Balafas kicks off career with SAC weekly honors
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. -- Following her first outing in a Golden Eagle kit, freshman Audrey Balafas earned this week's Sooner Athletic Defensive Player of the Week, the conference offices announced on Monday (Aug. 28) morning.
Balafas, in her collegiate debut, helped anchor the JBU defensive line that overcame a bumpy first half against No. 25 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) on Friday (Aug. 25). After a first that saw six shot attempts and one goal by the visiting Pioneers, Balafas and the back line rebounded in the second half, allowing MNU just one shot attempt in the final 45 minutes, allowing John Brown to complete the 2-1 come-from-behind victory in front of a sold-out crowd at Alumni Field.
The Golden Eagles return to action on Thursday (Aug. 31) at No. 16 Cumberland (Tenn.) in a rematch of last season's NAIA National Championships Opening Round, which the Phoenix won 2-1 in the final 61 seconds of regulation.
