Girls Soccer – Frankie Tagliaferri Named N.J. Gatorade Player of the Year

Colts Neck junior Frankie Tagliaferri was named the Girls Soccer Gatorade Player of the Year in N.J. Thursday, according to a press release on the Gatorade website.

Tagliaferri was both the Shore Sports Network and NJ.com Player of the Year this past fall, during which she led Colts Neck to an undefeated, 24-0-1 season that included the program's first ever NJSIAA Group III championship, as well as its first ever Shore Conference Tournament title.

Not only did the Cougars win a state championship, but did so by defeating four-time defending champion Northern Highlands in the group final. The Highlanders entered that game 22-0-1 and ranked No. 1 in the entire country, according to USA Today.

In that landmark game, Tagliaferri scored the game's lone goal by earning a penalty kick and converting in the second half. The goal capped a 28-goal, 18-assist season for the junior to increase her career totals to 57 goals and 32 assists.

By winning the state player of the year, Tagliaferri is qualified to be win the Gatorade National Player of the Year, which will be named in May. She is the first Shore Conference player to win the state award since Red Bank Catholic's Danielle Colaprico won it following the 2010 season before going on to a standout career at the University of Virginia. Freehold Boro's Shannon Mayrose also won the award in 2007.

Tagliaferri - the No. 8 ranked player in the Class of 2017 according to Top Drawer Soccer - is committed to play at Penn State University beginning in the Fall of 2017 and is a current member of the U.S. U-17 National Team. Her commitment to the national team could keep her out of her senior year with Colts Neck if the national club qualifies for the U-17 World Cup, which begins on Sept. 30 in Jordan. The CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying Tournament begins on March 3.