Nov. 14, 2007
University Park, Pa. - For the second straight year, the Penn State field hockey team placed seven of its members on the NFHCA All-Mideast Region teams that were announced today by National Field Hockey Coaches Association. This marks the third time in the last five years that Penn State has had seven selections on the All-Mideast Region team. Jen Long, Allison Scola, Mallory Weisen and Kiersten Wood were all named to the first team while Shaun Banta, Jen Beaumont and Britney Long were all named to the second team.
Penn State's seven selections combined on both the first and second teams is the most of any school in the Mideast Region and is tied for the second-most of any team in any region. Maryland in the Mid-Atlantic Region, as well as Duke and Penn State's Final Four opponent Wake Forest in the South Region also had seven selections apiece while North Carolina in the South Region led all schools with eight selections. This also marks the second straight year that the Nittany Lions have had the second-most All-Region selections of any school in the country.
Jen Long makes the All-Region first team for the second straight year and adds the honor to a growing list of accomplishments in her career. She was also a first team All-Big Ten selection this year and was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. Earlier this week, Long was also named the womensfieldhockey.com Player of the Week after helping Penn State get to the final four with a pair of wins over Virginia and Maryland this past weekend. Long has set a career high for goals (1), assists (11) and points (13) this year and is second in the Big Ten in assists while also ranking in the top 25 in the country in assists per game. She became the first Penn State player with 10 or more assists in a season since 2003 earlier this year. Also a member of the U.S. U-21 National Team, Long was a second team NFHCA All-American last year and will have an excellent shot of at least duplicating that when the All-American teams are announced next week.
Mallory Weisen is a first team All-Mideast Region selection after being a second teamer a year ago. |
Kiersten Wood is now a three-time first team All-Region honoree after being named to the first team again this year. Also a three-time first team All-Big Ten pick and a two-time NFHCA All-American, Wood has been a model for consistency during her career with the Nittany Lions. She has played in and started all but two games in her career. A former Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Wood has scored six goals, just one off her career high, and recorded five assists this year. She often begins offensive attacks from her spot in the center midfield and she also is often the first line of defense when the opposition begins to move the ball the other way. Wood was one of two seniors named to play in the NFHCA Senior All-Star game on Saturday but will now not play due to the Nittany Lions advancing to the final four.
Mallory Weisen was named to the first team All-Region for the first time in her career after being named to the second team as a junior last year. Weisen's 10 goals on the season are a career high and rank second on the team and in a tie for ninth in the Big Ten. Of her 10 goals this year, seven are game-winning goals, which leads the Big Ten. She is the second Penn State player in the last two years to lead the Big Ten in game-winning goals after Allison Scola led the conference last year. Weisen was the other senior named to play in the NFHCA Senior All-Star game on Saturday but she, too, will also not play since the Nittany Lions have advanced to the final four.
Shaun Banta has now been on the All-Mideast Region second team for three straight years. |
Allison Scola was the other Penn State selection to the first team and it marks her first All-Region honor of her career for the junior. Also a member of the U.S. U-21 National Team, Scola was named second team All-Big Ten earlier this year. She has also been a model of consistency as she has started every game for the last two seasons and has started 62 consecutive games for the Nittany Lions. She ranks fourth on the team in points and second in assists with 10. She recorded her 10th assist of the year against Virginia in the NCAA first round game last weekend as she and Jen Long became the first duo on the Nittany Lions to record 10 or more assists in the same season since 2002. Scola's 10 helpers are a career high. She has showcased her versatility by playing all over the field this year as she has played forward, midfield as well as back during the season.
Making the second team All-Region for the third straight year is senior Shaun Banta. The Big Ten leader in goals a year ago, Banta has taken on more of a distribution role this year and as a result has recorded a career high with eight assists to go along with her seven goals. A fifth-year senior, Banta is the team's active leader in goals and points. Her 46 career goals and 109 career points place her just outside the all-time top 10 at Penn State in both of those categories. During the postseason this year, she has recorded a goal and three assists as she has teammed up with Britney Long to form a lethal offensive combination. Banta was also a second team All-Big Ten selection this year and a first team selection last year.
Jen Beaumont garners her second straight All-Region recognition as she was placed on the second team this year after making the first team last year. Also a second team NFHCA All-American last year, Beaumont has recorded a Big Ten-high eight shutouts in goal this year to tally 16 for her career, which is sixth all-time at Penn State. She has set career highs this year for minutes played, saves, and so far, save percentage as well. She has played all but 10 minutes in goal the Nittany Lions the last two seasons. She ranks second in the Big Ten in saves, goals against average while leading in shutouts per game and save percentage. She also ranked 11th in the country in goals against average and 26th in save percentage. Earlier this year, she has a career-long streak of 286:25 consecutive scoreless minutes in the cage. She played her best game of the year along with the entire Nittany Lion team on Sunday as she made nine saves and Penn State upset Maryland in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Britney Long garners her first All-Mideast Region recognition as she was named to the second team. |
Rounding out Penn State's three selections on the second team is Britney Long. This is her first career All-Region honor and it comes well deserved as she leads the Nittany Lions and ranks second in the Big Ten in goals this year with 14. She has made even more of a name for herself in this postseason as she has scored five goals in the Nittany Lions' four games. In her career, she has three goals and one assist in five NCAA Tournament games. Long has easily surpassed her previous career high for goals in a season, which was four, and with 30 points she has also far surpassed her previous points high in a season of 11 from last year.
The Nittany Lions will be appearing in their seventh NCAA Final Four this weekend at the University of Maryland. Penn State will take on Wake Forest in the national semifinals on Friday at 7:30 p.m. The national championship game is at noon on Sunday.