Dec. 1, 2004

VILLANOVA, Pa. - After posting a 14-6-2 record and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Championship, Villanova was honored on Wednesday with four of its players named to the NSCAA All Mid-Atlantic teams. Junior defender Laura Koch (Blackwood, N.J.) was named to the first team, while sophomore goalkeeper Jillian Loyden (Vineland, N.J.), senior defender Michelle Biehl (Southampton, Pa.) and senior forward Laura Johnson (Ambler, Pa.) were each named to the second team.

Koch was a key component of a Wildcat defense that allowed less than one goal per game this season, and posted 10 shutouts in 22 games. Her play on Villanova's back line was recognized during the season, as Koch was named to the Soccer Buzz Elite Feet National Team of the Week on November 3. That honor came after the sixth-seeded Wildcats blanked third-seeded West Virginia 1-0 in the Big East Quarterfinals. It was the second time during the season that Villanova dealt the nationally ranked Mountaineers a 1-0 loss on their home field. Koch earned Big East all-conference honors for the first time in her career, meriting a spot in the third team. The all-region honors are the second in as many years for Koch, who was named second team All Mid-Atlantic region in 2003.

Biehl was another member of the Wildcat defensive line, and also was one of five Wildcat seniors that concluded their careers this season with a 56-19-15 (.706) record. In 2001, the senior class joined a program that had never been to the NCAA Championship and proceeded to lead Villanova to four straight appearances in the field of 64. Biehl, who last season became the first Wildcat to earn back-to-back All-America honors, has earned all-conference and all-region honors every year during her career. She was a second team All-Big East choice for the third year in a row this season, and was also an all-rookie pick in 2001. Biehl was also named to the Mid-Atlantic third team in 2001 and the first team in each of the past two seasons. This season, she was named to the Soccer America National Team of the Week on September 27 and November 1, and was chosen for the Soccer Buzz Elite Feet National Team of the Week on September 29.

The Villanova defense was anchored by Loyden, a sophomore keeper who made her collegiate debut this season. Loyden started every game for Villanova and allowed just 16 goals while making 102 saves and posting eight shutouts. She compiled a 0.73 goals-against average and .864 save percentage along the way to being named to the all-conference third team. Loyden was the Big East Goalkeeper of the Week on three different occasions this season, and was the ECAC Goalkeeper of the Week on September 20. She stepped up her level of play late in the season, averaging 7.0 saves per game during the Wildcats four postseason games. In the 1-0 loss to Princeton in a second round NCAA game, Loyden matched her season high with 10 saves, and held a high-powered offense that ranks ninth in the country in goals per game off the scoreboard until the 103rd minute.

Johnson is another member of the Wildcats standout senior class, and she earns all-region honors for the third straight season. Johnson was also a third team pick in 2003 and a second-team selection in 2000. Johnson led Villanova this season with nine goals and six assists for 24 points. She scored the team's only two goals in a 2-1 victory over Yale in a first round NCAA game, and graduates tied for the school's career assists record (28). Her biggest goals came in crucial situations, as she led the Wildcats with five game-winning tallies in 2004. Johnson was a first team all-conference selection for the second time this season. She was also a first team choice in 2002, and was an all-rookie pick in 2001. Johnson also excels in the classroom, and was voted to the Cosida Academic All-District II first team.

The NSCAA selected one goalkeeper, three defenders, three midfielders and four forwards to each of three all-region teams. Only Penn State and Virginia, with five members each, had more players selected than Villanova. The Wildcats competed in the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive season before being eliminated by Princeton 1-0 in double overtime of a second round game.