:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69725014/WSOC_Saint_Jospeh_s_090719_MSH_4310.0.jpg)
Pitt women’s soccer star Amanda West made program history on Thursday, as she was placed on the 2021 preseason All-ACC team after an outstanding showing in 2020. West is the first player in the 25-year history of the Pitt program to earn the honor.
West was one of 11 players to earn a spot on the preseason All-ACC team, and she was Pitt’s only honoree. Clemson, Duke, Florida State, North Carolina and Virginia all placed two players each on the team. Those five programs are expected to be the top contenders in the ACC in 2021, with Florida State ranked first in the ACC preseason coaches poll, North Carolina trailing close behind in second and the others falling more significantly behind.
Last season, West accrued 33 points on 13 goals and seven assists. Her point total led the ACC and ranked third nationally, while her goal total ranked second in the ACC to North Carolina forward Brianna Pinto and fifth nationally. And with Pinto having moved on to the National Women’s Soccer League, West will be the conference’s top returning scorer.
At this point in her career, accolades are nothing new for West, as she earned second-team All-ACC honors and first-team All-Region honors following the 2020 season. She also set a program record for points in a single season and matched one for goals in a single season as a freshman before going on to break her own records as a sophomore. That gave her 59 career points, which set another record, and 23 career goals, which tied another.
In 2021, West will look to build on her legacy and lead the Panthers into the postseason. And with former WPIAL stars Ellie Coffield and Sarah Schupansky, who scored a combined 150 goals in their high school careers, set to join West at Pitt, the Panthers’ postseason chances should be better than they were at any other point in West’s career.
Pitt is set to kick off its 2021 season with a matchup against Tulsa this coming Thursday at 5 p.m. ET. That game will be played in Stillwater, Oklahoma, as part of the Cowgirl Soccer Invitational.