Nov. 27, 2017
Longstreth/NFHCA Division I All-Region Teams
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Seven Nittany Lions were named to the 2017 Longstreth/NFHCA Division I Mideast All-Region team Monday afternoon as announced by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association.
The All-Region lists included the Mid-Atlantic, Mideast, Northeast, South, and West. The All-Region squads consisted of 63 seniors, 49 juniors, 25 sophomores and 23 freshmen, based on year of eligibility during the 2017 season.
Seventeen schools had at least four student-athletes make the All-Region squad, led by national champion Connecticut with eight in the Mideast Region. Penn State had seven selections in the Mideast, while schools with six honorees included Princeton (Mid-Atlantic), Maryland (Mid-Atlantic), Syracuse (Mideast), Virginia (South) and Michigan (West). Saint Joseph's (Mid-Atlantic), Duke (South) and Louisville (West) all had five honorees, while schools with four honorees were Delaware (Mid-Atlantic), Massachusetts (Northeast), Albany (Northeast), Harvard (Northeast), North Carolina (South), Northwestern (West) and Stanford (West).
All seven All-Region honorees were huge contributors for Penn State this past season, helping the Nittany Lions make a second-straight appearance in the Big Ten Tournament Championship game while also advancing to the Quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament.
Moira Putsch, a 2016 All-American, earned First-Team honors after starting all 22 games for Penn State finishing the season as the leading scorer for the Nittany Lions in back-to-back seasons contributing a career-high 21 goals while adding 15 assists for a team-high 57 points - the 11th highest total in program history. The Media, Pa. native also recorded six game-winning shots throughout the season for the Blue & White, three more than last season, and posted back-to-back hat tricks in games against Rutgers and Indiana to close out the regular season.
Meijer, the first international field hockey in Penn State history, wrapped up her junior campaign in Happy Valley by earning her third-career All-Region Honor. Coming to University Park, Pa. from Hattem, Netherlands, Aurelia Meijer finished the 2017 season tied as the Nittany Lions third-leading scorer netting seven goals, five assists, totaling 19 points on the season.
Katie Dembrowski earns the First-Team nod following a stellar season, tying a career-high in goals and setting a career high in assists with five and four, respectively. Dembrowski was a mainstay on the pitch for the Nittany Lions starting all 22 contest in 2017.
Skyler Fretz earned her third-career NFHCA honor following two second-team nods in 2015 and 2016. This, however, is the first NFHCA First-Team honor for Fretz that comes after a season that saw the senior record nine defensive saves improving her career total to 14. Fretz also scored her first career goal on a penalty stroke during a 7-1 rout of Indiana to close out the regular season.
The final Nittany Lion to earn First-Team honors is Jenny Rizzo. A mainstay in the cage over the last three season for Penn State, Rizzo finished 2017 with a record of 17-4 including five shutouts and a save percentage of .796 that was the fourth-best in the country this season.
Earning second-team honors for the Nittany Lions were Gini Bramley and Cori Conley. These two combined for 11 goals, six assists and 26 points over the 2017 season.
Bramley earned NFHCA honors in 2015 and 2016 making this the third of her career.
The Longstreth/NFHCA Division I Regional Players of the Year will be announced on Tuesday, with the All-America squad coming out on Dec. 5 and the National Player of the Year on Dec. 14.
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