FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GNAC announces All-Conference Teams
WINTHROP, Mass. – Lasell College junior Megan Cullen forward has been named the 2015 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Soccer Offensive Player of the Year, as voted upon by the league's 12 head coaches.
Cullen helped lead the Lasers to their sixth straight GNAC Championship this past weekend, and enters NCAA Tournament play with 19 goals and 38 points, both of which are tops among conference leaders.
The University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) earned a pair of major awards, as Blue Jays senior back Lindsey Cifaldi was named GNAC Defensive Player of the Year and senior Melissa Dodge was selected as the GNAC Goalkeeper of the Year.
Neither Cifaldi or Dodge missed a minute of action for USJ this fall, as Cifaldi anchored a Blue Jays backline that allowed just 18 goals in 19 games and Dodge finished fourth in the GNAC in saves (123), first in save percentage (.872) and third in goals-against average (0.97).
From Johnson & Wales University, freshman midfielder Deja Hursey was voted the GNAC Rookie of the Year, while Wildcats head coach Chris Flint was voted the GNAC Coach of the Year by his peers following his first season in the conference.
Hursey, a First Team member along with Cullen, Cifaldi and Dodge, registered nine goals and an assist for 19 points, while Flint, the former Bryant University head coach, led JWU to a second-place finish in the GNAC standings and a GNAC Tournament semifinal appearance.
Joining Hursey on the First Team from JWU was sophomore forward Kyra Selner, who finished second only to Cullen among GNAC leaders in both goals (13) and points (34).
Joining Cullen on the First Team from Lasell was junior midfielder Devon Day, who has registered five goals and five assists for the Lasers this fall.
Also receiving First Team recognition was Saint Joseph's College of Maine freshman Haley DaGraca, Emmanuel College junior Maggie Carey and senior Ari Cardillo, and Simmons College seniors Ali Berkman and Issy Verilli.
For the complete list of All-Conference selections, please see below.
Founded in 1995, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 12 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Each year, the GNAC sponsors and administers 17 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunities and community involvement.
First Team
F – Kyra Selner, Johnson & Wales (So., Sterling, Va.)
F – Megan Cullen, Lasell (Jr., Amesbury, Mass.)
F – Haley DaGraca, Saint Joseph's (Maine) (Fr., Saco, Maine)
M – Maggie Carey, Emmanuel (Jr., Swampscott, Mass.)
M – Devon Day, Lasell (Jr., Hartland, Vt.)
M – Deja Hursey, Johnson & Wales (Fr., Columbia, Md.)
M – Ali Berkman, Simmons (Sr., Natick, Mass.)
B – Ari Cardillo, Emmanuel (Sr., Richmond, Mass.)
B – Lindsey Cifaldi, St. Joseph (Conn.) (Sr., Wolcott, Conn.)
B – Issy Verrilli, Simmons (Sr., Naugatuck, Conn.)
GK – Melissa Dodge, St. Joseph (Conn.) (Sr., Watertown, Conn.)
Second Team
F – Maggie Cohoon, Rivier (Jr., Derry, N.H.)
F – Kashka Gammon, Simmons (So., Nashua, N.H.)
F – Greer Gilbert, Simmons (Sr., Falmouth, Mass.)
M – Katelyn Fink, Emmanuel (Sr., Sanford, Maine)
M – Elizabeth Marinaro, Johnson & Wales (Sr., Palo Alto, Calif.)
M – Bridget Munnelly, Lasell (Sr., Bellingham, Mass.)
M – Morgan Skoly, St. Joseph (Conn.) (Fr., Vernon, Conn.)
B – Nadine Simpson, Johnson & Wales (So., Bellmore, N.Y.)
B – Toni Simpson, Johnson & Wales (So., Bellmore, N.Y.)
B – Leah Suto, Lasell (Sr., Oxford, Conn.)
GK – Victoria LaRoche, Emmanuel (Hudson, N.H.)
Third Team
F – Danielle Polvan, Albertus Magnus (Jr., East Haven, Conn.)
F – Taylor Hopkins, Johnson & Wales (So., Warminster, Pa.)
F – Isabelle Moody, Mount Ida (Sr., Naugatuck, Conn.)
M – Victoria Lavery, Albertus Magnus (So., West Haven, Conn.)
M – Sara Kate Matthews, Johnson & Wales (Jr., Northborough, Mass.)
M – Mack Kingman, Lasell (Jr., East Bridgewater, Mass.)
M – Emily Burke, St. Joseph (Conn.) (Sr., Windsor Locks, Conn.)
B – Alexis Mack, Albertus Magnus (Jr., Meriden, Conn.)
B – Taylor Rotella, Albertus Magnus (Jr., Milford, Conn.)
B – Whitney White, Saint Joseph's (Maine) (Sr., Salem, N.H.)
GK – Sarah Laclair, Lasell (So., Belchertown, Mass.)
Offensive Player of the Year – Megan Cullen, Lasell
Defensive Player of the Year – Lindsey Cifaldi, St. Joseph (Conn.)
Rookie of the Year – Deja Hursey, Johnson & Wales
Goalkeeper of the Year – Melissa Dodge, St. Joseph (Conn.)
Coach of the Year – Chris Flint, Johnson & Wales
Institutional Sportsmanship Award – Anna Maria College
All-Sportsmanship Team
Bianca Stefanacci, Albertus Magnus (So., Milford, Conn.)
Paige Leighton, Anna Maria (Jr., Georgetown, Mass.)
Alison MacDonald, Emmanuel (Jr., Peabody, Mass.)
Cassie Collins, Johnson & Wales (Sr., Oswego, N.Y.)
Leah Suto, Lasell (Sr., Oxford, Conn.)
Tayler White, Mount Ida (Fr., West Chesterfield, N.H.)
Victoria Sohn, Norwich (Sr., Embrun, Ontario)
Colby Creteau, Rivier (Jr., Nashua, N.H.)
Emily Burke, St. Joseph (Conn.) (Sr., Windsor Locks, Conn.)
Bria Prophete, Saint Joseph's (Maine) (Sr., Saugus, Mass.)
Victoria Russo, Simmons (Sr., Braintree, Mass.)
Caley McCaslin, Suffolk (Sr., Feeding Hills, Mass.)
– #TheGNAC –