Nov. 1, 2017
Big Ten Release
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Four Penn State student-athletes earned Big Ten honors, the conference office announced Wednesday afternoon. Moira Putsch (Media, Pa.) and Skyler Fretz (Oley, Pa.) were named 2017 Big Ten First-Team while Katie Dembrowski (Palmyra, Pa.) and Jenny Rizzo (Hershey, Pa.) earned second-team Big Ten honors.
Putsch, a 2016 All-American, was also named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year in addition to her Big Ten First-Team honors. The junior has posted a team-high 19 goals and 13 assists while starting all 18 games in 2017. Putsch becomes the eighth Nittany Lions to be named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and the first since Kelsey Amy earned the nod in 2012.
Fretz earned Big Ten First-Team accolades following a stellar season in the backfield. The senior team captain has posted nine defensive saves that lead the Nittany Lions while playing every minute possible for the Blue & White this season.
Katie Dembrowski earns her first Big Ten merit following a season that saw Dembrowski score four goals and four assists starting 18 games this season.
Rizzo earns Big Ten honors after posting a 14-3 record with 87 saves with a 1.19 GAA, including five shutouts in 2017.
The complete list of All-Big Ten honorees and Sportsmanship Award recipients is below.
2017 All-Big Ten Teams
First Team
SOPHIA MILLER, D, Sr., NU
KATIE TROMBETTA, M, Sr., MICH
Lein Holsboer, M, Sr., MD
Moira Putsch, F, Jr., PSU
Skyler Fretz, D, Sr., PSU
Katie Birch, D, So., IOWA
Linnea Gonzales, F, Jr., MD
Meg Dowthwaite, F, So., MICH
Simone Vagnoni, M, Sr., MSU
Puck Pentenga, M, Jr., NU
SAMANTHA SWENSON, GK, Sr., MICH
Second Team
Maddy Humphrey, F, Sr., OSU
Daphne Groothuis, M, Fr., RU
Esther de Leijer, M, Sr., MICH
Katie Dembrowski, M, Jr., PSU
Maddie Latino, F, Sr., IND
Carrie Hanks, D, Sr., MD
Maddy Murphy, F, Fr., IOWA
Linde Van Schaik, M, Jr., RU
Pascale Massey, F, Jr., NU
Kendal Anderson, M, Sr., MSU
Jenny Rizzo, GK, Jr., PSU
Player of the Year: Katie Trombetta, MICH
Offensive Player of the Year: Moira Putsch, PSU
Defensive Player of the Year: Samantha Swenson, MICH
Freshman of the Year: Bodil Keus, MD
Coach of the Year: MARCIA PANKRATZ, MICH
Unanimous selections in ALL CAPS