BERKELEY – California junior Arielle Ship topped one of the finest regular seasons in the NCAA this year by being named the Pac-12 Player of the Year, the first student-athlete in the storied California women's soccer program to earn the league's top honor, the Pac-12 announced Tuesday afternoon.

Ship was one of five players to be honored by the league with All-Pac-12 honors and was joined on the first team by senior defender Samantha Witteman. Senior Celeste Boureille and sophomore Emily Boyd were named All-Pac-12 Second Team selections, and junior Emma Fletcher was an All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention.

“We have a number of personalities on the field that are a driving force behind our success, and people follow her,” California head coach Neil McGuire said of Ship. “She's very committed, very tough and very energized. She wants to win, and she's an on-field leader in that respect. She's worked very hard this year, so it's a well-deserved recognition from her peers and also the coaches around the league.”

Ship was named the conference's best player in an All-American campaign that was rivaled by no other in the league. The junior exploded offensively with 14 goals, 34 points and six game-winning goals – all top marks in the league – as she became the first Golden Bear to lead the league in points and goals since Laura Schott did so in 2000 and 2001. She also dished six assists, good for third in the Pac-12. Ship netted two hat tricks on the year, earned two Pac-12 weekly honors, four national weekly honors and was also named the consensus National Player of the Week on September 9 when she was selected as the country's top player by the NSCAA, TopDrawerSoccer and ESPNW. Her seven-point outing against UCLA with three goals and one assist goes down as the third-best single-game performance in program history.

Witteman has continuously proven herself to be one of the most versatile players in the Pac-12 this season and was rewarded with her efforts with her first career All-Conference nod. The senior earned at least one start in seven different positions in Cal's 21 games this season, but made herself known as one of the most dangerous outside backs in the conference in a season that saw her score four goals, with all four of them being game-winners, in addition to leading one of the top defenses in the Pac-12. Overall, Witteman had a hand in five of Cal's 13 game-winning goals, finishing second in the league in scoring four winners to go alongside a game-winning assist.

Boyd put together arguably one of the top seasons in goal in California history, setting the single-season shutout mark with 11 clean sheets en route to being named to the All-Pac-12 Second Team. The sophomore also led the league with a .860 shutout percentage and was second with a 0.55 goals against average. She was the first back-to-back conference weekly award winner after being named the Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Week in successive weeks, and had a career-best 471:28 shutout streak midway through the season. Boyd also finished the season a perfect 3-for-3 against penalty kicks.

Boureille also earned her first All-Conference honor after the senior finished second on the team with five goals and 12 points. Boureille was another versatile Bear that patrolled the left side of the field as a winger and midfielder. Boureille announced herself as a top attacking threat early in the season when she was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week after netting a brace against San Diego State.

Fletcher joined the Golden Bears this season as a junior transfer, and the play-making midfielder picked up honorable mention honors for her consistent play as an attacking midfielder. A transfer this season from LSU, Fletcher made an immediate impact in the Golden Bear midfield, starting all 21 games and registering four assists, including the game-winning assists against Oregon and Santa Clara.

California takes on LMU in NCAA First Round action this Saturday in Berkeley. The Bears and Lions kickoff at 12 p.m. at Edwards Stadium with the Golden Bears holding a No. 3 national seed and the rights to host the first round game.

Pac-12 All-Conference Honors

Player of the Year – Arielle Ship, CAL
Freshman/Newcomer of the Year – Alana Cook, STAN
Defensive Player of the Year – Kayla Mills, USC
Goalkeeper of the Year – Jane Campbell, STAN
Coach of the Year – Paul Ratcliffe, STAN

ALL-PAC-12 FIRST TEAM
F – Arielle Ship, CAL
F – Gabi Stoian, ARIZ
F – Cali Farquharson, ASU
F – Kourtney Guetlein, WSU
M – Andi Sullivan, STAN
M – Morgan Andrews, USC
M – Haley Rosen, STAN
D – Kayla Mills , USC
D – Samantha Witteman, CAL
D – McKenzie Karas, WASH
GK – Jane Campbell, STAN

ALL-PAC-12 SECOND TEAM
F – Kaitlyn Johnson, WSU
F – Kimby Keever, WASH
F – Kyra Carusa, STAN
M – Shannon Simon, WASH
M – Kodi Lavrusky, UCLA
M – Celeste Boureille, CAL
M – Mandy Freeman, USC
D – Maddie Bauer, STAN
D – Alana Cook, STAN
D – Madi Krauser, COLO
GK – Emily Boyd, CAL

ALL-PAC-12 HONORABLE MENTION: F – Aly Moon (ASU), Michelle Xiao (STAN), Darian Jenkins (UCLA); M – Emma Fletcher (CAL), Cara Wegner (WSU), Megan Turner (STAN); D – Sheaffer Skadsen (ARIZ), Madison Stark (ASU), Greta Espinoza (OSU), Megan Trabert (UTAH); GK – Sammy Jo Prudhomme (USC)

PAC-12 ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
F – Kyra Carusa, STAN
F – Michelle Xiao, STAN
F – Kelcie Hedge, WASH
F – Marissa Everett, ORE
M – Sarah Kinzner, COLO
M – Paola van der Veen, UTAH
M – Jordan DiBiasi, STAN
D – Tegan McGrady, STAN
D – Ally Prisock, USC