Makala Woods Named SEC Newcomer of The Year; Four Wildcats Earn All-SEC Honors
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Following the best season of her career, graduate forward Makala Woods has been named the Southeastern Conference Newcomer of the Year, the league office announced Sunday morning. Woods was also named to the All-SEC First Team alongside teammate Grace Phillpotts while Maddie Kemp was named to the Third Team. Alexis Tylenda was also named to the All-Freshman Team. The five post-season honors are the most in program history.
Woods, a graduate transfer from Monroe, Ohio, earned the Newcomer of the Year award after scoring a career-high 11 goals earning 23 points in the regular season. Woods ranked in the top five in goals scored in the conference this year and was a key piece for head coach Troy Fabiano and the Wildcats scoring in nine matches including the upset of No. 9 UCLA.
Phillpotts, a graduate from Fenton, Michigan, earns her second consecutive All-SEC honor, her first inclusion on the First Team. Phillpotts was another key piece in the Fabiano system serving as the Wildcats’ primary set-piece taker racking up four assists and her first career goal against Kent State on senior night in a strike scored from 35 yards out. The defender also helped anchor a Kentucky backline that conceded just 12 goals during the regular season, the third fewest among SEC teams.
Kemp, a graduate transfer from Camas, Washington, earns her first career All-SEC honor after putting together four goals and five assists for 13 points in the regular season. Kemp, who played all 18 regular season games for the Wildcats, led the Wildcats in shots and ranked in the top five of the SEC in shots and assists for a large part of the regular season. She is the first third-team honoree for the program.
Alexis Tylenda, a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, rounds out the Kentucky selections following an outstanding freshman season scoring three goals and providing an assist for seven points, the most out of the 16 new freshmen to start the 2024 campaign. She is the program’s 12th honoree of the award and second straight with Tanner Strickland earning the award in the previous season.
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