STANDISH, Maine – The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's lacrosse postseason accolades have been announced and a total of 10 Saint Joseph's College team members have been honored.
Head Coach Rupert Lewis has been selected as the GNAC Coach of the Year for the second-consecutive season while sophomore attack Elyse Caiazzo (Scarborough, Maine/Cheverus), junior attack Kelsey Dumond (Lewiston, Maine), senior defender Meghan Williams (Greenland, N.H./St. Thomas Aquinas), and senior goalkeeper Michelle Cunha (Enfield, Conn.) have claimed First Team honors.
Senior attack Mary Leasure (South Portland, Maine/McAuley), senior midfielder Kat Gadbois (Scarborough, Maine), junior midfielder Jackie Wilson (Tiverton, R.I.), and senior defender Emma LaFrance (Westport, Mass.) have garnered Second Team mention and senior attack Elizabeth Elcock (Westwood, Mass.) is listed on the Third Team.
Lewis earns his second GNAC Coach of the Year honor in as many seasons after leading the Monks to a 16-3 overall record with a perfect 9-0 mark in conference play this spring. Under his watch, St. Joe's went undefeated in GNAC play for the second year in a row and the Monks posted a 10-game winning streak leading up to the team's GNAC Tournament loss on Thursday, May 5th.
Caiazzo collects First Team All-GNAC honors for the second-consecutive season after netting a conference-high 67 goals with 15 assists for 82 total points in 19 starts as a sophomore. The 2015 GNAC Rookie of the Year added 63 ground balls, 45 draw controls, and 28 caused turnovers to her impressive stat line and ranked second, third, and fourth, respectively, on the team in the aforementioned categories and earned a pair of GNAC Player of the Week honors in 2016.
In just two collegiate campaigns, Caiazzo has amassed 137 goals with 34 assists for 171 total points while adding 127 ground balls, 83 draw controls, and 44 caused turnovers over 38 career contests. Currently, she ranks fourth in program history in goals, sixth in points and assists, and seventh in draw controls.
Dumond earns All-Conference acclaim for the first time after establishing career-highs in across the board with 52 goals, 21 assists, 73 total points, and 29 ground balls during her junior season. She ranked second on the team in goals and third in both assists and points this spring.
In 50 NCAA contests, Dumond has tallied 88 goals with 30 assists for 118 total points while picking up 65 ground balls. Heading into her senior season, she ranks seventh in team history in goals and assists and eighth in points.
Williams claims her second First Team All-GNAC nod after tallying four goals and six assists for 10 total points along with 47 ground balls, 33 caused turnovers, and 15 draw controls during her senior campaign. The third-year starter ranked second on the squad in caused turnovers and fourth in ground balls this spring.
In her career, Williams played in 54 games with 17 goals, nine assists, 139 ground balls, 69 caused turnovers, and 43 draw controls over three seasons. She leaves the program ranked sixth all-time in caused turnovers and ninth in both ground balls and draw controls.
Cunha picks up her first All-Conference award – as well as GNAC Women's Lacrosse Goalkeeper of the Year honors - after leading the GNAC in wins (14), save percentage (.536), goals against average (5.01), games (18), and winning percentage (.875) as a senior. She established program single-season records in each of the previously mentioned categories and claimed a pair of GNAC Goalkeeper of the Week honors in 2016.
A two-year member of the SJC women's lacrosse program, Cunha graduates this weekend having set the team's career records for victories (24), goals against average (6.14), and save percentage (.470).
Leasure nets First Team All-GNAC accolades for the second straight season after registering 15 goals and 49 assists for 64 total points with 21 ground balls while starting all 19 contests this spring. She paced the conference in assists and ranked fourth on the team in points during her senior campaign.
In 76 career games, Leasure has tallied 76 goals and 105 assists for 181 total points with 35 ground balls and 47 caused turnovers as a four-year contributor. She currently ranks as the Monks' all-time assists leader – by a wide margin – and is also fifth in points and 10th in goals.
Gadbois, a 2015 First Team All-GNAC honoree, claims Second Team honors after registering 50 goals and 38 assists for 88 points with 71 ground balls, 56 draw controls, and 31 caused turnovers in 19 starts. The senior standout led the Monks in points and ground balls and ranked second in assists and draw controls and third in goals and caused turnovers in 2016. During the season, Gadbois earned a pair of GNAC Player of the Week honors and was selected as the ECAC DIII New England Offensive Player of the Week on March 31st.
In 76 career games, Gadbois posted 141 goals and 77 assists for 218 points with 277 ground balls, 137 draw controls, and 119 caused turnovers. She leaves the program owning SJC career records for groundballs and caused turnovers and currently ranks second all-time in assists and third in both points and goals.
Wilson earns her first All-Conference award after recording 25 goals and 15 assists for 40 total points with 58 ground balls, 102 draw controls, and 34 caused turnovers in 19 starts this spring. The junior captain paced the team in draw controls and caused turnovers and ranked third in ground balls in 2016.
In three college seasons, Wilson has tallied 60 goals and 35 assists for 95 total points with 169 ground balls, 243 draw controls, and 76 caused turnovers over 58 career contests. Going into her senior season, Wilson ranks second all-time in draw controls, fifth in caused turnovers, and seventh in ground balls.
LaFrance, an elite defender, tallied 36 ground balls and 17 caused turnovers this spring en route to claiming her third-consecutive Second Team All-GNAC honor. The four-year starter tallied 199 ground balls and 86 caused turnovers over 76 career contests and ranks third and fourth, respectively, in the statistical categories.
LaFrance is just the third player in program history to earn three All-Conference honors. She joins Alyssa Marchant '11 and former teammate Cassie Diplock '14 on the short list.
Elcock collects her first All-Conference award after registering 34 goals and 11 assists for 45 total points with 28 ground balls in 19 starts as a senior attack. She ranked fourth on the team in goals and fifth in points and posted a team-high .889 shooting percentage, with 34 strikes in 56 attempts this spring.
For her career, Elcock netted 78 goals with 21 assists for 99 total points with 86 ground balls in 55 games over three NCAA seasons. She leaves the program ranked ninth all-time in goals and 10th in team history in points.
With the undefeated conference record, Saint Joseph's earned the top seed in the 2016 GNAC Tournament and opened postseason play with an 18-6 triumph over #8 Norwich University on May 3rd, but the Monks' quest to defend the 2015 GNAC Championship came to a close two days later with a 6-5 setback at the hands of #4 Lasell College, which went on to win the conference crown for the second time in the last four years.
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
