Nov. 17, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State field hockey seniors Amanda Dinunzio (State College, Pa.), Laura Gebhart (Mount Joy, Pa.) and Taylor Herold (Fredericksburg, Va.) were each selected to the 2014 Longstreth/NFHCA Division I All-Mideast Region first team, it was announced Monday. Seniors Katie Breneman (Washington Boro, Pa.) and Jenna Chrismer (Mountain Top, Pa.) each earned second team recognition.
Dinunzio was selected to the all-region team for the first time. This season, the senior posted a career-high six goals and three assists, seeing time at both midfield and forward. Most recently, she led the team in the NCAA Tournament first round win against No. 11 Boston College (Nov. 15). There, she scored a goal and assisted on the game-winner and was named Centre Daily Times Athlete of the Week. Against Lock Haven on Sept. 23, Dinunzio recorded a multi-goal game, tallying two in the contest.
Gebhart, who receives this honor for the fourth time, finished tied for second on the team with 10 goals, tied for first with seven assists and second with 27 points. The goals and points are season-highs for the Mount Joy, Pennsylvania native. A team captain, Gebhart totaled at least one point in 10 games this season. Most recently, the first team All-Big Ten selection scored the team's lone goal in the win against Michigan State at the Big Ten Tournament on Nov. 6. She had a career-high six points on a personal-best three goals against Bucknell on Oct. 14. She led the Nittany Lions with three defensive saves in 2014.
Honored for the first time, Herold led the Nittany Lions offensively with 18 goals and 43 points, ranking 16th nationally in goals per game. The first team All-Big Ten selection finished tied for the team lead with seven assists. This season, she posted at least one point in 15 games, including 13 multi-point games and a hat trick against Princeton on Sept. 12. Herold also scored the game-winner with just 7:11 remaining in the NCAA Tournament first round win against Boston College.
Breneman, a second team selection, led a defense that allowed just 1.32 goals per game in 2014, ranking 10th nationally. She has started 62 games in her career and played all 70 minutes 20 times in 22 total games on the year. Breneman and the Penn State defense recorded six shutouts this season.
Chrismer, also named to the second team, finished tied for second on the team with 10 goals and ranked third with 25 points on the season. She tallied four points on four separate occasions in 2014. Most recently, the senior scored Penn State's only goal in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals on Nov. 16.
The Nittany Lions finished the seas 16-6, reaching the NCAA Tournament for the 30th time in program history. Penn State made it to the quarterfinals before falling to No. 4 Syracuse.