Kylie-Ann Louw Awarded MVP and Female Player of the Year

Banyana Banyana midfielder Kylie-Ann Louw has been honoured as the Southland Conference League Female Athlete of the Year for a third consecutive season. Louw now holds the record for being the first player in history to win the award for the third successive year.
To add to her achievements, Louw scooped up two more awards – Soccer’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) and Athlete Scholar of the Year for excelling on the field as well as in the classroom.
Louw recently graduated from her institution, receiving her Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology from the Stephan Austin State University in the United States of America where the skilled Banyana Banyana midfielder is based.

"Receiving the awards was very special seeing that I've worked so hard every day trying to balance my studies as well as my football career. I am especially excited to see that I am reaping the fruits of my hard work. It isn't easy to receive two top honorary awards at the university as you are competing against many other athletes in various sporting codes plus many of them are nationally ranked," said Louw.
Louw has also been called up for national team duty.
"It's always an honour to receive a national team call-up and I love representing my country. I want to contribute positively towards the national team’s preparations for the Olympics and I see every player has been working hard to make the final squad that will represent the country in London come July,” added Louw.

“I want add a level of energy and international experience that will boost the team’s confidence going forward."
Louw will head back to the United States to complete her Masters Degree in Science when the new school term resumes in September this year.
Banyana Banyana head coach Joseph Mkhonza has congratulated Kylie-Ann on her achievements.
"It is good to see that a national team player is doing so well abroad, this is contributing positively towards the spirit in the squad, which in turn augurs towards preparations for the AWC qualifiers as well as the London Olympics,” said Mkhonza.

“It's also inspiring to see that she has been taking her studies seriously as that is another thing we encourage in the national team because at the end of the day education is the corner-stone of a brighter future. I hope more players will be inspired by her achievements."
The Sports Awards ceremony took place on Tuesday, 1 May 2012, while the graduation ceremony was held at the Stephan Austin State University in Texas on Saturday, 12 May.
The Sasol-sponsored Banyana Banyana squad is at a training camp at the High Performance Centre in Potchefstroom.

In other news,the head  coach of the South African Senior Women's National team (Banyana Banyana) Joseph Mkhonza has named a strong 18-member squad that will travel to Zambia for the African Women’s Championship qualifier to be played on Saturday May 26th,2012 in Lusaka,Zambia. The return match will take place on June 16th. The venue however has not been confirmed.
Ghana will tackle their Cameroonian counterparts-The Lionesses in Accra on Saturday May 26th at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Banyana Banyana squad to take on Zambia No. Name & Surname Club
1 Thokozile Mndaweni UJ Ladies FC
2 Roxanne Barker Pepperdine University
3 Nothando Vilakazi Palace Super Falcon
4 Amanda Sister Liverpool Ladies FC
5 Janine van Wyk Palace Super Falcon
6 Zamandosi Cele Durban Ladies FC
7 Gabisile Hlumbane Kovsies
8 Lebogang Mabatle Halleluyah Zebra Force
9 Nocawe Skiti Cape Town Roses
10 Kylie-Ann Louw Stephen F Austin (USA)
11 Mary Ntsweng TUT Ladies FC
12 Robyn Moodaly High Performance Centre
15 Leandra Smeda Cape Town Roses
13 Amanda Dlamini (c) UJ Ladies FC
14 Noko Matlou UJ Ladies FC
16 Sanah Mollo Bloemfontein Celtics
17 Andisiwe Mgcoyi Sundowns Ladies
18 Portia Modise Palace Super Falcon

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