November 5, 1998

WINSTON-SALEM, NC - Wake Forest head coach Tony da Luz, freshman midfielder Emily Taggart and senior forward Stefanie Mathews have all received Atlantic Coast Conference postseason honors in women's soccer.

Da Luz is the 1998 ACC Coach of the Year, while Taggart was named the league Rookie of the Year and joined Mathews on the All-ACC 2nd team in voting by league coaches.

Now in his second year at Wake Forest, da Luz guided the Demon Deacons to their most successful season within the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1998. Wake Forest wrapped up the regular season with a school-best 4-3 record in ACC play and a fourth place league finish after finishing seventh in each of the last four seasons. The Deacs are currently 12-5-1 this year and ranked 16th in the nation by Soccer News.

Taggart enters this weekend's ACC Tournament with six goals and two assists from her midfield position. With her three goal performance against NC State earlier this season, Taggart became just the third player in Wake Forest history to record a hat trick. The Pleasanton, CA, native is the first ACC Rookie of the Year from Wake Forest and is one of just two freshmen on the 22-member All-ACC team.

Mathews earned 2nd-team honors for the second consecutive season after becoming the first player from Wake Forest to earn All-ACC honors last fall. She currently ranks second on the Demon Deacon team with nine assists and 17 points. The Tucson, AZ, native was named to the all-tournament team at the Notre Dame Key Bank Classic earlier this season.

The Wake Forest women's soccer team will face Maryland in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament in Orlando, FL, tomorrow (Thursday, November 5) at 8 p.m.