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Five Women of Troy Earn All-MPSF Women’s Water Polo Awards

by usctrojans.com
Apr 24, 2024

USC women's water polo has landed five players on the All-MPSF honor roll for the third straight season, with four of those Trojans earning their first set of All-MPSF accolades. Senior Julia Janov headlines the group as a first-timer now boasting a spot on the All-MPSF First Team. Fellow senior Alejandra Aznar has upgrade her 2019 Honorable Mention status to a place on this year's All-MPSF Second Team. Another senior, goalie Carolyne Stern, has scored her first All-MPSF award with Honorable Mention alongside freshman Rachel Gazzaniga. Gazzaniga also has a place on the MPSF All-Newcomer Team with fellow freshman Ava Stryker.

In capturing her first All-MPSF honors with her First Team award, senior Julia Janov has scored in a team-best 20 games this year. She's second on the team in scoring with 42 goals — more than she had scored in the past three seasons combined — as she now boasts 83 career goals as a Trojan. With 15 multiple-goal games, she has tallied seven hat tricks to go along with a grand total of 27 assists on the offensive end. 

All-MPSF Second Team selection Alejandra Aznar has risen to rank No. 21 all-time in career scoring at USC, just two goals away from cracking the top-20. She's the team's third leading scorer with 41 goals and she's USC's leader in assists with 40 on the year. A 2019 freshman who took two seasons off to train with the Spanish National Team, she's in her fourth and final season of competition as a Trojan. Earlier this season, she dished up a career-high five goals in a win over Concordia, and she's second on the team now with her 14 multiple-goal outings in 2024.

Senior goalie Carolyne Stern has also climbed USC's career ranks this season while snagging All-MPSF Honorable Mention in her fifth season as a Trojan. She ranks No. 4 all-time among USC goalies with her 55 career saves, having hauled in 163 saves this season for an average of 8.6 per game. She's appeared in all 23 games for USC this year, and has recorded five double-digit save outings while also earning a pick as the MPSF Player of the Week on March 26.

Doubling up on the All-MPSF honor roll is freshman Rachel Gazzaniga, who has kicked off her Trojan career with All-MPSF Honorable Mention along with a place on the MPSF All-Newcomer Team. USC's leader in drawn exclusions with 32 to date, she's also the team's top scorer with 43 goals. Gazzaniga has notched multiple-goal outings in a team-high 15 different games, topping out with a career-high four goals earlier this year. 

Teaming up with Gazzaniga on the MPSF All-Newcomer Team is another standout freshman in Ava Stryker, who is matched with Aznar with 41 goals on the year while leading the team in steals with 28 — just ahead of Gazzaniga's 27 takeaways. Stryker has tallied two five-goal outings in her first season of work, totaling 11 multiple goal games, and is second on the team in assists with 29. Stryker also scored MPSF Newcomer of the Week honors on March 26.

USC's five MPSF honorees are off to Bloomington, Ind., with their fellow Women of Troy to do battle at the 2024 MPSF Tournament this week, with action running April 26-28 at Indiana's Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatics Center. 

2024 ALL-MPSF AWARDS 

All-MPSF First Team
Julia Janov

All-MPSF Second Team
Alejandra Aznar

All-MPSF Honorable Mention
Rachel Gazzaniga
Carolyne Stern

MPSF All-Newcomer Team
Rachel Gazzaniga
Ava Stryker 
 

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