Sky Blue's Sam Kerr named NWSL league MVP for 2017

By AP
Published

CHICAGO (AP) Sky Blue FC forward Sam Kerr has been named the National Women's Soccer League's Most Valuable Player for this season.

Kerr, a standout on the Australian national team, had a league-record 17 goals and became the league's fifth Golden Boot winner to also be named MVP.

She became the first NWSL player to score four goals in a game on Aug. 19 against the Seattle Reign. Kerr rallied Sky Blue from a 3-goal deficit to beat the Reign 5-4.

Kerr's award was announced Friday. The league had earlier announced the season's other award winners: North Carolina's Abby Dahlkemper was named Defender of the Year, teammate Ashley Hatch was named Rookie of the Year, Portland's Adrianna Franch was named Goalkeeper of the Year and the Thorns' Mark Parsons was named Coach of the Year.