Photo By Erik Andrews '09 Junior midfielder Rachel Lewis earned her first career post-season recognition after leading Amherst with 47 ground balls.

Six Jeffs Named IWLCA All-Region

May 25, 2006

AMHERST, MA – Six members of the Amherst College women’s lacrosse team were named to the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association All-Berkshire Region team on Tuesday. Senior tri-captain Laura Brown (Bethesda, MD), juniors Alyssa Briody (Hopewell, NJ) and Emery Sweeney (Darien, CT) and rookie Mary Noonan (W. Roxbury, MA) all earned first-team honors, while junior Rachel Lewis (Denver, CO) and first-year Amy Craig (Denver, CO) came away with second-team plaudits. These athletes are now eligible for inclusion on the IWLCA/US Lacrosse All-America teams, which will be announced May 30.

A two-time All-NESCAC honoree and an Inside Lacrosse Pre-Season All-American, Brown anchored an Amherst defense that allowed just 7.29 goals per game, a conference low. A three-year starter, she graduates with 104 career ground balls and 68 caused turnovers, including 27 pickups and 16 takeaways – while committing just two turnovers – this season. Earning her first career post-season award, Sweeney was also an instrumental part of the Jeffs’ stonewall defense. She amassed 37 ground balls and 24 caused turnovers on the season, both second-best totals on the squad.

Lewis had a breakout season in the midfield, leading the squad in ground balls (47), while coming in second in draw controls (28), tying for third in caused turnovers (18), and adding a pair of goals and an assist.

Photo By Charlie Quigg '09 Senior defender Laura Brown graduates with 104 career ground balls and 68 career caused turnovers.

After earning First-Team All-NESCAC recognition last week, Briody earned her second straight all-region award. She led the team in all offensive statistical categories, ranking second in the conference in goals (49) and points (76), while coming in seventh with 27 assists. Briody breached a career high on April 19, tallying four goals and four assists for eight points, and later eclipsed that mark with nine points on two occasions, including a conference tournament record four-goal, five-assist performance in the NESCAC quarterfinals. She was named NESCAC Player of the Week for the period ending April 24 after leading the Jeffs to a trio of wins with nine goals, including the game winning score in a 12-11 overtime victory over Colby College, and six assists.

Rookies Craig and Noonan each made their presence felt in their inaugural collegiate campaigns, ranking second and third on the squad, respectively, in scoring. While starting just nine of the Jeffs’ 18 games, Craig netted 37 goals, including five in a 10-8 victory over Tufts on April 26 and six (a NESCAC tournament record) in a 17-8 quarterfinal win over Wesleyan just four days later. Noonan notched hatricks in the first two matchups of the season en route to 30 goals and nine assists for the year, and was one of only two first-years to earn all-conference honors. She also led the Jeffs in draw controls with 33 snags.

After advancing to the NESCAC semifinals for the sixth consecutive year, Amherst earned its sixth straight at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The Jeffs trounced Western New England College in the opening round, 19-3, and upset Rowan University, 14-9, in the regional semifinals before falling to top-ranked Gettysburg College, 8-4, in the national quarterfinals.