IWLCA WOMEN'S LACROSSE DIVISION III ALL-REGION RELEASE
BEVERLY, Mass. — The Endicott women's lacrosse team is proud to have four Gulls named to the 2017 Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Division III All-Pilgrim Region teams, including two recipients on the First Team, as announced today by the association.
Sophomore goalkeeper Bella Rino(Northborough, Mass.), the Commonwealth Coast Conference's (CCC) Defensive Player of the Year, and All-CCC First Team senior attack Meghan Lennon(Canton, Mass.) were placed on the All-Pilgrim Region First Team, marking the first time in program history that an Endicott goalkeeper and attacker were recognized as First Team All-Region in the same season.
Meanwhile, All-CCC First Team senior midfielder Emily Whitney(Rye, N.H.) became the program's first-ever student-athlete to land on an All-Region team in all four years of her career, as Whitney and All-CCC senior defender Chelsea Burke(Georgetown, Mass.) garnered All-Pilgrim Region Second Team selections.
Across all eight regions, 256 student-athletes were honored in Division III on one of the All-Region teams. These student-athletes are now eligible for inclusion on the IWLCA All-American teams, which will be announced on Friday, May 19.
ALL-PILGRIM REGION FIRST TEAM
Bella Rino | So. | GK | Northborough, Mass.
Rino, a first-time All-Pilgrim Region honoree, was the sixth student-athlete (second consecutive) in Endicott women's lacrosse program history to be named CCC Defensive Player of the Year, but is the first goalkeeper in the 22-year history of the team to collect All-Region First Team honors. Rino is 10-1 in cage this season with 11 starts and 16 appearances. Rino, a three-time CCC Defensive Player of the Week, went a perfect 10-0 against conference foes as an instrumental part of Endicott's success all season long. Rino boasts the top save percentage in the country (61.6 percent) and is currently ranked fifth in the nation in goals against average (5.51) for goalkeepers who have played in at least 60 percent of the team's minutes.
Meghan Lennon | Sr. | A | Canton, Mass.
Lennon earned her first All-Pilgrim Region honor and second overall All-Region nod (2015 ECAC New England All-Stars Second Teamer), as she made a statement return to the field this season after missing all of last year due to injury. Lennon has started all 18 games for the Gulls thus far and is Endicott's points (82), goals (49), and assists leader (33) this season. This season, Lennon paced the squad with a career-high eight points against Emerson on Senior Day on April 15th with four goals and a game-best four assists. Lennon also dished out a career-high five assists at Babson on April 29th. Additionally, Lennon is third on the team with 47 draw controls and is second on the squad with 32 ground balls and needs just three more goals to reach the coveted 100 career goals milestone.
ALL-PILGRIM REGION SECOND TEAM
Emily Whitney | Sr. | A | Rye, N.H.
Whitney is the Gulls' only four-year member of an All-Region team with four straight Second Team accolades, adding to her lengthy list of career accomplishments. With 18 starts this season, she is currently second on the team in points (74), goals (47), and assists (27). Whitney leads the team with 48 ground balls and 30 caused turnovers. Statistically speaking, Whitney is third all-time in program history with 268 career points, fourth in goals (185), fourth in assists (83), and tied for sixth in caused turnovers (66). She also ranks second all-time in points per game (3.77) and man-up goals (9), as well as third in free-position goals (32), and led the Gulls in goals scored in each of her first three seasons. Whitney, a three-time CCC Offensive Player of the Week this season, has tallied 13 multi-goal games on the year, including the last 10 consecutive outings notching at least three goals. Of her 74 points (47 goals, 27 assists) this season, 56 points have come in the past 10 games, including a season-high five goals on Senior Day against Emerson on April 15th to match her season-high with seven points.
Chelsea Burke | Sr. | D | Georgetown, Mass.
Burke, last season's CCC Defensive Player of the Year, is now a two-time All-Pilgrim Region Second Team choice. In her final campaign, Burke is currently third on the team in caused turnovers (21) and tied for fifth with 26 ground balls. As one of Endicott's four senior captains, Burke has started all 18 games and scored her lone goal of the season in the team's record-breaking victory at Wentworth (26-2) on April 3rd. Defensively, Burke's best statistical games this season came against No. 20 Colby in which she scooped up a career-high five ground balls and caused three turnovers, in addition to a career-high four caused turnovers and two ground balls against Gordon in the CCC Semifinals on May 3rd.
WHAT'S NEXT
As the CCC's automatic bid winner, the Gulls (14-4) will take on Farmingdale State (17-1) in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday, May 13 at 1:00 p.m. in Ewing, N.J. on the campus of No. 1 nationally-ranked The College of New Jersey (TCNJ).
(Photo Credit- Parker Fish & Mike Conners)