PITMAN, NJ --- Montclair State senior forward Aileen Cahill (Little Egg Harbor, NJ/Pinelands Regional) and Rowan University junior defender Emma DeMaise (Wenonah, NJ/Gateway Regional) have been named the New Jersey Athletic Conference Women's Soccer Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively, for the 2023 season. 

Additionally, TCNJ junior Victoria D'Imperio (Bordentown, NJ/Northern Burlington) was tabbed NJAC Midfielder of the Year; New Jersey City University sophomore Sophia Mannino (Burlington, NJ/Burlington Township) is the Goalkeeper of the Year; Montclair State freshman Shannon Mullins (Paramus, NJ/Paramus) is the Rookie of the Year; and NJCU's head coach Anthony Tuesta and his staff were tabbed the Joe Russo Coaching Staff of the Year.

In total, 41 student-athletes earned all-conference recognition for the fall 2023 season. All-conference and major award selections were determined by a vote of the league's 10 head coaches and were based on conference-only performances.

Cahill is no stranger to the major awards, earning her fourth major award in four years including her second Offensive Player of the Year nod. She last won the Offensive Player of the Year honor in 2021. Her resume also includes 2020-21 Rookie of the Year and 2022 Co-Midfielder of the Year. The four-time all-conference honoree was MSU's top goal scorer in NJAC contests, netting six goals and assisting on three more for 15 points against NJAC foes. Her conference-only points ranked fifth among all NJAC players.

D'Imperio, a two-time all-conference honoree, marks the third consecutive Lion to win or share Midfielder of the Year accolades. A three-time Offensive Player of the Week this year, D'Imperio led all NJAC players in conference-only points (27), conference-only goals (11), conference-only game-winning goals (4), and was tied for third in conference-only assists (5). She paced a high-powered TCNJ offense that lead the NJAC by far with 46 goals in league play, averaging 2.1 more goals per game than the next highest offense.

DeMaise, now a back-to-back recipient of the Defensive Player of the Year honor, anchored a Rowan defense that allowed just one goal in conference play while posting eight shutouts en route to the regular season title. A two-time Defensive Player of the Week this year, she led a defense that limited six NJAC opponents to five or fewer shots and eight of nine opponents to single-digit shots.

Mannino anchored NJCU to a historic run through the conference season that saw the Gothic Knights finish fourth and host their first-ever tournament game. The sophomore keeper finished second among NJAC keepers in conference-only saves (61) and faced 147 shots over the course of the season. She engineered a five-game unbeaten streak for the Knights, racking up 19 saves across three straight 1-1 ties for critical conference points. That three-game streak of ties was bookended by a six-save effort in a 2-1 win over Rutgers-Camden and a seven-save effort in a 3-2 win over Kean.

Mullins had a strong first year for Montclair, as the rookie midfielder started all nine conference games and chipped in a goal and two assists for four points in NJAC play. She assisted on the game-winning goal in a tight 1-0 win over Rutgers-Camden and added a goal against Kean to help the Red Hawks make the final push to the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament. A box-to-box midfielder, Mullins was pivotal in winning possession and contributed to the success of both the offense and the defense.

Tuesta and his staff were tabbed the Joe Russo Coaching Staff of the Year for mentoring the Gothic Knights to an historic year. NJCU finished 3-3-3 in NJAC play for fourth place, the highest in program history. With that, they hosted their first-ever tournament match in program history and went on to advance to the program's first-ever semifinal appearance.