Monmouth Field Hockey Named 2017 MAAC Preseason Favorite; Hawks’ Julie Laszlo Claims Preseason Player of the Year Honor
EDISON, NJ – The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) announced today that Monmouth University was selected the 2017 MAAC Field Hockey Preseason favorite, based on a vote by the league’s seven head coaches. The Hawks tallied six first place votes and 48 total points. Monmouth’s Julie Laszlo was tabbed the MAAC Preseason Player of the Year.
The Hawks (17-3, 6-0 MAAC) claimed the 2016 MAAC Field Hockey Championship for the second time in three years. Last season, Monmouth led the MAAC in scoring margin (1.89), scoring average (3.16), shutouts (10), goals against average (1.26), goals scored (3.25), assists (59), assists per game (2.95), and goals off corners (27).
Laszlo earned MAAC Preseason Player of the Year honor after being named the MAAC Player and Defensive Player of the Year in her junior campaign. Laszlo led the conference in points (48), points per game (2.40), goals (16), and assists (16) in 2016. She ranked second in the MAAC with eight defensive saves.
Fairfield University placed second in the Preseason Coaches’ Poll with one first place vote and 40 points overall. The Stags finished the 2016 season (8-13, 4-2 MAAC) and advanced to the MAAC Championship game for the second consecutive season. Fairfield ranked second in the MAAC in goals (61), assists (54), and assists per game (2.57).
Rider University (35) ranked third in the poll, Bryant University (29) followed in fourth, and Sacred Heart University (20) was picked fifth. Siena College (14) finished in sixth and in seventh place was LIU Brooklyn (10).
The 2017 Preseason All-MAAC Team is made up of Monmouth’s Meg Donahue, Josephine van der Hoop at forward and Christen Piersanti at goalkeeper. Rider forward Allison Baligian and defender Melissa Cunningham represent the Broncs. At midfield, Stags’ Jaclyn Gallagher and Hannah Pike join Sacred Heart’s Nichole Tolli, who was a unanimous selection. Rounding out the team on defense is Bryant’s Keighan Richardson, Floor van Dommelen and Siena’s Jaycie St. John.
The 2017 MAAC Field Hockey Championship takes place November 3-5 and is hosted by the highest seeded full MAAC member. For all up-to-date information regarding
MAAC Field Hockey, visit
maacsports.com.
| Preseason Coaches’ Poll |
| 1. |
Monmouth (6) |
48 |
| 2. |
Fairfield (1) |
40 |
| 3. |
Rider |
35 |
| 4. |
Bryant |
29 |
| 5. |
Sacred Heart |
20 |
| 6. |
Siena |
14 |
| 7. |
LIU Brooklyn |
10 |
| Preseason All-MAAC Team |
| Name |
Position |
Institution |
| Meg Donahue |
Forward |
Monmouth |
| Josephine van der Hoop |
Forward |
Monmouth |
| Allison Baligian |
Forward |
Rider |
| Jaclyn Gallagher |
Midfield |
Fairfield |
| Hannah Pike |
Midfield |
Fairfield |
| Nichole Tolli* |
Midfield |
Sacred Heart |
| Melissa Cunningham |
Defense |
Rider |
| Julie Laszlo |
Defense |
Monmouth |
| Keighan Richardson |
Defense |
Bryant |
| Jaycie St. John |
Defense |
Siena |
| Floor van Dommelen |
Defense |
Bryant |
| Christen Piersanti |
Goalkeeper |
Monmouth |
| *denotes unanimous selection |
| Preseason Player of the Year |
| Name |
Position |
Institution |
| Julie Laszlo |
Defense |
Monmouth |
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 37th year of competition during the 2017-18 academic year. Current Conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona College, Manhattan College, Marist College, Monmouth University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter's University, and Siena College.