Westmont’s junior goalkeeper Justin Etherton of Yorba Linda has been named the Golden State Athletic Conference Men’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Week. Etherton recorded two shutouts last week as Westmont defeated Biola 5-0 and San Diego Christian 3-0. Against Biola, Etherton posted four saves and then tallied five more against San Diego Christian.

“In my estimation, defending awards come down to more than just the individual that gets recognized,” said Westmont head coach Dave Wolf. “It is a complement to the back four as well as to Justin. The defense is the most consistent part of our team – the part of the team that we have changed the least. We have played consistently with Sergio (Hernandez-Leor), Saul (Moreno), Dillion (Barna) and Scott Williams. Joe Benscoter is part of that recognition as well, even though he hasn’t played as much as Justin. I see the goalkeeping performance as collaboration between those two players.”

Etherton attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in his freshman season and transferred to Westmont for the start of his sophomore year. This season, Etherton has notched 39 saves this season and has a goals-against-average of 1.23 in 12 contests.

“Justin has done an especially good job with his verbal organization,” assessed Wolf. “If a keeper is good verbally, he takes care of a lot of things before it ever gets to him.”

Etherton and the Warriors wrap up the regular season by hosting California Baptist at Russ Carr Field on Saturday. A victory would give Westmont a strong chance of earning a berth in the NAIA Region II Tournament which begins on Wednesday of next week.