Burton Earns PBC Women's Soccer Player of the Year Honors

EVANS, Ga. - Armstrong Atlantic State senior forward Kristin Burton has been named the 2009 Peach Belt Conference's women's soccer Player of the Year, announced on Friday prior to the PBC Final Four in Evans, Ga.

The league's leading scorer for this season and for her career, Burton earns the PBC Player of the Year honor for the third time in her four seasons as a Pirate - the first PBC women's soccer player to be named the league's Player of the Year thrice. She currently ranks sixth in NCAA Division II in goals per match and her 90 career tallies are the 11th most in NCAA Division II history.

The Ocala, Fla., native will finish her career as the most decorated women's soccer player in Peach Belt Conference history - she was the league's Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year in 2006, as well as the league's Player of the Year last season. She was also awarded the "Golden Ball" award as the league's top scorer on Friday, the second straight season she has earned that honor. In her career, 13 times she was named the PBC Player of the Week, a high for any PBC student-athlete in any sport.

Burton was also a first-team forward for the No. 21-ranked Pirates as the All-PBC first and second teams were announced on Friday. Joining Burton on the first team were junior Carey Patterson and freshman Morgan Mitchell.

Patterson, the Pirates' team captain, has logged the second-most minutes for AASU this season despite missing two matches because of an injury. She delivered the assist on Erin Holt's match-winning goal in a 1-0 win over GCSU on Oct. 7 - the only loss GCSU suffered in the league this season - and her play in the back line has helped AASU record a 1.02 GAA.

Mitchell, meanwhile, has had an outstanding season as the Pirates' starting holding midfielder. She ranks second on the Pirates in goals scored (9) and assists (6) and ranks among the Peach Belt Conference's top 10 in both categories. She delivered the match-tying goal against then-No. 21 Tusculum on Oct. 19 in a 2-2 draw and has also found the net against Tampa, Wingate, Florida Southern, Lander, Montevallo and UNC Pembroke.

The trio are next in action today as the second-seeded Pirates take on the third-seeded Lander Bearcats in the PBC Semifinals at 5:00 p.m. at Blanchard Woods Park in Evans, Ga.