MAAC Announces 2014 Water Polo All-MAAC Team
MAAC Sports
Edison, N.J. - Iona College's Amy Olsen has been named the 2014 MAAC Water Polo Offensive Player of the Year, while Wagner College's Jessica Lundgren earned Defensive Player of the Year honors to headline the 2014 Water Polo All-MAAC Teams, as voted by the league's head coaches.
Additionally, Marist College’s Amanda Amorosa earned Rookie of the Year honors, and Natalie Benson, Marist’s head coach, was selected as the 2014 Anaconda Sports MAAC Coach of the Year.
Olsen, a senior from Baytown, Texas, led the MAAC in goals scored this season, finishing out the regular season with 100 goals and a 3.45 goals per game average. Olsen takes home the award for the second consecutive year after being named the 2013 MAAC Offensive Player of the Year last season. She steered Iona to an overall record of 14-15 and a 9-3 mark in the MAAC en route to earning the third seed in this year's championship. Olsen scored the 331st goal of her career this season, which moved her into first place all-time in goals scored in Iona Gaels history.
Lundgren, a sophomore from Queensland, Australia, re-broke her own school record in steals this season with 142, a record she set last season with 124. After being named 2013 MAAC Rookie of the Year, she returned to the pool and led Wagner with 73 drawn exclusions to help anchor a Seahawks defense that earned the number one seed in the MAAC Water Polo Championship. On top of her stellar defense, Lundgren was ranked third in the MAAC in goals scored with 96 and led Wagner with 167 total points on the season. Wagner finished with a 23-11 record and an 11-1 mark in MAAC play.
Amorosa, a freshman from Montreal, Quebec netted 75 goals, which led the team, and assisted on 51 more for the Red Foxes this season. She also was second on the team in field blocks with 15 on the season. Amorosa finished in the top 5 in scoring for the MAAC and also was chosen as Rookie of the Week five times this year.
Benson, in her first season as the head coach of Marist, led her program to an overall record of 19-16, including a 10-2 mark in the MAAC, en route to earning the second seed in the 2014 MAAC Women's Water Polo Championship.
Earning First Team All-MAAC selections are Iona's Amy Olsen and Erika Lauraitis, Wagner's Jessica Burdge and Jessica Lundgren, Villanova’s Naomi Ng and Marist's Jessica Hamby, Amanda Amorosa and goalkeeper Skyler Henry.
All-MAAC First Team
Amy Olsen, Iona
Erika Lauraitis, Iona
Jessica Hamby, Marist
Amanda Amorosa, Marist
Jessica Lundgren, Wagner
Jessica Burdge, Wagner
Naomi Ng, Villanova
Skyler Henry, Marist
All-MAAC Second Team
Lily Doerfler, Wagner
Alison Hamby, Marist
Sarina Shibata, Villanova
Lea Allen, Siena
Anna-Lena Hathaway, Marist
Jacquelyn Verdon, Siena
Georgina Lee, Iona
Brooke Else, Marist
Bernadette Laszlo, Saint Francis Brooklyn
Bailey Huddleston, VMI
Stephanie Bundas, Siena
Callan Edwards, Villanova
Rachel Burns, Wagner
Emily Riddle, Wagner
Offensive Player of the Year
Amy Olsen, Iona
Defensive Player of the Year
Jessica Lundgren, Wagner
Rookie of the Year
Amanda Amorosa, Marist
Coach of the Year
Natalie Benson, Marist
The 2014 MAAC Water Polo Championship will be held April 26th and 27th at the McCann Natatorium on the campus of Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. Purchase tickets at MAAC.Ticketleap.com.
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
The MAAC, headquartered in Edison, N.J., consists of 11 member institutions in 2014: 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. For more on the conference please visit, www.maacsports.com. Follow the MAAC on Facebook and Twitter: @MAACSports. Follow MAAC Water Polo on Twitter using the hashtag #MAACWWP.
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