Shepherd, LaFontaine named to All-Region team

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast's Jess Shepherd and Casey LaFontaine have been named to the 2015-16 All-Region 23 team by its coaches.

"I'm super proud of Jess and Casey," Lady Bulldogs coach Jackie Rhodes said. "They were a huge part of what we did offensively. They were the creative aspect of our offense. I don't think we would have been as successful without them. They're freshmen, so we've got them for another year to watch them grow and only get better."

Shepherd, a freshman midfielder from Manchester, England, tied for the team lead with 13 goals and led the squad with nine assists.

"I did not expect to score 13 goals," Shepherd said. "I came to play defense here, but to hold top scorer for a while and to have Erin (Longsden) match me, for us to score half our team's goals was amazing."

Shepherd finished in the top three in voting and is eligible for All-American honors.

LaFontaine, a freshman forward from Pass Christian, scored six goals and assisted on six others while battling through injuries.

"It's a huge accomplishment for me because I've had some setback early in the season," she said. "To bounce back from them and earn this award is really big."

For more information on MGCCC's 10 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCAthletics on Twitter and BulldogLIVE on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.