2008 NESCAC Women's Ice Hockey All-Conference Teams Announced
Middlebury's Cellino, McNally Earn Player, Rookie of the Year
HADLEY, Mass. - Middlebury junior forward Annmarie Cellino (West Seneca, N.Y.) has been named the 2008 NESCAC Player of the Year, while first year teammate Anna McNally (St. Paul, Minn.) earned Rookie of the Year, as determined by the conference coaches. The two teamed up to lead the Panthers to a conference mark of 13-0-3, the second-straight season that Middlebury has gone unbeaten in NESCAC play. It is the fourth year in a row that a Middlebury skater has won the league’s top honor, after Abby Kurtz-Phelan received it in 2007 and Emily Quizon claimed back-to-back Player of the Year awards in 2005 and 2006.
Cellino also earned All-Conference accolades for the third year in a row with a spot on the 2008 First Team, as she was the Rookie of the Year and a First Team member in 2006 before being selected to the Second Team in 2007. Cellino currently paces the NESCAC in scoring with 12 goals and a career-high 29 assists for 41 points over 23 games. She is just six points shy of her personal-record 47 points from her first season with the team, and has amassed 122 points in three years with the Panthers on 52 goals and 70 assists. Cellino netted her fourth career hat trick in 2008 with three goals and two assists on Feb. 2 at Williams, and also tied for second at Middlebury for points in a game all-time with a career-best seven (2-5-7) against Hamilton on Nov. 25.
In addition to being named the Rookie of the Year, McNally was also honored as one of three Panthers on the All-Conference First Team. McNally is second only to Cellino in the NESCAC in overall points this season, tallying a league-leading 19 goals and 17 assists. In 22 appearances for Middlebury, McNally has had 10 multi-point games, scoring three or more goals on three different occasions. She posted six points with four goals and two assists on Dec. 8 against UMass Boston, and has netted four of Middlebury’s six shorthanded markers. McNally and Cellino have combined to contribute roughly 30 percent of the Panthers’ goals this season (31-101).
Middlebury senior defender Karen Levin (Morton Grove, Ill.) was one of four individuals on this year’s First Team that received All-NESCAC recognition for the first time. Levin is third for the Panthers in points with 24 on seven goals and 17 assists though 24 games. She reached 100 career points at Middlebury on the final day of the regular season with a goal and an assist at Wesleyan. The Panthers feature the top defense in the conference once again this season, allowing an even 1.00 goals per game.
The only returning member from last winter’s First Team was Amherst sophomore defender Kirsten Dier (Appleton, Wis.). Through 25 games so far this season, Dier has contributed three goals and 11 assists for 14 points, tops among Jeff defenders and fourth among the league’s blue liners. Dier provides strong support to a defensive corps that is second in the NESCAC in goals allowed at 1.12 per game, well below the 1.93 average from a year ago.
Joining Dier from Amherst on the All-NESCAC First Team was first year teammate Courtney Hanlon (Fullerton, Calif.). Currently second among conference rookies and fourth overall in scoring, the first year forward has a team-leading 30 points with 12 goals and 18 assists while seeing action in all 25 of the Jeffs’ games. Hanlon and company posted a 12-0-4 record in NESCAC play this season en route to a second-place finish in the standings, a program best.
Trinity sophomore goaltender Isabel Iwachiw (New York, N.Y.) completes the 2008 NESCAC All-Conference First Team. Iwachiw has had a stellar season between the pipes for the Bantams, owning a 14-3-3 record with six shutouts and a goals against average of 1.10 (3rd NESCAC) and save percentage of .959 (1st). Iwachiw tied her career-high of 41 saves during Trinity’s 2-1 victory at Bowdoin on Feb. 15, the first Bantam win in Brunswick in program history.
Coach of the Year honors went to Trinity bench boss Andrew McPhee. Currently in the midst of his sixth year in Hartford, McPhee has guided the Bantams to their best season in team history, as Trinity started off with a 9-1-1 mark en route to a school-record 18 wins and the program’s first NESCAC tournament victory. Trinity will face Amherst this Saturday in the semifinals of the 2008 NESCAC Women’s Ice Hockey Championship.
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2007-08 NESCAC Women's Ice Hockey All-Conference
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First Team |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
F
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Annmarie Cellino
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Middlebury
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Jr.
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West Seneca, N.Y.
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F
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Courtney Hanlon
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Amherst
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Fy.
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Fullerton, Calif.
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F
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Anna McNally
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Middlebury
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Fy.
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St. Paul, Minn.
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D
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Kirsten Dier
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Amherst
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So.
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Appleton, Wis.
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D
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Karen Levin
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Middlebury
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Sr.
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Morton Grove, Ill.
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G
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Isabel Iwachiw
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Trinity
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So.
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New York, N.Y.
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Second Team |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
F
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Becky Julian
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Colby
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Jr.
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South Windsor, Conn.
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F
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Tarasai Karega
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Amherst
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Jr.
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Detroit, Mich.
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F
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Kim Weiss
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Trinity
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Fy.
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Potomac, Md.
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D
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Lindsay McNamara
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Bowdoin
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Jr.
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Milton, Mass.
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D
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Randi Zukas
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Amherst
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Fy.
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Glen Head, N.Y.
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G
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Krystyn Elek
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Amherst
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So.
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Summerville, S.C.
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Player of the Year |
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F
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Annmarie Cellino
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Middlebury
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Jr.
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West Seneca, N.Y. |
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Rookie of the Year |
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F
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Anna McNally
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Middlebury
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Fy.
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St. Paul, Minn.
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Coach of the Year |
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Andrew McPhee
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Trinity
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