Nov. 5, 2009

2009 Field Hockey All-Conference Teams

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -Richmond senior forward Sarah Blythe-Wood was named the Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Year and junior defender Makaela Potts of Massachusetts earned Defensive Player of the Year honors in voting conducted by the league's head coaches.

In that same vote, Rebecca Chylack of La Salle was named Rookie of the Year and Richmond head coach Gina Lucido earned the Coach of the Year honors. In a vote of the A-10's sports information directors, Charise Young repeated as the Student-Athlete of the Year.

Blythe-Wood leads the league in goals (19) and points (48) and is tied for second in the Conference in assists (10). She led Richmond to its sixth regular season title and the top seed in this weekend's A-10 Championship (Nov. 6-7). The Harare, Zimbabwe, native was a two-time A-10 Player of the Week this season and ranks 11th all-time at Richmond in career assists with 18. Earlier in the season she set a school record for goals in a single game with five.

Potts anchors a Minutewomen defense that leads the A-10 in goals against average (1.46) and has registered six shutouts. A native of Sydney, Australia, the junior defender has also contributed 10 goals and 11 assists to rank tied for second in the league with 31 points and is tied for first in the league in assists. She helped UMass to a top 10 national ranking during the season and a No. 4 seed in the A-10 Championship.

Chylack has enjoyed an impressive rookie season for La Salle. The defender from Souderton, Pa., had an immediate impact on the Explorers. She led the team with 11 goals and 25 points which ranked in the top 10 in the league in both categories. A three-time A-10 Rookie of the Week selection, she became the first student-athlete from La Salle to earn the Rookie of the Year honor since 2001.

Blythe-Wood, Potts, Young and Chylack are joined on the All-Conference first-team by Katie Kelly and Alesha Widdall of Massachusetts; West Chester's Melissa LeNoir; Richmond's Katelin Peterson, Megan Thompson and Jess Weidner; and Anne Schreuders of Saint Joseph's.

The second-team is comprised of Massachusetts teammates Jaime Bourazaris and Cher King; La Salle's Beth Carey; Nicole Kent of Saint Louis; Richmond's Dani Pycroft and Jackie Raithel; Temple's Mandi Ruth and Bridget Settles; Theresa Testa and Kellie Walters from Saint Joseph's; and Kelsie Ward of West Chester

Chylack headlines the All-Rookie team which consists of LeNoir and teammates Alisha Moran and Michelle Schrift; La Salle's Neelam Kumar and Janel Paukavits; Lexie Lindblad of Saint Louis; Temple's Taylor Musser; Richmond's Catherine Ostoich; and Callie Sweigart; and Kim Young of Massachusetts.

Young repeats as the A-10 Student-Athlete of the Year after recording 10 assists, three goals and 16 points overall on the season. She enters this week's A-10 Championship ranked tied for second in the league in assists. In the classroom, the Harleysville, Pa., resident boasts a 3.97 grade point average while majoring in secondary and social studied education. She has started every game in her career at Temple and was a first-team All-Conference member last season.

Young is joined on the Academic All-Conference team by Sarah Blythe-Wood of Richmond; Beth Carey, Haley Froshour and Emma Ruth from La Salle; West Chester's Bethany Wong and Joelle Zarefoss; Anne Schreuders, Kellie Walter and Jen Wrublesky of Saint Joseph's; and Alesha Widdall from Massachusetts.

In her third season at Richmond, Lucido earned her first A-10 Coach of the Year award after leading the Spiders to their sixth regular season title and the top seed in the 2009 Atlantic 10 Championship. It is Richmond's third-straight tournament appearance under her direction. With an overall record of 11-8 and 5-1 in league play, Richmond is vying for its sixth A-10 Championship in the last nine years.