Plattsburgh's Balfour, Masotta, Norton, Thompson, and Wall Named to the CSC Academic All-District Team
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Women's At-Large Teams were released on Tuesday with Taya Balfour (Moorestown, N.J./Philadelphia Jr. Flyers), Julia Masotta (Tewksbury, Mass./Norwich), Mattie Norton (Glen Carbon, Ill./St. Louis Lady Blues), Aizah Thompson (Williamsville, N.Y./Buffalo Bisons), and Ciara Wall (Somerville, Mass./New Hampshire) of the Plattsburgh State women's ice hockey team each earning honors. Masotta, Norton, and Wall each advanced to the Academic All-America ballot, with Masotta having already earned All-America honors this past year.
The Academic All-District At-Large teams honor NCAA sports that do not have a designated program currently. To be eligible for the ballot as an ice hockey student-athlete, nominees must have competed in 90% of the team's total games and also be at least a sophomore academically and carry a cumulative 3.50 GPA.
Balfour is a business administration major carrying a 3.94 cumulative GPA and played in all 28 games this year. The sophomore defender scored two goals and tallied four assists, while also blocking 23 shots and maintaining a plus-minus of +18, good for third and fourth on the team, respectively.
Masotta, the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Player of the Year and a First-Team All-American, also carries a 3.79 cumulative GPA as a childhood education major. She ranked atop the SUNYAC in points (37) and assists (24) and also tallied 13 goals this year, notched four power-play goals, and had three game-winning scores, with her season highlighted by a four-goal outburst against Morrisville in the SUNYAC semifinals. She had nine multi-point games this year including a season-high of four assists on Feb. 24. The graduate student also found herself in the NCAA rankings, as she averaged 1.32 points per game and .86 assists per game, which ranked tenth and sixth, respectively, in all of Division III.
Norton is pursuing a degree in both accounting and business administration and has a 3.78 cumulative GPA while also earning All-SUNYAC First-Team honors this year. An alternate captain, she scored seven goals and had nine assists in 28 games played. She led the conference in power-play goals, scoring six while also posting five multi-point games in 2023-24. The junior also posted a +14 plus-minus and blocked 18 shots for a well-rounded season.
Thompson, the SUNYAC Elite 20 award winner for women's ice hockey, holds a 3.96 cumulative GPA as a dual major in economics and finance and played in all 28 games for the Cardinals this year. The sophomore scored four goals and tallied six assists, notching two multi-point performances which included a two-goal game against UW-Eau Claire on Nov. 25 who was the ninth ranked team in the country at the time. She totaled 69 shots and also blocked 15 over the 2023-24 season.
Wall, an elementary education major, carries a 3.67 GPA and was a All-Conference Second Team selection this past season, tallying 26 points on the year. Wall had 10 goals and 16 assists, with her 16 assists ranking second on the team. She was also +20 on the ice and had seven multi-point games over the course of the season, posting four power-play goals and four game-winning goals.
Plattsburgh State went 22-5-1 and 16-2 in league play this season, falling in the conference championship game while earning the second overall seed in the NCAA Tournament before falling in quarterfinal action to Middlebury.
