Conference

Somerset, NJ -- Quinnipiac senior midfielder Courtney Ryan (New Hope, PA/Council Rock) was selected the Northeast Conference Field Hockey Player of the Year in a vote by league head coaches. A three-time all-NEC pick, Ryan led the Bobcats to the NEC regular season title, as well as the top seed in this weekend’s NEC Tournament. Talented freshman forward Courtney Bertos (Morris Knolls, NJ/Morris Knolls) of Rider was named the league’s Rookie of the Year, while Quinnipiac’s Becca Main Kohli was tabbed as NEC Coach of the Year. Main Kohli, a three-time NEC Coach of the Year recipient and the winningest coach in league history, led the Bobcats to their fourth NEC regular season title this year, as her squad became the first program in conference annals to post an unbeaten record in NEC regular season play (11-0).

The 2002 NEC Field Hockey Championship will be hosted by Monmouth this weekend in West Long Branch, NJ. On Friday, November 1, #1 seed Quinnipiac will take on #4 Monmouth at 12:00 pm in a semifinal matchup. The second semifinal is scheduled for 3:00 pm, and features #2 Rider versus #3 Sacred Heart. The championship game will be held on Sunday, November 3 at 1:00 pm, with the winner moving on to face the Atlantic 10 champion in an NCAA Tournament play-in match on Tuesday, November 12.

Ryan, a senior co-captain for Quinnipiac, has been a major contributor to the Bobcats undefeated run through the NEC regular season. She currently leads the NEC in assists (10/0.56 per game), and her ten helpers also established a new Northeast Conference single season record. Overall, Ryan ranks third on the Bobcats with 16 points (3 g/10 a). A 2001 Mideast Region All-American, Ryan was recently selected to compete in the 2002 National Field Hockey Coaches Association Senior All-Star Game on November 23 at the University of Louisville.

One of Rider’s most highly touted recruits this season, Bertos more than lived up to her advance billing. A three-time Rookie of the Week honoree, Bertos led all NEC newcomers this season in goals (10/0.58 per game), assists (8/0.47 per game) and scoring (10 g/8 a/28 pts./1.64 ppg) on her way to earning first team all-conference accolades. Bertos’s scoring exploits helped the Broncs lead the league in team scoring this season (2.88 goals per game), as well as the #2 seed in this weekend’s NEC Tournament.

Two other Quinnipiac standouts earn all-league honors along with Ryan. Sophomore forward Chelsea Osbrey (North Kingstown, RI/North Kingstown) registered 25 points (10 g/5 a) this year to pace the Bobcats in scoring. Senior Jackie Langenstein (Hampstead, NH/Pinkerton Academy) led all NEC defenders in scoring with 12 points (5 g/2 a), while she also helped spearhead a QU defense that allowed less than one goal a game in conference play this year.

Joining Bertos as first team honorees from Rider include sophomore forward Christina Ang (Somers Point, NJ/Mainland Regional) and senior goalie Jen Cushinotto (Tuckahoe, NJ/Ocean City). The high-scoring Ang leads the league in goals (15/0.88 per game) and scoring (15 g/4 a/34 pts./2.00 ppg) entering this weekend’s NEC Tournament. Cushinotto, a two-time all-NEC first teamer, ranks first in the conference in goals against average (1.66) and second in save percentage (.736).

Monmouth, along with Quinnipiac and Rider, also places three athletes on the all-NEC first team. Sophomore MF Kelly Balady (Lansdale, PA/Methacton) earns her second all-conference accolade in as many years, as she compiled six points (1 g/4 a) on the season. A pair of senior defenders, Tara Hartman (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra) and Megan Kenney (Stockton, NJ/Hunterdon Central), round out the Monmouth trio. Hartman piled up five defensive saves on the season to lead the Hawks, while Kenney chipped in with seven points (2 g/3 a) while also providing Monmouth with a veteran presence on the field.

Sacred Heart junior forward Julie Messenger (Hinsdale, NH/Hinsdale) earns all-NEC accolades for the third time in her career, as she led the Pioneers in goals (11/0.65 per game) and scoring (11 g/3 a/25 pts./1.47 ppg). Completing the all-conference squad is Sacred Heart senior midfielder Laura Athans (Ocean, NJ/Ocean Township). Athans, a second team pick last year, recorded nine points (3 g/3 a) on the season.

The all-NEC second team features a youthful look, as six of the eleven honorees are underclassman. Regular season champion Quinnipiac placed three players on the squad, including skilled freshman forward Danielle Avenoso (Pompton Lakes, NJ/Pompton Lakes). Avenoso currently ranks second on QU in scoring (10 g/1 a/21 pts.). Freshman goalie Erin McKay (Norwood, MA/Norwood) and sophomore back Jill DiSanti (Fairfield, NJ/West Essex) round out the Bobcats second team contingent. McKay leads the NEC with four shutouts on the season, while DiSanti has emerged as one of Quinnipiac’s top defenders this year. Siena, an emerging program in the NEC, had three players named to the second team in junior forward Lacee Iselo (Rome, NY/Holland Patent), freshman midfielder Kathleen Brennan (Delran, NJ/Holy Cross) and junior defender Michelle Dorscheid (Penfield, NY/Penfield). Iselo, who has now earned second team kudos the past three years, led the Saints in scoring this season (9 g/1 a/19 pts.). Brennan and Dorscheid were key contributors to a Saints team that ranked among the NEC leaders in goals against average, giving up just slightly over two goals per game this season. Senior midfielder Wendy Ison (Pasadena, MD/Chesapeake) and sophomore back Cecile Banas (Gaithersburg, MD/Wooton) become the first two UMBC players to ever garner all-NEC accolades. Ison (4 g/3 a/11 pts.) and Banas (4 g/1 a/9 pts.) ranked atop the Retrievers scoring chart, as the program won six games on the season - the most since the school added field hockey as a sport three years ago. Monmouth forwards Gina Chico (Williamstown, NJ/Williamstown) and Katie Niemcyzk (Pompton Plains, NJ/Pequannock) provided the Hawks with a potent scoring duo. Chico (9 g/5 a/23 pts.) is a former NEC Player of the Year, while Niemcyzk came into her own this season as a scorer (7 g/4 a/18 pts.). The final member of the all-NEC second team is Rider freshman midfielder Ally Hunter (Plainsboro, NJ/West Windsor-Plainsboro North). Another key component of the Broncs talented freshman class, Hunter rang-up six points (2 g/2 a) on the year.