Long Beach, Calif. — Penn State women’s soccer standouts Christine Nairn (Arnold, Md.) and Tani Costa (Honolulu, Hawaii) were represented on the TopDrawerSoccer.com National Teams of the Year on Thursday. Nairn was a first-team selection, while Costa landed on the All-Rookie Honorable Mention list.
Nairn, the 2009 TopDrawerSoccer.com Rookie of the Year, was Penn State’s lone representative on any of the Teams of the Year by the soccer website. Nairn was a vital cog in the Nittany Lion attack this year, compiling seven goals, six assists for 20 points. She tallied three game-winning goals, while running the PSU offense through the midfield. Last season, she earned top honors as the nation’s best freshman, while Danielle Toney (Northville, Mich.) and Katie Schoepfer landed on the TopDrawerSoccer second and third teams, respectively. Nairn was an All-Big Ten First Team selection for the second straight year in 2010.
Costa had a breakout year for the Nittany Lions as the redshirt-freshman led the team in goals (nine) and points (23), while adding a second-best five assists. The powerful Hawaiian played an important role for Penn State, helping guide an incredible turnaround that saw the Nittany Lions go 9-2-0 before a season-ending 2-1 loss to West Virginia in the NCAA Second Round. Costa’s play garnered a spot on the All-Big Ten Second Team and All-Freshman squad this season.
Penn State finished its season 11-9-1 with an NCAA Second Round appearance. PSU graduates Toney and co-captain Megan Monroig (Northumberland, Pa.), but will return nine starters from a team that captured a share of its 13th straight Big Ten title, a women’s athletic record in the conference