant experience, the release states.
As a junior last year, she tallied two goals and three assists while leading the team in minutes played with 1,735 recorded.
Punzal will be one of the main leaders as the Rainbow Wahine look to bounce back from a 2009 campaign in which the team registered a losing mark for just the second time in the last nine years and failed to qualify for the WAC Tournament for the first time since 2000.
Hawai‘i finished in seventh in the WAC last year with a 3-5 mark.
Skye Shimabukuro of Kalaheo, a Kaua‘i High School graduate, returns as a sophomore forward and will be joined by freshman Ashlyn Ubongen, another Kaua‘i graduate.
Tiffany Ikeda-Simao, a standout defensive player with speed and power during her Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation career, returns as a junior defender.
Utah State, the preseason favorite, placed second last season in the WAC with a 5-2-1 regular season record. The Aggies received three first place votes for 59 points.
Boise State was voted to finish second, receiving six first place votes for a tally of 58 points. The Broncos won the 2009 WAC Tournament championship.
San Jose State received 40 points to place third in the preseason poll.
Utah State junior forward Shantel Flanary garnered Preseason Offensive Player of the Year honors while San Jose State junior defender Jessica Ingram was selected as the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
The 2010 WAC Soccer Tournament will be played at Lady Techster Soccer Field in Ruston, La., Nov. 4-7.
Hawai‘i opens its season on Aug. 20 when it hosts Pacific in the ‘Ohana Hotels and Resort Shootout.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Waipi‘o Peninsula Soccer Stadium.
