FRISCO, Texas – Stephen F. Austin, the defending Southland Conference regular-season soccer champion, placed six student-athletes on the 2012 preseason all-conference teams, including five on the first team, the league office announced Wednesday.

The Ladyjacks return 10 starters to a team that went 15-3-1 overall with a perfect 9-0-0 in conference play last season. Earning first-team honors for Stephen F. Austin were seniors Kylie Louw, Laura Sadler and Breanne Vernon, junior Lacey Lee and sophomore Chelsea Raymond. Louw, a midfielder from Discovery, South Africa, led the league in assists (14), and was third in points (28) and points per game (1.56) in 2011. Louw, who represented her country in the 2012 Summer Olympics, finished second for SFA in points and goals (seven) while starting 17 of 18 games.

Helping Louw lead the Ladyjacks’ offensive attack this season are Sadler and Raymond. Sadler, a midfielder from Coppell, Texas, was second for SFA in goals (eight) and third in points (20) and assists (four). Raymond, the reigning freshman of the year and a native of Irving, Texas, led the conference in shots (82), goals (17) and points (41). The Ladyjack forward also finished the season ranked fifth nationally in goals per game (0.895) and ninth in points per game (2.16).

The Ladyjacks’ defense, which lead the conference with 13 shutouts, place two members on the first team with Vernon as a defender and Lee as a goalkeeper. Vernon, a native of Calgary, Alberta, returns to a defense that allowed only eight goals all season and only one goal in conference play. In 19 games last season, SFA’s defense allowed only 61 shots on goal. In the net for the Ladyjacks is Lee, a Bedford, Texas, native. Lee led the league in goals against average (0.44), save percentage (.864) and shutouts (eight).

SFA also has one student-athlete on the second team with senior midfielder Becky Johnson earning the distinction.

Matching the Ladyjacks with six all-conference selections was Southeastern Louisiana, which has three members on the first team and three on the second team. The Lady Lions return nine starters to a team that finished 11-7-1 a season ago and fifth in the league with a 5-4-0 mark. On the first team for Southeastern are seniors Maiya Cooper and Karly Dagys and junior Kelsey Salcido. Cooper, a forward from Hawthorne, Calif., finished last season second in the league in points (30) and goals (12). Dagys, a native of Oakville, Ontario, was second in the conference in assists (12) and fifth in points (22) at her forward position. Salcido, a midfielder from Lakewood, Calif., ranked third in goals (10) and points (28).

Rounding out the Southeastern’s all-conference selections are a trio of second-team honorees on the defensive side of the ball. Junior defender Shanyce Shaw earned her spot on the team along with 2010 co-player of the year Lacey Bockhaus. Bockhaus is a senior goalkeeper from San Landro, Calif., who missed the 2011 season. Senior defender Lauren Stillians earned the at-large selection on the second team.

Sam Houston State and Lamar each have three all-conference selections with the Bearkats earning two first-team selections and the Lady Cardinals receiving one.

Senior defender Kayla Anderson and midfielder Kirby Zak earns first-team honors for the Bearkats while junior forward Tricia Mallory placed on the second team. Anderson and Zak both started all 22 games last year for a Bearkats team that went 9-11-2 overall and 4-5-0 in conference play. Anderson, a Katy, Texas, native, led Sam Houston in minutes played (2,051) and contributed to the offense with three goals and two assists. Zak, who hails from Weatherford, Texas, earned a spot on the first team as an at-large selection. Last season, Zak recorded three goals and three assists for the Bearkats.

Completing the first-team all-conference selections is junior defender Amber Thornhill from Lamar. The Katy, Texas, native returns to a defense that ranked third in goals allowed per game (0.78) in conference play and recorded three conference shutouts. The Lady Cardinals finished third last season in the league with a 9-8-2 overall mark and a 6-2-1 record in conference. Senior forward Lorna Maudslay and sophomore midfielder Kristen Bos earn second-team honors for Lamar.

McNeese State is represented on the second team by juniors Johna Germany and Callie Allbright. Germany, a midfielder from Tyler, Texas, led the Cowgirls in assists (four) and was second on the team in points (14) and goals (five) in 2011. Allbright, a native of Baton Rouge, La., leads a McNeese defense that notched seven shutouts a season ago.

In its first season in the Southland, Oral Roberts placed two members on the second team. Midfielder Jennifer Abernathy and defender Lauren Parks earned the honors for the Golden Eagles. Abernathy, a midfielder from Broken Arrow, Okla., started 17 games last season for ORU and recorded two goals and an assist. Parks, a defender from Edmond, Okla., scored two goals a year ago and paces a Golden Eagles’ defense that shutout their opponents three times.

Players named to the 2011 All-Southland Conference soccer teams who are returning for the 2012 season are automatic selections to the 2012 preseason all-conference soccer teams. The remaining positions are nominated and voted on by league head coaches.

For the complete list of the preseason all-conference teams, click here (PDF).