COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.  The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference on Sunday morning announced its 2023 women's all-conference squad with Western Colorado's Caileen Sienknecht earning second-team honors in voting by the league's coaches.

Named honorable mention all-conference from the Western squad were Reece Mercer, Karly Morkunas and Laura Pelino.

Sienknecht, a defender who began the season as a midfielder, took the opportunity to play her fifth season after the NCAA granted that option following the COVID season of 2020-21.

She made the most of her final campaign, posting single-season career bests in goals (4), assists (2), points (10) and minutes played (1,409), and on Oct. 24 earned her first RMAC Player of the Week (defense) award.

Sienknecht's scoring numbers led the team, and one of her goals was a game-winner, also a career first. In the early seconds of the 87th minute at Regis University, she headed in a corner kick chance to break the tie in the Mountaineers' 3-2 upset of the host Rangers.

Earlier in the season she scored both goals in Western's 2-2 draw at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

This is Sienknecht's second postseason league honor, previously earning Honorable Mention after the Spring 2021 COVID season.

A sophomore outside midfielder, Mercer registered single-season career numbers in games played (15), starts (9), goals (3), assists (2), points (8) and minutes (730).

After assisting on the opening goal of the game, Mercer also picked up her first game-winning goal in Western's 2-1 win late in the season over visiting Colorado Christian University.

A sophomore stalwart on the back line, Morkunas played in 17 of Western's 18 games in the season, getting a starting nod 13 times and totaling 1,228 minutes on the pitch.

She registered 85 minutes or more in eight games and played the full 90 six times.

Like Sienknecht, Pelino took the opportunity to come back for a fifth season.

A two-time captain and midfielder, Pelino was a major force for Western in the transition through the middle third.

For a third consecutive season she played in every game, 18 this fall, and was in the starting lineup 16 times in 2023. Her 1,286 minutes of action were the second most of her career.

Pelino was a major part of Western's upset at Regis, assisting on the Mountaineers' first goal of the game then converting a penalty kick in the 78th to tie the score at 2-2, setting up for Sienknecht's winning finish.