Coyne’s All-Americans: Women’s Division III
by Jac Coyne |
Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff | Coyne Archive
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| Is Jess Fritz one of Coyne's All-Americans? When you
can score and defend with equal ability, you're on the
team. © Darl Zehr |
Seven middies, five attack, three defense and a goalie?
That’s quite an interesting first team All-America squad the
IWLCA has come up with this year. Did the coaches not get the memo
they could be playing with 16 players this year, or is the IWLCA
just giving out orange slices?
We know the NCAA selection committee chickened out when it came to
selecting the best teams available for the tournament, but I
didn’t know this mindset carried over to the All-American
selections, as well.
Live and learn, I suppose.
Since, from all I’ve been told, the women’s game
consists of 12 players with no specialists (other than a goalie),
let’s try to stick to the script here.
One team. Twelve All-Americans.
Before I get to the selections, a quick farewell.
I won’t be covering the WD3 beat after this piece as I will
be assuming Men’s Division II, which will allow LMO to lump
the lower men’s leagues (MD2, MD3, MCLA I & II) under one
umbrella (mine). I’ve enjoyed covering women’s D-III
and I wish all the teams, players and coaches the best in 2011 and
beyond.
Coyne’s All-Americans – NCAA Women’s
Division III
Attack
Alyssa
Pigott, Sr., Stevens
She had all sorts of offers coming out of high school, but
she chose an up-and-coming Ducks program. The result? Stevens is
now a power program, thanks in part to Pigott. The scoring is
obvious – 63 goals and 29 assists this spring – but
Pigott cleaned up on the ground balls and wasn’t afraid of
snagging a caused turnover or two. Stevens always made it a little
more interesting in their conference than it needed to be, but
Pigott was always a staple for the Ducks.
Kim
Cudmore, Sr., Salisbury
Salisbury is no stranger to having an attacker put up
monster numbers, but this is the first time that one has led to a
national championship. Cudmore was the biggest cog in the
Gulls’ offensive machine, but her contributions were not just
limited to putting the ball in the back of the net (which she did
28 times). She was even more efficient as a playmaker, leading the
team with 56 assists.
Kristin
Joyce, Jr., Union
Seriously, take a look at the Dutchwomen’s schedule.
And then realize Joyce still scored 72 goals. The only thing more
ridiculous than Union not making the NCAA tourney would be Joyce
not being an All-American. One out of two ain’t bad (except
for the Dutch). Seven goals against Middlebury and Babson? Four
against W&L, Stevens, and Cortland? The NCAA committee ignores
strength of schedule. Not here.
Midfield
Sarah
Bray, Jr., Hamilton
Selflessness is a virtue. If it’s not, it should be.
And Bray certainly fit that description. Constantly running the
Continental transition, Bray could have called her own number a lot
of times, but rather she’d always look to a teammate –
she dished out a team-high 47 assists with just 29 markers. Her
role may change next year with some of Hamilton’s graduation
losses, but she’ll be just as dangerous.
Jess
Fritz, Sr., Cortland
What happens when you’re the third-leading scorer on a
national power but also the squad’s best take-away defender?
Answer: you’re an All-American. The 42 goals and 21 assists
out of the midfield – including clutch numbers like her
two-goal, three-dime performance against TCNJ – are just
gravy compared with her work on the defensive end. Whether it was
in transition or in even play, Fritz terrorized the opposition for
a team-high 67 caused turnovers (the next highest total on the team
was 34). Throw in her acumen on ground balls and free position
shots and Fritz is a slam dunk.
Hollis
Stahl, Sr., Gettysburg
The Bullets have a stable of stars, but it’s Stahl who
acts as Gettysburg’s engine. Whether it was the six
game-winning goals (accounting for a third of the teams wins), the
team-leading 66 draw controls, the second-most caused turnovers,
the 73 points (58g, 15a), or the transitional prowess, Stahl was
always the center of the Gettysburg game plan. The Bullets have a
lot of holes to fill next year, but Stahl’s void will be the
largest.
Alison
Jaeger, Jr., TCNJ
Let’s cut through the clutter – if you tally 111
points for TCNJ, it’s a good bet you’re on my
All-America team. While the Lions’ schedule isn’t as
stiff as perhaps it was in years past, there were still plenty of
testers. There’s Gettysburg, against whom Jaeger scored four
goals and added three assists. There’s also Salisbury (5g,
2a), F&M (3g) and Stevens (3g). Always the focus of a defensive
game-plan, Jaeger managed to seemingly always get her points.
Katie
Caprinolo, Sr., Elizabethtown
Versatility goes a long way, but sometimes you just need a
cold-blooded sniper out of the midfielder. Enter Caprinolo. With a
team leading 54 goals, she led the Blue Jays to an improbable run
to the second round. It’s easy to marginalize Caprinolo with
her MAC pedigree, but she buried four goals against Mary Washington
in the tourney, three more against Washington & Lee, four
against Gettysburg, and a pair against Salisbury. No matter the
opponent, Caprinolo always came through for Etown.
Defense
Sarah
McKinley, Sr., Salisbury
You can’t be a national champion without a clutch
defender who can always be counted on. McKinley filled that role
all season for the Sea Gulls. Tasked with squaring off against some
of the top offensive players in the country, McKinley didn’t
always post the shutout, but she always managed her opponent, which
was usually enough for Salisbury to pick up another win.
Caroline
Duke, Sr., Colby
True take-away defenders are somewhat rare in the
women’s game – defenses just aren’t typically set
up that way – but Duke established herself as defensive
playmaker, racking up 45 caused turnovers during the course of the
season (2.3 per game). In the cutthroat NESCAC schedule, that kind
of consistency is even more impressive.
Anne
Cook, Sr., Trinity
Playing defense in the NESCAC is grueling work. But the best
ones shine, and Cook is in that group. The Bantams allowed seven
and a half goals per outing, much of it do to Cook’s physical
work on the defensive end.
Goalie
Lidia
Sanza, Sr., Franklin & Marshall
Sanza has played superbly since she first stepped onto the
F&M campus and really never had a drop-off in performance.
Again this year she was among the national leaders in goals against
average and save percentage, and backstopped the Dips to yet
another national semifinal performance. F&M has managed to
reload on the offense despite the loss of some players with huge
numbers, but the real challenge for the Diplomats will be to find a
replacement for Sanza.
Player of the Year – Sarah Bray, Hamilton
The speed. The vision. The skill. Whatever trait was
needed at the moment for the Continentals, it was Bray who gave it
to them. Whether it was dusting the opposition in transition,
feeding a teammate for an easy goalie – she had 47 dimes this
season – or occasionally burying one herself (29), Bray was a
player that had to be accounted for at all times. Doubters will
point to the championship game, when she was shutout, but even in
that game her contributions in all other aspects of the game were
on display. There are plenty of versatile players that are really
close, but none who have the whole package as Bray does.
Rookie of the Year – Tracy Rivas,
Ithaca
The Bombers didn’t make it to the tournament
(although, in hindsight, they probably should have), but that
didn’t detract from Rivas’ season. The midfielders
finished fourth in goals (31) and points (36) for a team that
finished with an 11-6 mark and an appearance Empire 8 championship
game. Rivas was integral in the Bombers earning the top seed in the
tournament by scoring five goals in Ithaca’s 13-11 victory
over Stevens in the regular season and was a constant threat
throughout the season.
Coach of the Year - Mike Faith,
Elizabethtown
After narrowly missing its first chance at the NCAA
tournament in 2009, Etown made the most of their berth this year by
stunning No. 14 Washington & Lee team in the first round before
losing by three, 19-16, to nationally-ranked Mary Washington.
That’s pretty heady stuff from a MAC member –
traditionally thought of as a “little sister” among the
WD3 conferences. It’s been Faith’s ability to eradicate
that mentality, at least within his own program, that has helped
the Blue Jays break into the top tier. By playing top programs such
as Salisbury and Gettysburg, Faith has been able to build a
contender despite being hamstrung with 12 conference games.
He’s an easy pick for this honor.
