New Mexico defender Emily Chavez earned this week’s Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week honors, the conference announced Monday.
Chavez helped the Lobos' back line to two shutouts over the weekend, a 1-0 victory at Colorado and a 3-0 win at Air Force. The Lobos limited both teams to 11 shots in the two games (seven against Colorado College and four against Air Force). The defense contained Colorado College’s leading scorer Sarah Schweiss to no shots.
The wins locked up a bid in next week’s Mountain West Tournament in San Diego and propelled UNM to second place in the league standings.
In addition to her defensive performance, Chavez recorded an assist on forward Madisyn Olguin’s second goal against Air Force on Sunday.
Chavez also became the first Lobo player to earn both the conference offensive and defensive players of the week in their career, according to a UNM release, after receiving the offensive award last season. San Diego State’s Noelle Joglet and Tiffany Hurst are the only other two players in conference history to achieve that feat.
"It's a great honor, but it's definitely a team effort," Chavez said in a statement from UNM. "The best thing about the weekend was getting two wins."
The conference tabbed San Diego State forward Angela Mitchell as its offensive player of the week after she scored two goals against Colorado College. The win secured the Aztecs with the regular-season title.
UNM and San Diego State conclude the regular season this Friday at the UNM Soccer Complex. The Lobos will secure the No. 2 seed as long as they match San Jose State’s result this weekend.
J.R. Oppenheim is the managing editor for the Daily Lobo. Contact him at managingeditor@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @JROppenheim.
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