Perez Earns National Player of the Week Award

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The accolades are continuing to roll in for redshirt sophomore Catalina Perez of the University of Miami soccer team.

Perez was named Wednesday the College Soccer 360 National Primetime Player of the Week for Sept. 28-Oct. 4. A goalkeeper from Boca Raton, Fla., Perez was previously selected Tuesday as the ACC Defensive Player of the Week and the Top Drawer Soccer Goalkeeper of the Week.

The honors for Perez come following her 106-minute clean sheet against No. 14/4 Notre Dame to help Miami take down the Fighting Irish 1-0 in double overtime Oct. 2 at Cobb Stadium. Perez logged six saves, tying her career high, and recorded the first win and shutout of her college career.

Perez’s start against Notre Dame was her second as a Hurricane, as she filled tremendously for injured redshirt freshman Phallon Tullis-Joyce.

“Catalina made a huge save for us to stay in the game. I am really proud of her,” Miami head coach Mary-Frances Monroe said after the match. “. . . She came up big on a few of the corners. She has a lot of game experience, she has international experience. With Phallon being hurt I knew that she would be able to step right into those shoes and perform for us and play 90 minutes.”

Perez played in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup with the Colombian National Team. She started the team’s match against the United States and did not allow a goal in 47 minutes on the field in the first knockout round contest in the nation’s history.

After six days without a match, Perez and the Hurricanes take the field again Thursday night. Miami hosts the Duke Blue Devils at 7 p.m. and the action will be shown live on ESPN3 HERE.

For more information on the University of Miami soccer team, follow @CanesFutbol.

Photo courtesy of Joel Auerbach.