Oct. 29, 2017
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Auburn soccer seniors Kristen Dodson and Caroline Bado have been named First Team All-SEC while Alyssa Malonson has earned All-Freshman Team honors, the league office announced Sunday.
"We are excited for these three deserving players to be recognized by the conference," head coach Karen Hoppa said. "All of them have been major contributors to our success so far, and they are great representatives of Auburn."
Dodson earns first team honors for the second straight season, becoming the 10th player in program history to be named to the first team on multiple occasions and the eighth to do it in back-to-back seasons.
Additionally, the 2017 season marks Auburn's fourth straight with three or more all-conference honorees and its 10th with two or more first team selections.
"Kristen has been a dangerous forward all season, scoring some huge goals for us and leading our offense," Hoppa said. "Caroline is the leader of our back line and has been a dominant defender for us as well as a threat on set pieces. Alyssa has had a great freshman year and made a major impact for our team on both sides of the ball."
A year after she set the single-season program record with 38 points, Dodson again leads the Tigers with eight goals and 19 points in the current campaign. Her totals rank tied for fourth and tied for sixth in the conference, respectively, and her five goals and 12 points during SEC play were also tied for fourth.
After turning in her sixth career brace and third of the season in Auburn's fifth straight Iron Bowl win and scoring the game-winning goal against then-No. 10 Florida, Dodson not only earned SEC Offensive Player of the Week honors, but also became the first player in program history to be named the Top Drawer National Player of the Week for the second time in her career.
Entering her stretch run as a member of the Auburn soccer program, Dodson continues to climb a number of career records as she ranks fourth in program history in assists (27), points (85) and game-winning goals (10) and fifth in goals (29).
Following a four-year career at UCF, Bado came to The Plains as a graduate transfer and made an immediate impact as a member of the Tigers' back line. Constantly tasked with shutting down the opposing team's top attacking player, Bado helped lead the Auburn defense to seven shutouts during the regular season, including five in SEC play. The team's five conference shutouts were not only tied for second in the league, but also matched a program record.
The Tampa, Fla., native played a huge role in shutting down the Tennessee and Kentucky attacks at the end of September and went on to be named the SEC Defensive Player of the Week and a member of the Top Drawer National Team of the Week.
Also a first-year member of the Auburn soccer program, Malonson began the season as a forward and made the move to the back line midway through the year. Even after joining the defensive unit, Malonson made an impact on both sides of the ball. She not only contributed to the aforementioned defensive efforts, but also continued to create scoring situations for the Tigers as she tied for the team lead with six assists, which was good for a tie for eighth in the conference.
After helping Auburn to its highest offensive output of the season with an assist at Alabama and finding Dodson for the game-winning goal against Florida five days later, Malonson went on to be named SEC Freshman of the Week.
The Tigers begin postseason play with a SEC Quarterfinal matchup against Florida Tuesday, Oct. 31 in Orange Beach, Ala. Kickoff at the Orange Beach Sportsplex is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. CT.