May 4, 2009

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - Endicott College women's lacrosse players Valerie Feldman (Albany, N.Y.), Molly Hamel (North Yarmouth, Maine), and Morgan DeShaw (Danville, N.H.) all played pivotal roles in helping Endicott secure its fourth-straight The Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship last week. For their efforts, Feldman was named TCCC Player of the Week while Molly Hamel earned Defensive Player of the Week and DeShaw was named the top rookie in the Conference last week.

Feldman, Endicott's junior attacker, scored 14 points (eight goals, six assists) in TCCC tournament play in leading the Gulls to their fourth consecutive league title. Feldman scored four goals and had one assist against Colby-Sawyer, chalked up three goals and three assists against NEC, and had a goal and two assists in the championship against Roger Williams.

The Gulls' senior goalkeeper Hamel anchored the Gulls defense on their run to the title by allowing just 13 goals in three games. In 163:44 minutes of tournament play, Hamel made 30 saves and had a save percentage of .698 with a goals against average of just 4.78. Her best performance came in the quarterfinals, making 16 saves in an 11-4 win over NEC.

Morgan DeShaw contributed six goals to the Gulls title run in her first Conference playoffs, saving her best for last with a three goal performance in the championship game against Roger Williams. DeShaw also had three ground balls, a draw control, and a caused turnover in the contest.

With its Conference Championship, the Gulls have earned the automatic qualifier into the NCAA Tournament and will travel to Williamstown, Mass. for a First Round matchup with Williams College on Wednesday afternoon at 4:30 p.m.