Dillsaver named defensive player of the week

FAYETTEVILLE – For her part in Arkansas’ win and tie against Alabama and Auburn this past weekend, University of Arkansas senior Carrie Dillsaver was named the Southeastern Conference’s Defensive Player of the Week by the league office in Birmingham, Ala.

The honor is the second for Dillsaver this season, the first coming on Sept. 18, and also the second defensive player of the week award for any Lady Razorback since the league began the honor in 2003. Dillsaver is also just the second Lady Razorback to be afforded a second conference athlete of the week honor following in the footsteps of Arkansas’ all-time leading scorer Julie Williford who took her first honor in Sept. 2001 and her second in Sept. of 2003.

“Well, done and certainly well deserved,” Arkansas head coach Gordon Henderson said. “Although I think that Carrie would be the first to say that this is as much an award for the entire defense as it is for her. All five were magnificent this weekend. Carrie’s save in the last few minutes of the Auburn game was an outstanding reaction save and it preserved one point for our team which could prove to be invaluable at the end of the year.”

For the weekend, Dillsaver helped the Lady Razorbacks post a pair of shutouts, the first a victory over Alabama, 5-0, and the second a 0-0 tie with Auburn. She made 10 saves on the weekend and dropped her season goals against average to 0.90, the lowest by any Lady Razorback this late in the season.

In the Auburn contest, Dillsaver was tested numerous times and made her biggest save with just 37 seconds left in the second overtime when an Auburn attack down the left side allowed a point blank shot from inside the six-yard box which Dillsaver snatched out of the air. Her cat-like reflexes preserved the Arkansas tie and gave the Lady Razorbacks their first SEC weekend without a loss since 2000 and their first back-to-back SEC shutouts since 1999.

On the year, Dillsaver has broken five Lady Razorback career goalkeeping records including games played (69), games started (69), minutes played (6,335), wins (28) and shots faced (841). She is on the cusp of eclipsing the Lady’Backs all-time record for shutouts as well as several season marks. She currently holds 22 Lady Razorback season, career or class records and could have numerous others by the end of the 2006 season.

The Lady Razorbacks are back in action on Friday evening when they travel to play the University of Florida in Gainesville, Fla. For more information about Lady Razorback soccer or about Arkansas women’s athletics, please go to www.ladybacks.com.