November 6, 2017

SUNYAC announces yearly awards for field hockey

CORTLAND, NY - The State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) has announced this season's all-conference teams and individual awards for field hockey as voted on by the conference coaches. Three Red Dragons garnered this year's top annual awards, as Cortland's Jessica Welsh (Hamilton, N.Y.) has been selected as this year's Offensive Player of the Year, while teammate Meg Redmond (Accord, N.Y.) has been named Defensive Player of the Year. Oneonta's Cali Cortese (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) has received Rookie of the Year recognition for her standout collegiate debut. Cortland head coach Tiffany Hubbard has been named this year's Coach of the Year in her second season with the Red Dragons.

Offensive Player of the Year - Jessica Welsh, Cortland

Junior forward Jessica Welsh has started all 20 contests for the Red Dragons this season, including all six regular-season conference matchups. The Hamilton, N.Y. native is ranked third in the conference in goals (6), second in assists (4), and third in points (16). Overall, she is ranked third in goals (13), third in assists (9), and third in points (35). She averaged one goal per game in all conference games, as well as averaging .45 assists per game, and 4.05 shots per game overall. In addition to her impeccable statistics during the season, Welsh also became only the 12th Cortland field hockey player in program history to reach 100 career points. In her incredible junior season she helped lead the Red Dragons to an overall record of 17-3, and a conference record of 5-1, which earned them the number one seed going into the SUNYAC Championships. The Red Dragons claimed the SUNYAC title with a 5-0 win over New Paltz, Saturday. With this accolade, Welsh also received first team All-Conference honors this season, making her a two-time first team selection.

Defensive Player of the Year - Meg Redmond, Cortland

Senior back Meg Redmond started all 20 contests for the Red Dragon this season as well, and assisted in leading her team to a goals against average of only .90, by far the lowest average in the conference. Her defensive skills helped in limiting her opponents to scoring only 18 goals the entire season, bolstering her team to an incredible overall record of 17-3, and a conference record of 5-1, as well as the SUNYAC Championship title. Redmond also received first team All-Conference recognition for her outstanding performance during her senior season.

Rookie of the Year - Cali Cortese, Oneonta

In her first collegiate season, freshman forward Cali Cortese played an integral role in the Red Dragon's offense, as she was only one of five teammates to start all 19 games. She totaled 5 goals out of 20 shots for 10 points on the season, and helped in leading her team to an overall record of 13-6, including a 5-1 conference record. She garnered an impressive .650 shot on goal percentage, and helped lead her team to the SUNYAC semifinals, before falling to New Paltz. Cortese also received second team All-Conference recognition for her standout first season with the Red Dragons.

Coach of the Year - Tiffany Hubbard, Cortland

In only her second year as head coach, Hubbard has led the Red Dragons to an overall record of 31-7, including her team's impeccable current record of 17-3 on the season. This season, Hubbard has produced five first team and one second team All-Conference selections, including both defensive and offensive players of the year. The Red Dragons have dominated their conference opponents this season, falling once to Geneseo early, only to defeat them in a SUNYAC semifinal shutout, 3-0. Their season took a tremendous turn when they defeated Oneonta and New Paltz in two decisive contests to claim the #1 seed. Hubbard guided her team to their first SUNYAC Championship title since 2011, and their 15th title in program history. Hubbard continues to build on the historic success of the program as the Red Dragons move on to the NCAA tournament.

2017 SUNYAC Field Hockey All-Conference Teams (PDF)

Name	Yr.	Pos.	School	Hometown/High School
First Team
Anna Branch	Sr.	F/M	Cortland	Clifton Park, N.Y. / Shenendehowa
Hannah Burchell	So.	M/B	Cortland	Whitney Point N.Y. / Whitney Point
Meg Redmond	Sr.	B	Cortland	Accord N.Y. / Rondout Valley
Jessica Welsh	Jr.	F/M	Cortland	Hamilton N.Y. / Hamilton
Giovanna Fasanello	Sr.	F	Geneseo	Clarence N.Y. / Clarence
Julia Kim	So.	D	Geneseo	Mohegan Lake N.Y. / Lakeland
Morgan Maley	Sr.	M	Geneseo	Williamsville N.Y. / Williamsville South
Justine O'Reilly	Sr.	F	New Paltz	West Sayville N.Y. / Schuylerville
Allyson Bilow	Jr.	D	Oneonta	Webster N.Y. / Webster Thomas
Ally Wells	Jr.	F	Oneonta	Niskayuna N.Y. / Niskayuna
Kailynne Reinoehl	Jr.	G	Cortland	Lititz, Pa. / Warwick
Second Team
Jess Gibaldi	Jr.	F	Cortland	Westbury N.Y. / W.T. Clarke
Gabriella Clare	Jr.	F	Geneseo	Barker N.Y. / Barker
Jordan Penkitis	Fr.	M	Geneseo	Pittsford N.Y. / Pittsford-Mendon
Emily Hunt	Fr.	F/M	Morrisville	Kinkletown N.Y. / Pleasant Valley
Maggie Cottrell	Jr.	M/B	New Paltz	Pittsford N.Y. / Pittsford Sutherland
Hayley Kim	Sr.	M	New Paltz	West Hurley N.Y. / Onteora
Cali Cortese	Fr.	F	Oneonta	Yorktown Heights N.Y. / Lakeland
Nicole Johnston	Sr.	M	Oneonta	Bedford Village N.Y. / Fox Lane
Carissa Warren	Jr.	F/M	Oneonta	Harpursville N.Y. / Harpursville
Katie Reynolds	Jr.	F/M	Oswego	Pawling N.Y. / Pawling
Megan Gangewere	Sr.	G	New Paltz	Nazareth N.Y. / Nazareth Area