Center Valley, Pa. – Navy junior goalkeeper Sydney Fortson has been selected as the 2019 Patriot League Women’s Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the Year, when it was announced by the League office on Thursday. Fortson was one of 11 members on women soccer’s Academic All-Patriot League Team. This is Fortson’s second consecutive Scholar-Athlete of the Year award as she was selected as the winner in 2018.
The Navy senior goalkeeper is a Claremont, Calif., native who is pursuing a major in Aerospace Engineering and possesses a 3.91 GPA at the United States Naval Academy. She ranks fith in USNA Class of 2020 Military Order of Merit and 18th Overall of Merit. Fortson has the second-most wins in Navy women’s soccer history with a record of 40-13-6, a 0.78 goals-against average, .795 save percentage, and 27 career shutouts.
Seven of our Patriot League institutions were represented on the Patriot League All-Academic Team. Navy led the way with three members selected while Holy Cross and Loyola Maryland each had two representatives.
To be eligible for the Scholar-Athlete of the Year award and the Academic All-Patriot League Team, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative grade-point average and be a starter or key player in his/her sport. Freshmen or student-athletes in their first academic year at their school are not eligible for the honor.
The Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year for each individual sport comprises the pool of nominees for the Patriot League Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards given out during the summer.
The voting for the all-Academic squads was conducted by the League’s women’s soccer sports information directors, who could not vote for their own student-athletes.
2019 Patriot League Women’s Soccer Scholar-Athlete: Sydney Fortson, Navy, Sr., GK
Academic All-League
Sydney Cassalia, Army West Point, Jr., GK
Ali Russo, Bucknell, Sr., M
Kelly Crowley, Holy Cross, Sr., M
Jenna Barnes, Holy Cross, Jr., M/F
Krista Kissell, Lafayette, Jr., F
Annika Jansa, Lehigh, Sr., D
Sarah Bayer, Loyola Maryland, So., F
Julia Gray, Loyola Maryland, Jr., D
Sydney Fortson, Navy, Sr., GK
Cadie Higginson, Navy, Jr., M
Victoria Tran, Navy, So., M
(Note: Listed in alphabetical order by school)
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its third decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.