May 1, 2014
RICHMOND, Va. - Thursday proved to be a banner day for senior goalie Austin Kaut (Morton, Pa.) as he led a cast of six Nittany Lions on the All-Colonial Athletic Association teams. Kaut was named Defensive Player of the Year for a second straight season and became the first to earn four straight nods on the All-CAA First Team.
Kaut, who followed up his stellar 2013 junior season with another award winning year in 2014, became just the second player in CAA history to win back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awards, joining Hofstra's Brett Moyer (2005-06). Additionally, Kaut was named Penn State's CAA All-Academic Team award winner.
During CAA play, Kaut led the conference in goals against average (6.48), save percentage (.638) and saves per game (12.00). He had seven games with 10 or more saves and posted an amazing perfect game against Towson on April 12, stopping all 11 shots without allowing a goal in nearly 59 minutes of action.
Joining Kaut on the All-CAA First Team was fellow senior Shane Sturgis (Downingtown, Pa.) who led the CAA in points per game (3.85) and game-winning goals. Sturgis compiled a career year with highs in goals (33) and points (50) to grab his first All-CAA First Team accolade. The shifty senior moved up to fourth all-time in Penn State history in career points with 158.
Senior defenseman Tyler Travis (Geneva, N.Y.) found his name on the All-CAA honor list for a second straight year, picking up second-team recognition. PSU's bruising defender led the team with a team-best and career-high 17 caused turnovers, while picking up 23 ground balls.
Sophomore long-stick midfielder James Burke (Duxbury, Mass.) followed his 2013 All-CAA Rookie Team campaign with an inaugural trip on the All-CAA Second Team honor roll. Burke was second on the team in caused turnovers (14) while picking up a fourth-best 29 ground balls for the Nittany Lions.
Two Nittany Lions landed on the All-CAA Rookie Team: Drake Kreinz (Delafield, Wis.) and Mike Sutton (Sewell, N.J.). Kreinz ranked 12th nationally in faceoff winning percentage (.611), which was good for third in the CAA. During league action, Kreinz topped the chart in winning percentage with a mark of 59.4 percent.
For Sutton, he was clutch down the stretch for the Nittany Lions, earning three Rookie of the Week nods and a Co-Player of the Week honor in the season's final four week. Sutton led in goals per game (3.00) during league play and finished the season with 13 goals in just six games played. The talented freshman scored 12 of his 13 goals during CAA action, which was a team best.
Penn State (7-6, 3-2 CAA) finished third in the league, but was deemed ineligible for this week's CAA Tournament due to league by-laws prohibiting teams playing in the postseason when announcing future conference changes. The Big Ten Conference will sponsor men's lacrosse in 2015.
The Nittany Lions are NCAA Tournament eligible following a win over No. 12 ranked and league-leading Hofstra last week. The NCAA Selection Show is Sunday at 9 p.m. on ESPNU.