FARMVILLE, Va. – For Longwood women's soccer, senior goalkeeper Sara Curtis was a steadying presence and and a wall along the back line. Now, she is the Big South Goalkeeper of the Year, the conference office announced today.
 
Curtis was also a Big South First Team All-Conference selection, and she was joined on the first team by junior defender Sydney Robertson. Curtis also was named to the Big South All-Academic Team.
 
Graduate student midfielder Alex Dinger earned Big South Second Team All-Conference honors, and freshman defender Berni Wayland earned Big South All-Freshman Team honors.
 
For Curtis, she becomes the first Lancer to earn Big South Goalkeeper of the Year accolades, and she is the first player to earn one of the highest honors since Sydney Wallace was the Big South Defensive Player of the Year in 2018.
 
The senior standout posted four straight shutouts to close the year, and she notched a 0.75 goals against average, good for second-best in the Big South, in her eight conference matches. Her 0.824 save percentage ranked third in the Big South in conference matches, and she helped guide Longwood back to the Big South playoffs for the first time since 2021.
 
The Lancers didn't allow a goal in the final 373:43 of the season, and Curtis played every second of it. She played in 17 matches with 1,395 minutes, and she notched five total shutouts on the year. She held a 1.35 GAA overall while facing a grueling non-conference slate, and she made 58 saves.
 
Robertson, a starting center back who played every minute of every game. She, coupled with Curtis, provided an important spine in the back that propelled the Lancer defense to success down the stretch of the year. Robertson also tied for the team lead with two goals, and she added an assist as well. She continues the trend of Longwood center backs earning First Team All-Big South honors, joining Kylie Cahill, Carrie Reaver, Wallace, Taylor Alvey and more in the team's storied history.
 
Dinger earned her second straight second-team nod. The graduate student had an assist and was an iron woman, playing 1,549 minutes as a central midfielder. She played all 90 minutes in 14 of the 18 matches on the season, and she had an assist in a 3-1 win over Gardner-Webb.
 
Wayland came back from injury and started and played the final seven matches of the season on the way to earning all-freshman honors. She slotted in at center back and was a steady hand for the final seven matches of the season. During that run, the Lancers went 3-1-3, and the team only surrendered four goals. Much like Robinson and Curtis, she also played a huge role in the four straight shutouts to close the season.

The Lancers host Presbyterian in the first round of the Big South Championship Tournament on Saturday night, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
 
2024 Big South Conference Women's Soccer Award Winners
 
First-Team All-Conference
F – Dara Russo, Jr., USC Upstate
F – Sabba Haghgoo, Fr., High Point
F – Nya Baccelli, Sr., USC Upstate
F – Eileen Albers, Soph., Radford
MF – Margret Edda Bjarnadottir, Jr., USC Upstate
MF – Lilly Short, Jr., Radford
MF – Tessa Carlin, Gr., High Point
MF – Daniela Contreras, Sr., Charleston Southern
D – Alex DePerno, Gr., High Point
D – Helena Willson, Gr., Radford
D – Catarina Dantas, Jr., USC Upstate
D – Sydney Robertson, Jr., Longwood
GK – Sara Curtis, Sr., Longwood
 
Second-Team All-Conference
F – Paige Olson, Jr., Radford
F – Jenéa Knight, Sr., Charleston Southern
F – Mercedes McNabb, Fr., UNC Asheville
F – Sloan Spees, Jr., Presbyterian
MF – Paige Armstrong, Jr., USC Upstate
MF – Ella Williams, Jr., Presbyterian
MF – Alex Dinger, Gr., Longwood
MF – Lindsey DeHaven, Sr., High Point
D – Anna Doane, Sr., UNC Asheville
D – Lea Gossett, Sr., Gardner-Webb
D – Emily Rangel, Jr., USC Upstate
D – Gwen Keiser, Sr., Presbyterian
GK – Aubry McKessy, Gr., High Point
 
Honorable Mention All-Conference
Kelly Hall, GK, Sr., Presbyterian
Jill Silverstone, D, Jr., Radford
Ava Bjorkman-Tracy, MF, Sr., UNC Asheville
Meg Roden, MF, Soph., High Point
Danika Birch, MF, Fr., Charleston Southern
 
All-Freshman Team
Sabba Haghgoo, F, Fr., High Point
Mercedes McNabb, F, Fr., UNC Asheville
Danika Birch, MF, Fr., Charleston Southern
Berni Wayland, D, Fr., Longwood
Riley O'Bryan, MF, Fr., USC Upstate
Kari Powell, MF, R-Fr., High Point
Cassidy Oldham, D, Fr., Presbyterian
 
All-Academic Team
Gracen Beilstein, MF, Sr., Charleston Southern
Livi Tanzer, F, Sr., Gardner-Webb
Tessa Carlin, MF, Gr., High Point
Sara Curtis, GK, Sr., Longwood
Kelly Hall, GK, Sr., Presbyterian College
Ava Kertgate, MF/F, Soph., Radford
Ava Bjorkman-Tracy, MF, Sr., UNC Asheville
Kiley Johnson, D, Soph., USC Upstate
Lily Meisten, D, Sr., Winthrop
 
Offensive Player of the Year
Dara Russo, F, Jr, USC Upstate
 
Midfielder of the Year
Margret Edda Bjarnadottir, Jr., USC Upstate
 
Goalkeeper of the Year
Sara Curtis, Sr., Longwood
 
Defensive Player of the Year
Alex DePerno, D, Gr., High Point
 
Freshman of the Year
Sabba Haghgoo, F, Fr., High Point
 
Newcomer of the Year
Aubrey McKessy, GK, Gr., High Point
 
Coaching Staff of the Year
USC Upstate
 
Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Tessa Carlin, MF, Gr., High Point
 
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