EDISON, NJ (Apr. 26, 2024) – The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) has announced the Women’s Lacrosse Major Award winners and All-MAAC Teams for the 2024 season, voted on by the league’s 10 head coaches.
Headlining Major Award honorees was Fairfield University with a trio of winners led by MAAC Offensive Player of the Year, Elizabeth Talluto, MAAC Goalkeeper of the Year, Claire Morris, and MAAC Coach of the Year, Laura Field. Niagara University had the duo of Sydney Huhtala and Rachel Crane, win MAAC Defensive Player of the Year and MAAC Co-Midfielder of the Year awards, respectively. Iona University’s Kira Varada claimed MAAC Co-Midfielder of the Year and Canisius University’s Maddie Fitzgerald secured MAAC Rookie of the Year.
Fairfield graduate student, Elizabeth Talluto was one of two players to be unanimously voted to the All-MAAC First Team in addition to being named MAAC Offensive Player of the Year. Talluto tallied 74 points in 2024, behind 54 goals and 20 assists. She ranked second on the MAAC leaderboard in total goals and goals per game average (3.38), fourth in total points and points per game average (4.63), and 10
th in both total assists and assists average (1.25). Talluto took an average of 6.19 shots per game, which was seventh-most in the MAAC, and attempted 99 total shots on the season, eighth in the league. In nine MAAC games during the 2024 campaign, Talluto was one of two players to score over 30 goals and one of four to record over 40 points, ranking second in goals and goals average, and fourth in points and points per game. She was honored as MAAC Offensive Player of the Week on February 19.
Defensive Player of the Year, Sydney Huhtala of Niagara paced the MAAC and ranked fourth in the nation in both caused turnovers and caused turnovers per game. She forced 48 total caused turnovers in 17 games, while averaging 2.82 caused turnovers per game. Huhtala also scooped up 42 ground balls, which tied for 10
th in the league, and averaged 2.47 ground balls per outing, also the 10
th most average compared to other conference players. Additionally, she won 51 draw controls on the season and was awarded the MAAC Defensive Player of the Week a MAAC-leading four times, winning the awards on March 4, March 18, April 1, and April 8.
For the second straight season, both Kira Varada of Iona University and Rachel Crane from Niagara University share MAAC Midfielder of the Year honors. On the offensive end, Varada scored 42 goals and racked up 56 points on 97 shot attempts. She was ninth on the conference leaderboard in goals, 10
th in points, and 10
th in shots. Defensively, Varada ranked second in the MAAC in caused turnovers (36) and caused turnovers per game (2.25), fourth in draw controls (77) and draw controls per game (4.81), sixth in ground balls (44) and ground balls average (2.75). Crane was the MAAC-leader in free position percentage (0.667), and was fourth in free position goals per game (0.71). She was tied for sixth in total goals (43), 12
th in goals per game (2.53), 16
th in points (50) and ranked 11
th in both shots per game (5.88) shots on goal per game (4.12). Crane was also 13
th in draw controls per game (3.53) on the MAAC charts. The duo become the first ever pair to share the same award in back-to-back seasons.
2024 Goalkeeper of the Year, Claire Morris appeared and started in the net all 16 games this season for Fairfield, posting a 15-1 record. She logged 896:38 minutes of action, making 103 saves, with a save percentage of .456, a goals-against average of 8.23, and picked up 28 ground balls. Morris’ goals-against average led the MAAC and ranked third in all of the NCAA. Her save percentage was third-best in the conference, while she ranked 10
th in total saves and saves per game (6.44). Morris snagged MAAC Defensive Player of the Week on March 11 during the year additionally.
Canisius’ freshman, Maddie Fitzgerald, the 2024 MAAC Rookie of the Year, racked up 28 points, scored 28 goals, won 27 draw controls, and picked up 12 ground balls during her rookie campaign. She made 15 starts for the Golden Griffins, which included all nine MAAC games, and appeared in all 17 contests for Canisius during 2024. The rookie midfielder posted a free position percentage of 0.526 and a 0.59 free position goals per game average; marks that ranked seventh and tied for ninth in the MAAC, respectively. Fitzgerald won MAAC Rookie of the Week on April 22 to close out the regular season.
Laura Field was named MAAC Coach of the Year for the second straight season. The longest-tenured head coach in Fairfield history, the Stags earned their fourth MAAC Regular Season championship under her leadership, 15th in program history, in 2024 by way of an undefeated 9-0 MAAC record while posting an overall mark of 15-1. In her ninth year at the helm of Fairfield’s women’s lacrosse program, her unit enters the postseason ranked #23 in the nation, they are the lone team in the NCAA to reach 15 wins entering this week, and they are riding the longest active winning streak in the country at 15 games. Field’s Stags also have the best win percentage in the NCAA, having won .938 percent of their contest, and they are the only team in the country with a one blemish on their record this season.
The full list of All-MAAC Teams and major awards winners are below.
| 2024 Women’s Lacrosse Major Awards |
| Awards |
Player |
School |
| Offensive Player of the Year |
Elizabeth Talluto |
Fairfield |
| Defensive Player of the Year |
Sydney Huhtala |
Niagara |
| Co-Midfielder of the Year |
Kira Varada |
Iona |
| Co-Midfielder of the Year |
Rachel Crane |
Niagara |
| Goalkeeper of the Year |
Claire Morris |
Fairfield |
| Rookie of the Year |
Maddie Fitzgerald |
Canisius |
| Coach of the Year |
Laura Field |
Fairfield |
| All-MAAC First Team |
| Player |
Class |
Position |
School |
| Elizabeth Talluto* |
Gr. |
Attack |
Fairfield |
| Lois Garlow |
Gr. |
Attack |
Niagara |
| Andra Savage |
Sr. |
Attack |
Niagara |
| Taryn Asselin |
Sr. |
Attack |
Siena |
| Grace Dobrzynski |
Jr. |
Attack |
Siena |
| Paige Stachura |
Gr. |
Midfield |
Canisius |
| Kira Varada |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Iona |
| Rachel Crane |
Gr. |
Midfield |
Niagara |
| Jillian Galanti |
Sr. |
Defense |
Canisius |
| Lindsey Barnes* |
Gr. |
Defense |
Fairfield |
| Sydney Huhtala |
So. |
Defense |
Niagara |
| Jenna Colabufo |
Gr. |
Defense |
Siena |
| Claire Morris |
Gr. |
Goalkeeper |
Fairfield |
| All-MAAC Second Team |
| Player |
Class |
Position |
School |
| Libby Rowe |
Gr. |
Attack |
Fairfield |
| Micaela FitzPatrick |
Sr. |
Attack |
Iona |
| Kerri Gutenberger |
Gr. |
Attack |
Marist |
| Mackenzi Furlong |
Sr. |
Attack |
Mount St. Mary’s |
| Brynn Donnelly |
So. |
Midfield |
Fairfield |
| Rylee Harrell |
Sr. |
Midfield |
Fairfield |
| Emily Stewart |
Gr. |
Midfield |
Iona |
| Anna Salerno |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Mount St. Mary’s |
| Katie Walsh |
R-So. |
Midfield |
Rider |
| Julia Rigolizzo |
Sr. |
Defense |
Fairfield |
| Andrea Liotta |
Gr. |
Defense |
Manhattan |
| Mickey Knapp |
Gr. |
Defense |
Niagara |
| Laura Bonomo |
Sr. |
Defense |
Siena |
| Lauren Sweeney |
So. |
Goalkeeper |
Iona |
| MAAC All-Rookie Team |
| Player |
Class |
Position |
School |
| Maddie Fitzgerald |
Fr. |
Midfield |
Canisius |
| Megan Previdi |
Fr. |
Attack |
Canisius |
| Kelly Haggerty* |
Fr. |
Attack |
Fairfield |
| Calen Norton |
Fr. |
Midfield |
Iona |
| Mia Fernandes |
Fr. |
Defense |
Marist |
| Greta Govoni |
Fr. |
Attack |
Marist |
| Megan Morris |
Fr. |
Goalkeeper |
Marist |
| Shannon McTavish |
Fr. |
Midfield |
Mount St. Mary’s |
| Maggie Kennedy |
1Y. |
Midfield |
Quinnipiac |
| Elena Bontatibus |
Fr. |
Midfield |
Rider |
| Hayley Henderson |
R-Fr. |
Midfield/Defense |
Rider |
| Cassidy Bonura |
Fr. |
Midfield |
Siena |
| Kylie Kuhn |
Fr. |
Midfield |
Siena |
| Olivia Nicholson |
Fr. |
Attack |
Siena |
| Elizabeth Wamp |
Fr. |
Midfield |
Siena |
*Denote Unanimous Selection
The 2024 MAAC Women's Lacrosse Championship will take place between April 28 and May 5, 2024. The six-team, single-elimination tournament will open on Sunday, April 28 with the opening round hosted by the higher seed of each matchup. The semifinals and championship final will be hosted by the top overall seed in the field and will be played on Friday, May 3 and Sunday, May 5. For all information regarding the 2024 MAAC Women’s Lacrosse Championship, please visit
maacsports.com/wlax.
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 43rd year of competition during the 2023-24 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius University, Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan College, Marist College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College. Merrimack College and Sacred Heart University will join the MAAC as full members in the 2024-25 academic year, expanding the conference to 13 institutions.
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