Georgia Gwinnett College senior defender Stina Andersson has been named the Women's Soccer Player of the Year in the Association of Independent Institutions for the 2018 regular season.

This was among four significant awards bestowed upon GGC players during the pre-championship banquet Thursday on the eve of the conference's championship tournament, starting Friday morning at the Grizzly Soccer Complex.

Andersson has scored six goals so far this fall, including three game-winning tallies, and helped GGC's defensive unit set a single-season school record with 10 shutouts. She is the fourth GGC women's soccer player to be named the A.I.I. Player of the Year, joining former players Jocelyn Baker (2013) and Tiffany Rodriguez (2016), and current teammate senior Ana Gonzalez (2017).

Junior Elisa Randel was named the Goalkeeper of the Year after helping lead the nationally ranked Grizzlies to the top seed in this week's conference tournament. The team also has recorded wins against No. 1-ranked William Carey University (Miss.), No. 10 Lindsey Wilson College (Ky.) and No. 17 University of Mobile (Ala.) – all coming since Oct. 19.

Freshman midfielder Joy Mertzig received the A.I.I. Newcomer of the Year award. She ranks second on the team with seven goals and is tied with a team-leading six assists. Mertzig has scored three game-winning goals so far this fall.

For the second straight year, Head Coach Dr. Mike Giuliano was named Coach of the Year. He has led GGC to a 14-3 record, an all-time best No. 7 ranking in the final NAIA Top 25 poll and a four-match winning streak.

The 2018 Grizzlies had 10 members receive all-conference recognition, highlighted by six first-team selections. These players are senior defender Macarena Errazuriz, senior midfielders Lauren Moss and Nicole Rodriguez, and senior forward Caitlin Berry along with Andersson and Randel. Second-team choices were senior defenders Maddy Keenan and Amanda Yarger, freshman forward Victoria Bischof and Mertzig.

Seniors Ellinor Bertilsson and Sam Helmink were named to the A.I.I. Champions of Character team.

GGC, the tournament's top-seeded team, hosts No. 4-seed Washington Adventist University (Md.) in a semifinal match on Friday, Nov. 9, at 11 a.m. at the Grizzly Soccer Complex. The winner advances to the championship match on Saturday, Nov. 10, at 4 p.m. The A.I.I. tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the NAIA national tournament.

2018 Association of Independent Institutions Women's Soccer All-Conference Honors
Player of the Year: Stina Andersson
Goalkeeper of the Year: Elisa Randel
Newcomer of the Year: Joy Mertzig
Coach of the Year: Dr. Mike Giuliano
 
First Team
GK – Elisa Randel
D – Stina Andersson
D – Macarena Errazuriz
M – Lauren Moss
M – Nicole Rodriguez
F – Caitlin Berry
 
Second Team
D – Maddy Keenan
D – Amanda Yarger
M – Joy Mertzig
F – Victoria Bischof
 
Champions of Character
Ellinor Bertilsson
Sam Helmink