Yael Averbuch North Carolina

Kerri Hanks Notre Dame

Heather O'Reilly North Carolina

Cary, N.C. – The Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year, the Big East’s Offensive Player of the Year, and a current member of the U.S. Women’s National Team comprise the three finalists for the 2006 women’s Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy, the highest individual honor in intercollegiate soccer. The finalists were determined in voting by Division I women’s soccer coaches who are members of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA).

North Carolina’s Yael Averbuch, Notre Dame’s Kerri Hanks and North Carolina’s Heather O’Reilly are the three finalists for the award. The trio will be invited to the Busch Center on the campus of Saint Louis University on Saturday, Dec. 2, for a news conference where the winner of the award will be revealed. The announcement will be carried live on ESPNews (6:45 p.m. EST). A banquet at the Club that evening will feature the formal presentation of the prestigious crystal soccer ball trophy to the winner.

Averbuch, a sophomore midfielder from Upper Montclair, N.J., was named Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year after scoring 16 goals to top the Tar Heel scoring chart. She has seven game-winning goals, also a team best. Averbuch was named ACC Player of the Week twice during the 2006 season. She established an NCAA women’s soccer record by scoring four seconds into a victory against Yale Sept. 3. Averbuch is a member of the U.S. Women’s U-20 National Team.

Hanks, a sophomore forward from Allen, Texas, was named the Big East Conference Offensive Player of the Year after leading the nation in goals (22) and assists (20). She already owns 32 different Notre Dame records. This season, Hanks became the first player in ND history to reach 50 career goals prior to her junior season. In 2005, she was the Big East Conference Rookie of the Year and finished in the top 15 in M.A.C. Hermann Trophy voting.

O’Reilly, a senior forward from East Brunswick, N.J., has accumulated points on ten goals and 15 assists. She earned NSCAA National Player of the Week honors Sept. 27. O’Reilly is a three-time All-ACC first-team selection. This season, ESPN The Magazine named her the Academic All-America Player of the Year. O’Reilly is a current member of the U.S. Women’s National Team, earning 46 caps. She was a M.A.C. Hermann Trophy finalist in 2004.

An exhibition featuring the current and past recipients of the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy is on display at the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta, N.Y. Some of the biggest names in soccer like Mia Hamm and Claudio Reyna have won the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy. For a complete list of past M.A.C. Hermann Trophy winners, log on to www.mac-hermann-trophy.org.

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