Five Gators Named to IWLCA All-Region Teams
Friday, May 27, 2011 | Lacrosse
Florida's Ashley Bruns (Ellicott City, Md.), Kitty Cullen (Rockville, Md.), Sam Farrell (Millersville, Md.) Janine Hillier (Farmingdale, N.Y.) and Mikey Meagher (Liverpool, N.Y.) were honored on the Division I IWLCA All-Region teams for 2011, announced on Thursday. Cullen was named a First Team honoree, while Bruns, Farrell, Hillier and Meagher were named to the Second Team. The five Gator sophomores are the first All-Region honorees in program history. These athletes are now eligible for inclusion on the IWLCA All-American teams, which will be announced in Monday, May 30th. The IWLCA will honor the National All-Americans at the IWLCA All-American banquet on June 11, 2011 at the Crowne Plaza Valley Forge in King of Prussia, Pa. A total of 136 student athletes in Division I were honored on the All-Region Teams. A list of all IWLCA Division I All-Region honorees can be found here.
American Lacrosse Conference Player of the Year Cullen was named First Team All-South after leading the nation in scoring for the entire 2011 regular season. Cullen had 77 goals on the year, averaging 3.85 goals per game to lead the ALC, while also averaging 4.3 points per game, a .501 shooting percentage and a .755 shot on goal percentage. Cullen scored six goals or more four times this season (6 vs. Denver, Ohio State, Northwestern, 7 vs. Penn State) and scored at least a hat trick in nearly every game (16 out of 20). The Rockville, Md. native notched a point in every game this season and holds the record for the second-fastest opening goal scored in NCAA history, as she found the back of the net in just eight seconds in the Gators' 13-7 victory over then-No. 16 Penn State. The sophomore attacker was named ALC Offensive Player of the Week four times, WomensLacrosse.com National Offensive Player of the Week twice, WomensLax.com National Player of the Week once and Nike National Player of the Week once. Cullen was the first sophomore since Northwestern's Kristen Kjellman, a three-time ALC Player of the Year and two-time Tewaaraton Award recipient, to be named ALC Player of the Year. She was also recently named a WomensLax.com All-American.
Sophomore attacker Bruns was named Second Team All-South after leading the Gators in assists (28) while also ranking second in points (74), goals (46) and third on the team in caused turnovers (17). She averaged 3.7 points per game to put her among the top 50 scorers in the country. Bruns scored at least five points in nine contests this season, including tying her career highs in goals (6 vs. Syracuse), assists (4 vs. Denver and Penn State) and setting a new high in draw controls twice this season (3 vs. Georgetown and Penn State). Bruns was honored as the ALC Offensive Player of the Week, the WomensLacrosse.com National Offensive Player of the Week and the WomensLax.com National Player of the Week for her performances against Colgate and then-No. 11 Syracuse, as she netted six goals on seven shots. She scored at least three goals on nine occasions this year and scored at least three points in 14 out of 20 games in 2011. Bruns was also recently named a WomensLax.com All-American.
Sophomore defender Farrell was named Second Team All-South while ranking fourth on the team in ground balls with 27. She controlled the Florida midfield with speed and strength, causing eight turnovers while holding the majority of her marks to less than half of their season scoring average. Farrell was named First Team All-ALC and ALC All-Tournament Team, while also garnering ALC Defensive Player of the Week honors for her performances against then-No. 9 Georgetown and Temple. Farrell had six draw controls total in those games, notching three against both the Hoyas and the Owls. In Florida's upset of Georgetown, Farrell constantly matched up with 2011 All-Region honoree Jordy Kirr, Georgetown's best scorer, who only scored twice against the Gators and was only able to get off three shots for the entire evening. Farrell and the Florida defense frustrated the Georgetown offense, as they were continually unable to penetrate the Gator backfield. In the Gators' throttling of Temple, Farrell was part of a stellar Florida defense who held Temple to just four goals and only four shots in the entire second half. Her work through the midfield was more than could be written on a scoresheet. The Millersville, Md. native is aggressive, quick and sets up countless plays for the Florida offense.
Sophomore midfielder Hillier had her best year as a Gator while being named Second Team All-South. She scored 34 goals on the season, while also recording 23 ground balls, 35 draw controls and 18 caused turnovers. Hillier set new career highs in nearly every statistical category, as she scored a career-high in goals twice this season (4 vs. Ohio State-ALC and Stanford), while also setting new marks in assists (2 vs. Syracuse and Ohio State-ALC), points (6 vs. Ohio State-ALC), ground balls (3 vs. Jacksonville, Denver and Ohio State), caused turnovers (2 vs. Denver, Georgetown, Ohio State, Penn State, Northwestern and Cornell) and draw controls (5 vs. UMBC). The Farmingdale, N.Y. native had her best games of the season against then-No. 11 Syracuse, Cornell, Ohio State in the ALC Tournament and Stanford in the NCAA Championship First Round. Hillier was named ALC Second Team and ALC All-Tournament Team, coming on strong late, scoring 14 goals in her last five games.
Sophomore goalkeeper Meagher was named Second Team All-South after leading the ALC and ranking 10th in the nation in goals-against average (8.67). Meagher was named the ALC Defensive Player of the Week after her performance against Johns Hopkins where she set a career-high with 13 saves against the Blue Jays. Meagher had four double-digit save performances this season, notching 11 saves against No. 7 Stanford in the opening round of the NCAA Championship and 10 saves against both No. 2 Northwestern and Cornell. Meagher and the Gator defense held 15 of the Gators' 20 opponents to 10 or less goals, including a season-low four goals against Temple. Meagher also had 29 ground balls on the season, good for third on the team, and seven caused turnovers. One of Meagher's most memorable performances of the season came against No. 2 Northwestern, as the Liverpool, N.Y. native had back-to-back saves in the closing seconds to clinch the upset win for the Gators, 13-11. Meagher was also named Second Team All-ALC.
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