Aug. 25, 2008

Rice redshirt junior Anne Candee, making her return to the pitch after a back injury sidelined her, was named the first C-USA Offensive Player of the Week for the 2008 season. East Carolina senior Madison Keller was named the C-USA Defensive Player of the Week. Candee and Keller both led their respective teams to a pair of wins to open the season.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Anne Candee, Rice
Junior, MF/F, Dallas, Texas
Candee became only the fifth player in Rice history to score three goals in a single game, registering the hat trick against UTSA on Sunday. In making her first start since she suffered a back injury after the 2005 season, Candee quickly made up for lost time. The Dallas, Texas, native scored in the fourth minute against UTSA and added back-to-back goals in the second half to put the game out of reach for good. Candee came off the bench in the Owls' opening game against Sam Houston State on Friday night. For the week, Candee took a team-high 11 shots and maintained a .273 shots-percentage. Her shots-on-goal percentage was .545.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Madison Keller, East Carolina
Senior, Defender, Clarksburg, Md.
Keller started both games for the Pirates this weekend as ECU jumped out to a 2-0-0 start with a 1-0 shutout against Western Carolina and a 2-0 road win at Francis Marion. The Clarksburg, Md., native anchored the ECU defense that allowed just 11 total shots in 180 minutes and only two on goal. That stalwart defense was key in delivering Pirate goalkeeper Amber Campbell her 23rd career shutout to break the school record.