Houston Dash defender Poliana has been named the Player of the Week for Week 10 by the NWSL Media Association following her performance on Saturday vs. the Orlando Pride. Poliana is the first Dash player this season to win the award and the first defender this season to receive the honor. She is the first Brazilian […]

Houston Dash defender Poliana has been named the Player of the Week for Week 10 by the NWSL Media Association following her performance on Saturday vs. the Orlando Pride.Poliana is the first Dash player this season to win the award and the first defender this season to receive the honor. She is the first Brazilian player to ever be named NWSL Player of the Week. [Youtube oembed has failed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLIaxSCGhIg] On Saturday vs. the Pride, the Brazilian international tallied two assists, three chances created and an 89.5% passing accuracy (including a perfect 18 for 18 in the offensive half of the field), according to Opta. She also recorded four tackles, four clearances and three interceptions. Her first assist came in the fourth minute of first half stoppage time on Carli Lloyd’s goal. Poliana found space on the right wing and dribbled into the box. Without an angle to shoot, she dropped the ball back to Lloyd, who hit it home for her first goal of the season. Poliana’s second assist came in the 62nd minute as she took a pass from Lloyd and again found space on the right side. The 26-year-old then sent a low cross into the box, right to the feet of Rachel Daly, who knocked it in for her second goal of the season. Poliana nearly tallied two goals of her own — forcing a first half goal line clearance from Pride defender Steph Catley and then hitting the post in the second half. This season, Poliana leads the Dash with three goals and two assists. She is the fifth Dash player to ever win Player of the Week, joining Daly, Kealia Ohai, Chioma Ubogagu and Bianca Henninger. The NWSL Player of the Week is selected each week of the regular season by the NWSL Media Association, a collection of writers that cover the league on a consistent basis. For more information on the NWSL Media Association, follow them on Twitter.