Trio of Women's Soccer Players Honored by Northeast Conference After 2-0 Week

Central Connecticut seniors Beth Lloyd and Abby Graham and freshman Allison Kelley were all honored by the Northeast Conference on Monday, following a 2-0 week for the Blue Devils. Central defeated Hartford 3-1 at home on Friday and then went on the road to defeat Albany 3-0 on Sunday. Lloyd was named the Player of the Week, Graham the Defensive Player of the Week and Kelley was named the Rookie of the Week.

Lloyd had another productive week for the Blue Devils she led Central to a 2-0 finish of non-conference play Lloyd provided all of the offense the Blue Devils would need as she recorded her first career hat trick in a 3-1 home victory over Hartford on Friday night to earn adidas/NEC Player of the Week honors. The Blue Devils were down 1-0 when Lloyd fired her first shot to tie the game at 1-1 at the beginning of the second half on a penalty kick goal.

She scored the game-winner at 64:25 and later added her third goal for a new career-high. Lloyd added an assist in a 3-0 road victory over Albany on Sunday, her first of the season. The senior leads the Blue Devils in scoring with eight goals in seven games played. Her 17 points are a team-high and she is third in the country in goals per game.

Graham piloted a stingy Central Connecticut defensive effort last week as the Blue Devils allowed only one goal in 180 minutes of action in a pair of victories over Hartford (3-1) and Albany (3-0). Graham's backline leadership made her this week's adidas/NEC Player of the Week selection, after preventing a goal in the final 140 minutes of action in the two matches. The shutout win over Albany on Sunday was the first for Central this season. Graham had several stops for the Blue Devils on the week, helping to preserve the two wins and move the Blue Devils to 4-5 overall on the season.

Kelley had the most successful weekend of her young career as a Blue Devil, scoring two goals and adding two assists. The midfielder picks up adidas/NEC Rookie of the Week accolades by notching her first career points to help Central mark double victories over Hartford and Albany. Kelley began her week with a pair of assists in a 3-1 home victory over Hartford on Friday. She assisted on two of the three Lloyd hat-trick goals.

On Sunday the rookie did even better, stowing away two goals of her own. Her goals included the game-winner, as Central shutout Albany 3-0 to move to 4-5 on the season. After finding her form on the pitch this past weekend, Kelley has climbed to second on the team in scoring this season with two goals and two assists for six points.