VESTAL, N.Y.—University of New Hampshire senior forward Chiara Best, who earlier this week broke the Wildcat career scoring record, was named America East Striker of the Year at the conference's annual awards banquet. Juniors Brooke Bingham and Brittany McDonald of Boston University were chosen Midfielder and Defender of the Year, respectively. Junior Cindy Bennett of Stony Brook University was the Goalkeeper of the Year. Marie-Andree Canuel of University of Maine earned the Rookie of the Year award. Jeff Leightman of Binghamton University was selected Coach of the Year. All voting was conducted by the head coaches at the America East institutions.
Best, the only player on the all-conference teams to have earned all-conference honors in each of her four seasons, has a conference-best 14 goals in 20 games and is tied for the America East lead with 31 points, the second-highest total in school history. She enters the semifinals of the America East Championship with a school-record 88 career points.
Bingham started all 20 games for the Terriers, who finished 13-5-1, and scored a goal and added an assist. McDonald led the Terrier defense, which allowed 18 goals in 20 games.
Bennett finished the season with a goals against average of 0.80 and had 110 saves in 19 games (5.79 per game). She had eight shutouts.
Canuel, a midfielder, scored 10 goals in 17 games and was second on the Black Bears and fifth in America East with 22 points.
Leightman led the Bearcats, who were chosen eighth in the preseason coaches' poll, to a 6-3-0 conference mark and the No. 1 seed in the America East Championship. Binghamton enters the semifinals with a record of 12-5-1, improving Leightman's seven-year career mark to 80-39-10.
Best is joined at forward on the all-conference first team by senior Tatiana Mathelier of Binghamton and junior Meghann Cook of Boston University. Mathelier has seven goals and three assists for 17 points, 10th in America East. Cook scored nine goals and added a conference-best 10 assists for 28 points to rank third in America East.
Also named to the first team as an honorary choice was junior forward Jackie Wishoski of New Hampshire. Wishoski played five games and scored three goals before being seriously injured in an automobile accident in early September. Her rehabilitation continues and she hopes to return to the form that allowed her to establish the school record for both goals (18) and points (41) last season. Included in that total was an America East Championship record of five goals and 11 points in the first round win over Northeastern.
Bingham and Canuel are joined in the midfield on the first team by senior Deli Plourde of Binghamton and sophomore Hillary Mefferd of New Hampshire. Plourde has two goals and five assists for nine points. Mefferd has four assists.
McDonald is joined by first-team defenders Meghan Taylor, a junior from Binghamton, and Allison Kelly, a senior from Maine, which ranks eighth nationally in scoring defense with 0.49 goals per game.
Bennett is the first-team goalkeeper.
The second team consists of senior Heather Hathorn of Maine, sophomore Kristin Kowalik of Northeastern University and sophomore Amy Cochran of University of Vermont at forward. Hathorn has nine goals and nine assists for 27 points in 18 games. Kowalik leads the Huskies with nine goals and four assists for 22 points. Cochran is second in America East in goals (13) and is tied for the conference lead with 31 points.
The second team midfielders are senior Caitlin O'Shaugnessy of Binghamton, junior Julie Wernig of New Hampshire, junior Jessica Pfeifer of Northeastern and sophomore Victoria Feliciano of Stony Brook.
Senior Katie Gardiner of University of Hartford, junior Debbie Newman of New Hampshire, a three-time selection to the second team, and senior Stephanie Mead of Vermont are the second-team defenders.
Junior Tanya Adorno of Maine, who ranks 15th in the nation with a 0.55 goals against average, is the second-team goalkeeper.
Honorable mention choices include Sara Rickard of University at Albany, Kim Povill of Binghamton, Susan Marschall of Boston University, Malin Engman of Hartford, Angela Clark of Maine, Jackie Spellman of Northeastern, Kirsandra Seaton of Stony Brook and Kate Moran of Vermont.
The all-rookie team consists of Povill and Canuel, Uju Ogbuawa of Albany, Nicole Lucey of Boston University, Liz Cook of Hartford, Laura Harper and Marie-Michele Bouchard of Maine, Jessica Young of UMBC, Adriana Gonzalez-Medina of New Hampshire, Laura Johnson of Northeastern and Krista Shilts of Stony Brook.