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Somerset, NJ -- After completing an undefeated season in conference play, Bryant women’s lacrosse was honored with three major awards on the eve of the Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament. Sophomore attacker Jess DeMeo (Mount Sinai, NY/Mount Sinai) was named the NEC Offensive Player of the Year and senior Molly Martin (Island Park, NY/Long Beach) was tabbed the NEC Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight season. That wasn’t all for Bryant as Jill Batcheller picked up her fourth consecutive NEC Coach of the Year award. Robert Morris freshman Annie Sachs (Baldwin, MD/Dulaney) was named the NEC Rookie of the Year and the NEC Midfielder of the Year.
 
The major award winners, along with the All-NEC and NEC All-Rookie teams were announced at the pre-tournament banquet on Bryant’s campus in Smithfield, RI. The banquet featured the four schools – Bryant, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart and Wagner – set to participate in the NEC Women’s Lacrosse Tournament on an evening to recognize the best-of-the-best from the regular season.
 
A year after winning NEC Rookie of the Year honors, DeMeo became the fourth straight Bryant student-athlete to win the NEC Offensive Player of the Year award, joining Nicole Britton (2016), Lauren Descalzo (2015) and Lisa Vendel (2014). DeMeo leads the Bulldogs with 46 goals and 54 points, and ranked among NEC leaders all year. She 3.07 goals per game and 3.60 points per game averages place her third on the circuit in both categories. A three-time NEC Player of the Week, DeMeo sparked a Bryant offense that exploded in conference play for a league best 16.43 goals per game.
 
Martin anchored a stingy Bryant defense that yielded an NEC-low 8.0 goals per game against conference rivals and posted a league-best 8.46 goals against average for the entire season. The three-time All-NEC first team selection tops the Bulldogs with 39 ground balls and 26 caused turnovers. She has led Bryant in both categories in each of her three seasons in Smithfield. Martin, who was named the NEC Defensive Player of the Week back on February 27, became the just the second player in conference history to win two NEC Defensive Player of the Year honors, joining the Mount’s Aly Jost (2009, 2011).
 
Sachs is in the midst of a phenomenal rookie year, serving as the catalyst on the Colonials’ high-powered offense. She paces Robert Morris with 47 goals, 26 assists and 73 points heading into the postseason. The lone NEC player sitting in the top-five in all three major offensive categories, she ranks first in the league in points per game (4.29), third in assists (1.53) and fourth in goals (2.76). Sachs turned in multi-goal efforts in all but one game this season and had three game-winning tallies against NEC opposition. The first RMU player to ever earn a major NEC individual honor, Sachs also earned distinction as the first NEC Rookie of the Year to also win another major award in her freshman year. She was twice named NEC Rookie of the Week this spring.
 
Batcheller guided Bryant to its fourth straight NEC regular season title with a perfect 7-0 mark in conference play and 11-4 overall record. Over the last four years, Batcheller’s Bulldogs have lost just two NEC games in the regular season, compiling a remarkable 26-2 mark over that stretch. In her five seasons at the helm, Bryant has compiled a 32-5 NEC record and won a pair of NEC Tournament crowns. Her four NEC Coach of the Year honors stands as a new league record.
 
AWARD WINNER HIGHLIGHTS
 
Over the last four years, Bryant has combined to win 11 major individual awards.
 
Three freshman landed on the All-NEC first team, highlighted by RMU midfielder Annie Sachs (Baldwin, MD/Dulaney), the NEC Rookie & Midfielder of the Year. She was joined by Bryant attacker Caitlin Breglia (Long Beach, NY/Long Beach) and CCSU attacker Megan Szawlowski (Leeds, MA/Williston Northampton). Breglia was a three-time NEC Rookie of the Week who ranks in the NEC top-10 in goals (2.27/game), assists (1.07) and points (3.33). Szawlowski, a two-time NEC Rookie of the Week recipient, tallied 57 points and ended her freshman season as the NEC’s second-ranked distributor with 27 assists and 1.69 apg.
 
High scoring LIU Brooklyn attacker Jenn Peters (Slate Hill, NY/Minisink Valley) secured her fourth straight All-NEC honor when she was named to the second team. Peters, who led the Blackbirds with 39 goals and 51 points, and ranks in the NEC top-10 in both categories, wrapped her stellar career with a school record 194 goals. The former NEC Rookie of the Year also ranks second in LIU history with 244 points.
 
Sacred Heart senior Caitlin Delaney (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill East) picked up first team All-NEC honors for the third straight year. The do-it-all midfielder enters the postseason as the SHU leader in nearly every statistical category, including goals (33), assists (19), points (52), ground balls (40) and caused turnovers (71). She is the NEC leader and ranks third nationally with 3.06 caused turnovers per outing.
 
Bryant senior defender Carly Cronin (Feeding Hills, MA/Wilbraham and Monson Academy) claimed her third All-NEC award with her selection to the second team. A two-time All-NEC first teamer, she has racked up 36 ground balls to rank second on the Bulldogs.
 
Wagner senior Amanda Rey (Turnersville, NJ/Washington Township) is also a three-time All-NEC honoree. She earned first team recognition in 2017 after making two straight appearances on the second team. Rey averages 3.06 ground balls per game to rank fourth in the conference and leads Wagner with 30 caused turnovers on the year.
 
Entering her junior year with a combined eight goals and one assist over her first two seasons, Wagner’s Heidi Colford (Eden Prairie, MN/Eden Prairie) exploded onto the scene this spring. She leads the NEC with 32 assists and 1.88 apg, and has also tallied 30 goals and 62 points. Colford is the second-leading scorer in the conference with 3.65 ppg.
 
Saint Francis U senior midfielder Holly Lawrence (Damascus, MD/Damascus) tied for the NEC lead with 50 goals during the regular season en-route to second team All-NEC honors for the second straight year. She posted a league-best three games with six or more goals this season. Her NEC-high 3.12 goals per game matches the output of CCSU senior midfielder Marissa Soto (Miller Place, NY/Miller Place), who also rang up 50 goals on the year and was tabbed to the second team.
 
Two-time NEC all-star Sammie Knapp (Cub Hill, MD/Loch Raven), a Mount St. Mary’s senior midfielder, bumped up to the All-Conference first team after ranking first on the Mount with 32 goals, 12 assists and 44 points.
 
Two-time All-NEC first team goalkeeper Samantha Santeramo (Wantagh, NY/Gen Douglas MacArthur) of Bryant allowed six or fewer goals in seven-of-15 games this season, and her 8.10 goals against average and .521 save percentage both rank first in the NEC by a wide margin.
 
Robert Morris senior defender Megan Wolfgang (Medina, OH/Medina) currently ranks third in the NEC in ground balls per game (3.12) and caused turnovers per game (2.41). She was named to the All-NEC first team for the second straight year.
 
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 36th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 10 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#22), Baltimore (#26), and Hartford/New Haven (#30).  Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 22 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary’s, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat, all @NECsports.