MAAC Tournament Notes

Fairfield University women's lacrosse freshman Courtney Chmil highlighted the Stags individual honors at the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship Lacrosse banquet as she was named the league's Rookie of the Year.  She becomes the sixth Stag in program history to earn the award and the third player in as many seasons.

The Stags, 12-3 overall, posted their fifth consecutive undefeated MAAC Regular Season, going 6-0.  The top-seed in this weekend's MAAC Championship, the Stags take on #4 Siena College at 5 p.m. on Friday.  Second-seeded, and host, Canisius College takes on third-seeded Marist College in the 8 p.m. semifinal, with the winners meeting on Sunday, April 27 at noon.

The Stags had three players; Chmil, Katie Keenan and Melanie Raso named to the All-MAAC First Team, and five players; Erinn Hogan, Jamie Leone, Tara Lynch, Chloe Mangan and Cassie Penta selected to the All-MAAC Second Team.  Chmil and Leone were also voted to the inaugural All-MAAC Rookie Team.

Fourth-year head coach Mike Waldvogel was named the league's Coach of the Year for the second consecutive year and for the third time as the Stags mentor. It marks the fifth time since 1999 that a Stags head coach has been honored by their conference peers.

Chmil, a five-time MAAC Rookie of the Week selection, finished the regular season as the Stags ground ball leader with 36, and ranked 36^th nationally in that category. She is sixth on the team with 24 points and scored 23 goals, most among Fairfield rookies.  Chmil also has a team-best 19 caused turnovers thus far, and is second on the team with 30 draw controls.

Keenan, a six-time MAAC Defensive Player of the Week this season, posted a conference-best 8.21 GAA and .511 save percentage during the regular season, numbers that rank eighth nationally in the NCAA entering the week.  She has stopped 115 shots this spring, leading the Stags to 11 wins, while finishing fourth on the roster with 24 ground balls and causing four turnovers.

Raso is the Stags leading scorer this spring, compiling 42 points, good for sixth in the conference.  She touched net 29 times during the regular season, second on the team, with four of her goals being a game-winners, which is tops in the MAAC.  Raso is fourth in the MAAC, and 55^th nationally, with her team-best 46 draw controls during her 15 starts, and is also leading the team with 13 assists. The sophomore is second on the team with 34 ground balls and 18 caused turnovers.

Hogan, Lynch, and Penta are key members of the Stags defensive group that has held opponents to just 8.4 goals per game, a number that ranks seventh in the nation. The trio has each appeared in all 15 games, with Lynch and Penta starting every game and Hogan getting the nod 14 times.  Penta is third on the team with 26 ground balls entering the postseason and is also third with her 11 caused turnovers.  Lynch has eight ground balls and a caused turnover and usually has the assignment to defend the opponents' top scorer.  Hogan enters postseason play with 13 ground balls and nine caused turnovers, which is fourth on the roster.

Mangan is the Stags leading goal scorer, putting home 32 scores this year, which ranks 89^th nationally at the beginning of the week.  She is second on the team in points, with 39, and has a team-best 15 free position goals.  Mangan has also won 25 draw controls, third on the squad, and has 14 ground balls and nine caused turnovers.

Leone is fifth on the team with her 26 points, equally split between goals, and a team-leading 13 assists.  Seven of those assists came in league play, ranking her third in the conference at 1.17 assists per game against MAAC foes.  Leone, who played in all 15 games and started seven times, also had 10 ground balls, two draw controls and a caused turnover during the season.

The Stags also excelled in the classroom and had a conference-best 12 players named to the All-MAAC Academic Team.  To be eligible for the MAAC All-Academic Team, a student athlete must complete two semesters at their institution and hold a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 on a 4.0 scale.    
Headlining the All-Academic Team selections is senior Kelley Brady, who earned her third selection to the squad.  Lynch, Caitlin Townsend and Olivia Ziegler all were honored for the second time while Casey Gerety, Chloe Mangan, Samantha Mazzeo, Melanie Raso, Addie Reilly, Rebecca Rostowksy, Samantha Sherman and Jenna Slowey were all selected for the first time.

Fans can watch the 2012 MAAC Championship by logging on to MAAC.tv. for video and can view livestats for free.