Oct. 26, 2009
Center Valley, Pa. -- Fresh off their big win over American, two Lafayette Leopards picked up two weekly awards from the Patriot League Monday.
Lafayette Meghan Cicchi was named the Defensive Player of the Week, while Kelsey Andersen was named the Goalkeeper of the Week.
Joining them was Lehigh's Kim Eng, who was named the Offensive Player of the Week, and Bucknell's Tayler Siegrist, who was named the Rookie of the Week.
The final week of League play will feature three teams looking to qualify for two playoff spots, as American and Bucknell each clinched a berth into the tournament last week.
Lafayette, Lehigh and Holy Cross will vie for the final two spots.
All five teams will be jockeying for seeding, while three teams, American, Bucknell and Lafayette have a chance to earn the No. 1 seed.
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Offensive Player of the Week (10.19.09-10.25.09)
Kim Eng, Lehigh Fr., F, Morristown, N.J./Madison Eng netted her first career hat trick and pushed her season League-best total to 13 goals last week in a 3-2 win over Holy Cross. She capped her trio of goals with the game-winner in the final three minutes of the game. Eng also leads the League in points with 34. She has won three Rookie of the Week awards and this is her first Offensive Player of the Week award.
Defensive Player of the Week (10.19.09-10.25.09)
Meghan Cicchi, Lafayette Jr., D, Thousand Oaks, Calif./Lawrenceville School Cicchi had scored the game-winning goal in the Leopards' 2-1 double-overtime win over American, ending the Eagles' 46-game winning streak against League opponents. Cicchi also had an assist in the win. This is her second straight Defensive Player of the Week award and third overall this season.
Goalkeeper of the Week (10.19.09-10.25.09)
Kelsey Andersen, Lafayette Jr., GK, West Long Branch, N.J./Shore Regional Andersen went 1-1 last week with the one win being the biggest victory of the 2009 season thus far, as Lafayette upended American, halting a 46-game winning streak over League opponents. Andersen made seven saves on eight shots to help the Leopards win 2-1 in double overtime Saturday. Andersen has been named the League Goalkeeper of the Week four times this season.
Rookie of the Week (10.19.09-10.25.09)
Tayler Siegrist, Bucknell Fr., D, Madison, N.J./Madison Siegrist won her third Rookie of the Week award and fourth weekly award of the season, tallying an assist in Bucknell's win over Colgate. Siegrist also played strong on defense in the Bison's 1-0 overtime win at Cornell Sunday.
Honorable Mention Performances Last Week
Alyssa Poorman, American Sr., GK, Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks South Poorman picked up her 18th shutout of her career to move into fourth place on the League's all-time list.
Savannah Graybill, American Sr., F, Ephrata, Pa./Cocalico Graybill scored two goals in American's win over Georgetown last week.
Morgan Kauffman, Bucknell Jr., M, Millersville, Pa./Penn Manor Kauffman had three assists in Bucknell's win over Colgate, helping the Bison clinch a berth to the League Tournament.
Christine Weiss, Bucknell Jr., D, Bethlehem, Pa./Southern Lehigh Weiss scored two goals in a win over Colgate on Saturday and added an assists in a 1-0 overtime win over Cornell Sunday.
Patriot League Notebook
Mammoth Streak Ends
Lafayette started slow at 0-2 in the League, but the Leopards have bounced back in mighty fashion, evening their record with an impressive 2-1 double-overtime win over American. The six-time defending champion Eagles had won 46 straight games over League opponents until Meghan Cicchi deposited the game-winning goal at the 93:07 mark of the second overtime.
Prepare For A Wild Ending
Not a lot was decided last week -- outside of American and Bucknell clinching playoff berths -- leaving three teams (Lafayette, Lehigh and Holy Cross) fighting for the final two spots. There also will be three teams (American, Bucknell and Lafayette) fighting for the No. 1 seed. Lafayette (2-2) will close out the season at Colgate (0-4) at 11 a.m. Saturday, while Holy Cross (2-2) will travel to Bucknell (3-1) at noon Saturday. Everyone will have to wait an extra day to get the complete playoff picture as American (3-1) will travel to Lehigh (2-2) at 2 p.m. Sunday.
Fresh New Look
Lafayette and Lehigh boast the top two point scorers in the League -- and both are freshmen. Lehigh's Kim Eng has led the League in points for most of the season and added six more points last week with her hat trick against Holy Cross. She now has 34 points (13 goals and eight assists) -- 10 better than Lafayette's Deanna DiCroce, who is in second place. DiCroce's 11 goals places her second in the League behind Eng, who leads the League in assists with eight. DiCroce has two assists.
Agent Zeroes
Alyssa Poorman collected her 18th shutout of her career to move to fourth on the all-time League list. The senior keeper blanked Georgetown in a 4-0 win. Right behind her on the active standings is Lafayette junior Kelsey Andersen has rapidly climbed the all-time shutout list. She has posted eight thus far in 2009 to push her career total to 17. She is now tied for sixth on the League's single-season list and tied for fifth on the League's career record list. The League record is 33 and Andersen will have the opportunity to go for it next season. If not the record, second all-time is attainable with two players tied with 22 shutouts. Andersen leads the League with a 1.15 goals against average, giving up just 16 goals in 17 games. Poorman is second with a 1.80 GAA (20 goals, 14 games).
Keep Track of the Patriot League Through Social Media
In addition to visiting www.patriotleague.org, League fans and followers have plenty of new ways to stay updated and involved during the 2009 season and beyond. The Patriot League has accounts on Facebook and Twitter, and has now started a blog to give more information on the action on the field. All three accounts are accessible through the multimedia link at the right-hand sidebar on the front page of www.patriotleague.org.
2009 Patriot League Championship
The 2009 Patriot League Field Hockey Championship will be held Friday-Saturday, Nov. 6-7 at the site of the highest seed. Two semifinal games will take place on Friday, Nov. 6, with the No. 1 seed facing the No. 4 seed and the No. 2 seed facing the No. 3 seed. The championship game will be played on Saturday, Nov. 7.
Team Notebooks
American The Eagles recorded their second straight shutout on Wednesday with a 4-0 win over Georgetown; however, they had their 46-game winning streak against League opponents snapped, falling 2-1 to Lafayette in double overtime. Despite losing to Lafayette, the Eagles still were able to earn a berth to the Patriot League Tournament over the weekend. Savannah Graybill is now seventh on American's all-time goals list with 37 and is ninth in points with 83. The shutout against Georgetown marked Alyssa Poorman's 18th of her career, moving her to fourth on the all-time list. American will return to the field with a non-League contest against Iowa at 1 p.m. Saturday. They will close out the regular season with a League contest against Lehigh at 2 p.m. Sunday. A win would give the Eagles the No. 1 seed and homefield advantage in the League Tournament.
Bucknell The Bison improved their winning streak to three games with two wins over the weekend. Bucknell defeated Colgate 4-2 Saturday to clinch to a playoff berth. On Sunday, the Bison added a non-League victory with a 1-0 shutout at Cornell. Christine Weiss led the Bison over Colgate with two goals and added an assists against Cornell. Morgan Kauffman had three assists against Colgate, moving into fourth place on Bucknell's all-time list with 23 career assists. The Bison will return to the field with a home League game against Holy Cross. A win and an American loss would clinch the No. 1 seed for Bucknell.
Colgate The Raiders lost their eighth straight game -- fourth League contest -- on Saturday, falling 4-2 to Bucknell. The Raiders, who were eliminated from postseason play with the loss, will close out the 2009 season with a home game against Lafayette at 11 a.m. Saturday.
Holy Cross The Crusaders lost 3-2 to Lehigh on Saturday to fall to 2-2 in the League. Holy Cross will travel to Brown for a 4 p.m. non-League contest on Tuesday. The Crusaders will then close out the regular season with a League contest at Bucknell at noon Saturday as they try to qualify for the League tournament.
Lafayette The Leopards went 1-1 last week, competing in two overtime contests. Lafayette lost 1-0 to Drexel in overtime on Wednesday before knocking off the defending champion American Eagles 2-1 in double overtime. Meghan Cicchi scored the game-winner to break American's 46-game winning streak over League opponents. Kelsey Andersen was strong in the cage, making seven saves on eight shots. The Leopards will travel to Colgate to close out the regular season at 11 a.m. Saturday. The Leopards will qualify for the tournament with a win, and they can clinch the No. 1 seed with a win, coupled with losses by American and Bucknell.
Lehigh The Mountain Hawks improved to 2-2 in the League with a 3-2 win over Holy Cross Saturday. Kim Eng, a freshman who leads the League goals, scored three more Saturday, including the game-winner with less than three minutes remaining. She now has a League-best 13. The Mountain Hawks, who have doubled their win total from 2008, will close out their regular season with a 2 p.m. League contest at American Saturday as they try to qualify for the Patriot League Tournament with a win.
