Miller, Fowler voted All-Big Sky

Montana seniors Taryn Miller and Janessa Fowler were voted All-Big Sky Conference it was announced on Tuesday, on the eve of the league tournament in Ogden, Utah.

Miller was voted first team for the second consecutive season. Fowler, an honorable-mention selection as a junior, was named to the second team.

Sophomores Claire Howard and Kennedy Yost were named honorable mention for a Montana team that will take the No. 5 seed into the tournament, which opens on Wednesday.

The Grizzlies will face No. 4 Northern Arizona at 3 p.m. in the quarterfinal round.

Eleven members of the 12-player first team will be in action this week in Ogden. Regular-season champion and tournament host Weber State had a league-high three first-team selections.

No. 2 Idaho, No. 3 Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona had two each, with Montana, No. 6 Eastern Washington and Sacramento State each putting one player on the first team, which had nine seniors.

Only Northern Colorado senior Mariel Gutierrez was a unanimous first-team selection, giving her four for her career. Eastern Washington senior Jenny Chavez becomes a three-time, first-team selection.

Miller was one of three players to earn first-team accolades for the second time.

Gutierrez, who led the league during the regular season with eight goals, was named the Offensive MVP and collected the Golden Boot award as well. Idaho senior Kelly Dopke was voted the Defensive MVP.

Idaho senior Makayla Presgrave and Northern Arizona sophomore Taryn Benham, backstops of the Big Sky's top two statistical defenses, were named co-Goalkeeper of the Year.

Northern Colorado's Lindsi Jennings and Weber State's Olivia Barton, both freshmen and both second team, were voted co-Top Newcomer.

Miller, the Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year as a junior, helped Montana record a 1.03 goals-against average during the regular season, with seven shutouts under first-year coach Chris Citowicki.

Miller stands out because of her size first -- she's six-foot and rock solid -- but it's her skill in the air and with the ball at her feet that separate her from like-sized center backs.

"Taryn is a pretty quiet kid. She's not that vocal, she doesn't scream and shout. Instead it's leadership by example all the time with her," said Citowicki.

"It's not uncommon to see big, strong defenders, but given her ability to hit the ball out of the back, she's an amazing, complete soccer player, not just a big kid who can kick the ball far. She brings so much more to the table."

Fowler earned second-team honors as a midfielder, but Citowicki had to list her on his ballot somewhere.

She began her season -- not until four weeks into the schedule as she overcame the effects of a spring concussion -- at holding midfielder. When Miller missed the Idaho State-Weber State road trip with her own concussion, Fowler moved to center back.

And with Montana struggling to score goals, she made her most recent move to center forward. It's maybe not a surprise that the team's offensive execution is the best it's been all fall since her move up the field.

"How versatile has she been? She's gone from holding mid, because she can shut everybody down, to playing central defender for us. We shut out Idaho State and narrowly lose to Weber State in a game she scores and has four of our five shots on goal as center back," said Citowicki.

"Then we start playing her up front, and she's become our best center forward. I think she's been one of the best forwards in the league, a position she's never played. She just goes out there naturally and is incredible at it, so she's done everything."

Howard, named honorable mention for the second time, is a big reason Montana has lost just eight times this season, only one more than the Grizzlies did last fall, when they won 10 matches, compared to four this year.

That's because Montana has six draws, four of which have come in 0-0 deadlocks, two in 1-1 ties. With the Grizzlies scoring just four goals in their first 10 matches, it was Howard and the defenders in front of her who kept Montana competitive and in games.

Outside of road trips to Arizona State and Washington State of the Pac-12, Montana has allowed one or fewer goals in 11 of its 16 matches this season.

One save in particular may have done more to keep the Grizzlies on the path toward the postseason than any other, when she climbed the ladder to make a save in the 109th minute in Montana's 0-0 home draw with Eastern Washington. It was a shot that had GAME WINNER stamped all over it.

"Eastern was going to beat us, because that shot was going into the top corner," said Citowicki. "The game ends as a tie because of Claire. There have been games like that all season, when she's done something incredible."

Howard has seven shutouts this season, 14 for her career, which puts her on pace to break Kailey Norman's program record of 24. That she's done it by needing to make fewer than four saves per match in her career reveals all that's special about her.

"All these (all-conference) players have an added layer. Hers is her ability to organize and communicate and just shut things down before they even get to her," said Citowicki.

"She sees the whole picture and tells people where to go and where to be. And if the ball does happen to get through, she'll clean up the mess. She's elite."

Yost had one goal and one assist last season in 21 matches as a redshirt freshman. She's come on strong as a sophomore, sharing the team lead with four goals and nine points. Her 22 shots on goal lead the team.

Like most good things, it's only come through hard work. And a coach who's not going to stop until he gets the most out of Yost, who may only be making a one-time stop in honorable mention land.

"She's playing the level of soccer she should be playing," said Citowicki. "There had been ups and downs with her, so we challenged her to even things out.

"There won't be any seniors next year, so we've been expecting more from her now. We told her we needed her to be a leader now that she's older. All those personal challenges have led to a more consistent Kennedy on the field, which has led to awards like this and even more in the future."

All four of Yost's goals have come since the start of league, when she put Montana up 1-0 on Northern Colorado back on Sept. 23.

She helped Montana salvage a 1-1 draw with Idaho with a late penalty kick, she scored the game-winner in Montana's 3-1 victory at Sacramento State and she scored a well-earned goal on Friday at Cal Baptist, when she weaved her way past a pair of defenders before scoring from 18 yards out.

"She is just starting to peak. She can be even better," said Citowicki. "Wait until she is at full confidence. She's going to be amazing the next two years. This is just the beginning for Kennedy."

University of Montana Athletics

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