Click Here For PDF Release

Somerset, NJ -- After helping lead defending Northeast Conference champion Bryant to its second consecutive regular season title, junior attacker Lauren Descalzo (Hauppauge, NY/Hauppauge) was voted the NEC Women’s Lacrosse Offensive Player of the Year by the league’s head coaches. Mount St. Mary’s senior defender Melissa Cox (Bel Air, MD/John Carroll) was tabbed NEC Defensive Player of the Year.  Wagner junior Shea Gegan (Belmar, NJ/Manasquan) was named the inaugural NEC Midfielder of the Year and Mount St. Mary’s freshman attacker Nicole Lantuh (Bethesda, MD/ Academy of the Holy Cross) claimed the NEC Rookie of the Year award.  Bryant’s Jill Batcheller earned her second consecutive NEC Coach of the Year honor as voted on by her peers.
 
A two-time first team All-NEC member, Descalzo paces the high-powered Bulldog attack, leading the team in goals (53) and points (61). The junior, who ranks second in the league in goals per game and third in points per game, found the back of the net in all but one regular season game.  She dominated NEC play, topping the ranks in goals (27), goals per game (3.86), points (31) and points per game (4.43). The Hauppauge, NY native netted a hat trick in all seven NEC contests and ranks fourth nationally in goal scoring. Descalzo’s NEC Offensive Player of the Year honor marks the second year in a row that a Bulldog has earned the award, succeeding former teammate Lisa Vendel.
 
Cox anchored a stingy Mount defense that elevated its play down the stretch, holding its final six regular season opponents to just over 8 goals per game.  Cox, a senior who has started all 68 career games for the Mountaineers, is tied for the team lead in draw controls (28) and ranks third in ground balls (28) and caused turnovers (14). After missing the NEC Tournament for the first time in 12 years in 2014, the Bel Air, MD native was a pivotal figure in leading the Mount back to the postseason.
 
Gegan earned the first NEC Midfielder of the Year honor based on her stellar all-around play for the Seahawks. A three time All-NEC award recipient and last season’s NEC Defensive Player of the Year, she leads the nation in caused turnovers (64) and ground balls (77). Gegan has been ultra-versatile for the Seahawks this season, pacing the team in eight major statistical categories.  She earned four NEC Defensive Player of the Week nods and led the Seahawks to their first ever 5-0 start in league play en-route to the #2 seed in the NEC Tournament.
 
Capping an impressive freshman campaign, Lantuh came on strong in the second half of the season as she took her game to the next level in NEC play.  She scored in all eight conference contests and tallied 15 of her 26 goals versus league opponents.  Lantuh leads all NEC freshman in goals and points (40), and ranks second in assists (14).  She was the only freshman to be voted to an All-NEC team.
 
Batcheller’s second consecutive NEC Coach of the Year award came after leading defending NEC champion Bryant to a 12-4 mark, including a 6-1 record in conference play as the Bulldogs claimed their second straight NEC regular season title.  In her third season at the helm, Batcheller has led the Bulldogs to an overall record of 37-16 and an impressive 19-4 mark in NEC competition.
 
Joining Descalzo on the All-NEC first team was fellow Bryant attacker Emily Columbus (East Northpoint, NY/Northpoint Senior). Columbus has been clutch for the Bulldogs, netting a league best four game winning goals during the regular season.  She stands second on the team and ranks among the NEC top-five in goals (43) and points (60).  Sophomores Carly Cronin (Feeding Hills, MA/Wilbraham and Monson Academy) and Molly Martin (Island Park, NY/Long Beach) earned first team All-NEC accolades on the defensive side, pacing the Bulldogs backfield to a league leading 8.51 goals against average.  Martin and Cronin rank one-two on Bryant in ground balls and caused turnovers, respectively.
 
Robert Morris junior midfielder Jessica Karwacki (Sparks, MD/Hereford) and senior defender Kristi Marks (Apex, NC/Apex) landed spots on the first team after playing major roles in leading the Colonials to a second straight postseason appearance, qualifying on the final day of the regular season. A two-time first team All-NEC performer, Karwacki recently established a new NCAA career draw control record and has racked up an incredible 532 heading into the postseason. She is also the NCAA leader this season with 10.93 draw controls per game.  Marks ranks second on the Colonials in ground balls (33) and caused turnovers (17).
 
Sacred Heart sophomore midfielder Caitlin Delaney (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill East) and junior attacker Jesslyn Joseph (Bolton, MA/Nashoba Regional) earned spots on the first team as each netted 34 goals and accounted for the team lead in nearly every statistical category for the Pioneers.  Delaney ranks in the NEC top-five in four categories, including second in caused turnovers (36).  Joseph is the SHU leader with 38 draw controls.
 
After earning last season’s NEC Rookie of the Year award and second team All-League honors, LIU Brooklyn’s Jenn Peters (Slate Hill, NY/Minisink Valley) lit up the scoreboard in her sophomore campaign. Peters leads the NEC and ranks second nationally in goals (62) and goals per game (3.88).
 
Mount junior goalkeeper Steph Rurkowski (Manlius, NY/Fayetteville-Manlius) is coming off a stellar regular season in-between the pipes. She currently leads the conference and ranks 12th nationally with 8.94 saves per game.
 
Central Connecticut landed a trio of second team All-NEC award winners. Junior midfielder Madison Hughes (Oak Bluffs, MA/Martha’s Vineyard Regional) led the Blue Devils in goals (24), points (30), ground balls (35), and caused turnovers (22).  Senior goalkeeper Morgan Tullar (Randolph Center, VT/Chelsea) earned All-NEC honors for the third straight season.  She ranks second on the circuit with 8.88 saves per game.  Senior defender Jessica Sudock (Cheshire, CT/Cheshire) finished the year second on CCSU in caused turnovers (18) and third in ground balls (28).
 
Robert Morris attackers Corey Karwacki (Sparks, MD/Hereford) and Kristin Yoviene (Easton, MD/Saints Peter and Paul) earned spots on the second team for the second straight year, sparking a high-powered Colonial attack to over 14 goals per game, tops in the NEC and eighth nationally.  Karwacki ranks in the top-five in the conference in goals (37), assists (21) and points (58), while Yoviene is second in the NEC in assists (27) and points (66), and ranks fourth in goals scored (39).
 
LIU Brooklyn sophomores Mary McQueen (New Westminster, British Columbia/New Westminster Secondary School) and Tori Shinkowitz (Lauren Springs, NJ/Sterling) claimed All-NEC second team spots. McQueen, a midfielder, provided a 1-2 punch with Peters as she was second on the team in goals (31) and points (40).  Shinkowitz, who netted a pair of game-winning goals in the closing seconds against Sacred Heart and Central Connecticut to start league play, paced the Blackbirds with 47 draw controls (third in NEC) and 22 caused turnovers.
 
Bryant senior midfielder Shannon Burns (Mount Sinai, NY/Mount Sinai) rounded out the five All-NEC honorees for Bryant.  She leads the Bulldogs and ranks fourth in the NEC with 45 draw controls.
 
Mount senior attacker Erin Seipp (Towson, MD/Notre Dame Preparatory) joined Lantuh on the All-NEC second team. Seipp is tied for the Mountaineer lead in goals (28) and ranks second in points (38) and assists (10).
 
Senior Kimmy Gronski (Corning, NY/Corning East High) was the lone Saint Francis U representative on an All-NEC team. The senior paced the Red Flash this season with 23 caused turnovers and was second with 33 ground balls.
 
Amanda Rey (Turnersville, NJ/Washington Township) earned second team honors for Wagner. The sophomore defender ranks among NEC leaders and stands second on the Seahawks with 41 ground balls on the year.

Lantuh, the NEC Rookie of the Year, headlined the All-Rookie Team.  She was joined by teammate Marley Heller (Baltimore, MD/Perry Hall).  Heller leads the Mount with 33 ground balls and 19 caused turnovers.  Bryant attacker Meghan Brennan (Glen Head, NY/North Shore) was the lone freshman to start all 16 regular season games for the Bulldogs and tallied eight goals on the year.  LIU Brooklyn defender Carlie Robinson (Port Coquitlam, British Columbia/Riverside Secondary School) finished second on the Blackbirds with 36 ground balls and her 15 caused turnovers ranked fourth on the team.  Robert Morris midfielder Dana Davis (Garnet Valley, PA/Garnet Valley) led all NEC freshman with four NEC Rookie of the Week honors.  She is fourth in the NEC with 2.56 ground balls per game.  Sacred Heart attacker Averi Farhat (Hollis, NH/Bishop Guertin) ranks second among NEC freshman with 21 goals on the year.
 
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 34th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 10 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#23), Baltimore (#27), and Hartford/New Haven (#30).  Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 22 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary’s, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Google+, all @NECsports.