Angel Quintero Named Player of the Year and All-State, Phipps an All-American as 12 Players Earn All-WSC Status

College of the Canyons sophomore Angel Quintero has been named the Western State Conference (WSC), East Division Player of the Year to lead a class of 12 Cougars earning postseason awards including All-American defender Hailey Phipps. COC head coach Justin Lundin was also named WSC, East Coach of the Year.

Quintero brings the conference Player of the Year award to Canyons for the fourth time in as many seasons.

Former COC student-athlete Mari Kneisel was named WSC, South Division Player of the Year in both 2014 and 2015. Phipps earned the same honor after her freshman campaign in 2016.

Quintero finished the season with six goals and five assists through 19 games, good for 17 points. Those totals included three game winners.

Her best game of the year came on the road vs. Victor Valley College back on Oct. 20, with the Canyon High School graduate netting two goals in a 3-0 victory for the Cougars.

Quintero, who started in every game she played, also ranked fourth on the team with 30 shots and 13 shots on goal, while serving as one of the team captains.

A key component of COC's success over the past two seasons, Quintero was also named to both the 2017 California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) Southern California All-Region and All-State teams.

The Cougars had five players earn All-WSC First Team honorees with sophomore goalkeeper Jordan Burrow, freshman midfielders Alondra Solis and Crystal Sanchez, and sophomore defenders Justine Hoeft and Phipps all getting the nod.

Burrow finished the season with a record of 12-2 with five shutouts, 47 saves and a goals against average of 0.53 through 17 games.

Solis was second on the team with nine goals, including three game winners, over her 17 games. She finished the season with 19 points. Solis has also been named to the 2017 CCCAA Southern California All-Region team.

Sanchez logged seven goals and six assists to finish with 19 points, and led the team with 45 shots.

Hoeft started all 20 games for the Cougars, totaling two goals and an assist while helping to hold down COC's back line.

Likewise for Phipps, who served as a team captain and made significant contributions on the defensive side of the pitch every time she took the field. She also scored the game-winning goal in a tight 1-0 victory over Moorpark College on Oct. 3.

Phipps has also been named both a 2017 CCCAA Southern California All-Region and All-State Team member and a United Soccer Coaches Junior College Women's Division III All-American.

Included on the All-WSC Second Team were freshman forward Kylia Bradford, freshman midfielder Jennifer Roney and freshman defenders Ciera Crawford and Alexa Thornblad.

Bradford led the Cougars with 12 goals and a team-high 29 points through 19 games. Her five assists tied for second on the squad.

Roney finished the year with seven goals and two assists for 16 points across 16 games played.

Crawford and Thornblad did not score for the Cougars, but were integral parts of a COC backline that limited opponents to just 12 goals on the season.

Honorable Mention selections for the Cougars included forward Emily Aguilar and midfielder Kiara Gunn.

Aguilar scored two goals and registered three assists, while Gunn had eight goals for Canyons.

Meanwhile, Lundin wins his sixth WSC Coach of the Year award, and fourth in a row, after leading the Cougars to the program's seventh consecutive conference title. COC posted an overall record of 17-2-1 and perfect 8-0 mark vs. conference opponents.

Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.

—Story and photo by Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information