Five #AEFH Programs Take Home Major Awards as All-Conference Teams Announced
BOSTON – Two repeat selections and four first-time honorees headlined the America East field hockey major awards which the conference office announced Wednesday along with the 2019 All-Conference teams. Of the six major awards, five teams were represented led by #17 Stanford as Corinne Zanolli and Kelsey Bing repeated as Offensive Player of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year, respectively.
The 2019 #AEFH awards, along with the All-Conference and All-Rookie teams, were determined in a vote by the league's nine head coaches who were not permitted to vote for their own players. The All-Academic team was voted on by a committee of administrators from the conference’s member institutions.
33 student-athletes earned All-Conference recognition, 12 earned All-Rookie honors and 10 were named to the All-Academic Team. View the complete list of All-Conference, All-Rookie and All-Academic honorees.
2019 #AEFH Major Award Winners
Offensive Player of the Year
Corinne Zanolli, Jr., Stanford
- Is the nation’s leader in goals (28) and points (59).
- Her 28 goals are a career-best and rank inside the league’s all-time top-five for a single season.
- Paced an attack that scored nearly three goals per game.
- Earns the award for a second-straight year, marking the third time a Cardinal player has received the honor.
Midfielder of the Year
Dana Bozek, Sr., UAlbany
- Ranks third in the conference and 15th in the country with 14 goals.
- Stabilized a UAlbany team that ranked in the league’s top-three in scoring margin.
- Two-time Offensive Player of the Week this season.
- Second Great Dane to win the award and first since All-American Paula Heuser.
Defensive Player of the Year
Cassandra Mascarenhas, Jr., Maine
- Second Black Bear to receive the honor and first since 2005.
- Helped Maine clinch the two-seed and a bye in the championship.
- Leads the team in minutes played and also tallied seven points behind a goal and five assists.
Goalkeeper of the Year
Kelsey Bing, Sr., Stanford
- Top-five in the league in both goals against average and save percentage.
- .794 save percentage ranks fifth nationally.
- Led all West Division goalkeepers in GAA and save percentage during conference play.
- Is the second player in league history to receive the award three times consecutively.
Rookie of the Year
Maura Verleg, Fr., New Hampshire
- Started all 17 games for UNH, playing the most minutes on the team.
- Totaled three points on a trio of assists.
- Third Wildcat to take home the award and first since 2002.
Coaching Staff of the year
Monmouth University
- Led by head coach Carli Figlio, the Hawks flew their way to East Division regular season champions behind a perfect record in conference play.
- Earned the top seed and right to host the championship in inaugural season.
- #20 Monmouth was the only #AEFH team to score more than three goals per game, ranking tenth nationally.
- Figlio is assisted by David Williamson and Alyssa Ercolino.
The 2019 America East Field Hockey Championship begins at Monmouth University on Thursday, Nov. 7 as #4 UNH takes on #5 Cal in the quarterfinals at 11 a.m. ET followed by #3 Stanford and #6 UAlbany at 1:30 p.m. ET. #1 Monmouth and #2 Maine await the winners for Friday’s semifinal games and the tournament culminates with Sunday's championship game at 12 p.m. All games can be streamed live on AmericaEast.TV.
Stay up-to-date on the tournament by visiting #AEFH Championship Central for streaming and live stats links as well as box scores, highlights and recaps following each round in addition to team information, tournament history and more. Follow @AmericaEast and @AEDigitalNet on Twitter to get real-time championship updates. Use the #AEChamps and #AEFH hashtags to join the conversation.
About America East: The America East provides its member schools and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field.
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