BOSTON - The new-look America East field hockey saw its teams get off to a good start to the 2015 season as the nine members combined to go 11-5. That included two wins over ranked teams.
Here are the week first weekly award winners of the season:
Player of the Week
Paula Heuser, Albany - Jr., Midfielder, Mochengladbach, Germany
- The reigning National Player of the Year picked up where she left off, tallying 11 points on five goals and an assist in two games.
- Recorded a hat trick, scoring all three Albany goals in its 3-1 win over Miami (Ohio) Friday.
- Scored twice and set up a third score in the Great Danes' 3-1 victory at Ohio State Sunday.
- Became Albany's Division I leader in career points (125) and goals (51) through just 46 career games.
Defensive Player of the Week
Kelsey Federico, UMass Lowell - So., Goalkeeper, Windham, N.H.
- Led UMass Lowell to a pair of wins, stopping 83 percent of the shots she faced.
- Made four saves in a 2-1 win over Quinnipiac Friday.
- Stopped a season-high 11 shots in a 3-2 victory over Providence Sunday.
Rookie of the Week
Lauren Tucker, Vermont - Fr., Defense, Brisbane, Australia
- Tallied three goals in two games.
- Scored both over Vermont's goals in a 2-0 win over Sacred Heart Sunday.
- Found the back of the cage in her collegiate debut, a loss to Hofstra Friday.
Notes
- Four west coast schools- Cal, UC Davis, Pacific and Stanford - join America East as associate members for the 2015 season.
- Conference teams went 11-5 over the weekend, which included two wins over ranked programs.
- #6 Stanford knocked off #5 Duke, 2-1 in overtime, Sunday.
- New Hampshire also knocked off a ranked foe, beating #18 UMass, 4-3, Saturday.
- #7 Albany, a Final Four team last year, won two games in Ohio, beating Miami and Ohio State by identical 3-1 scores, to start 2-0 for the third-straight season.
- Cal beat Bryant, 7-2, on Friday. The seven goals were its most since Sept. 3, 2011.
- Pacific started its season with a 4-0 win over Bryant Friday.
- Maine and UMass Lowell are both off to 2-0 starts, while Vermont went 1-1 and UC Davis dropped its lone contest.
- Paula Heuser became Albany's Division I leader in career points (125) and goals (51) through just 46 career games.
- The Great Danes' Laura Page became the program's all-time assist leader with 51.
- UNH senior Meg Flatley became just the fifth player in UNH history to eclipse the 100-point mark for her career.
Weekly Award Winners
Aug. 31 - Player of the Week: Paula Heuser, Albany; Defensive Player of the Week: Kelsey Federico, UMass Lowell; Rookie of the Week: Lauren Tucker, Vermont