DAVIDSON, NC – Winthrop midfielder Shannon Gallagher has been named the Big South Women's Lacrosse Freshman of the Year while a total of five Eagles were named to All-Conference Teams Thursday at the Big South Women's Lacrosse Awards Banquet.
As voted by the league's eight head coaches Gallagher was also voted to the Big South First-Team. Fellow freshmen Megan Wallenhorst and Hayley Krause along with sophomore Alyssa Blevins earned Second-Team honors while sophomore Mary Accomando was named to the Big South All-Academic Team.
Gallagher, a native of Silver Spring, MD, had a stellar offensive season for the Eagles. Gallagher led the conference and is currently fifth in the NCAA in goals per game with 3.38 and total of 54 this season. Her total of 54 goals ranks her 4th in the NCAA. Gallagher was also fourth in the Big South and 27th in Division I in points per game with an average of four per contest. Gallagher earned one Big South Offensive Player of the Week honor this year on March 18 on the heels of a 10-point performance against Kennesaw State when she scored seven goals and assisted on three others.
Megan Wallenhorst, a freshman attacker from Ellicott City, MD, earned Second-Team All-Conference honors as she led the team and was fourth in the conference in assists per game with 1.71. Wallenhorst also scored her share of goals, finishing second on the team with 34 total goals. She ranks fifth in the Big South in points per game with 3.71. Wallenhorst is 26th overall in Division I with 63 total points. Wallenhorst was awarded the very first Big South Freshman of the Week honor on February 11 after she scored the first-ever Winthrop lacrosse goal against Howard while scoring a total of four tallies.
Freshman midfielder Hayley Krause of Forest Hill, MD, earned a spot on the Big South Second Team for her dominating performance on draw controls this season. Krause finished the season averaging 6.65 draws per game, nearly three draws more per game higher than Davidson's Emma Sissman who averaged 3.69 draws per game. Krause is currently ranked second in the NCAA behind Robert Morris' Jessica Karwacki who averages 9.5 draws per contest. Krause earned the Big South's first-ever Offensive Player of the Week award on February 11 after scoring five goals against Howard in Winthrop's inaugural contest.
Alyssa Blevins a sophomore midfielder from Bel Air, MD grabbed a spot on the All-Conference Second Team after a strong finish to her season in conference matches. Blevins scored a total of 18 goals this season with 11 of them coming against conference opponents. Blevins scored a season-high four goals against Presbyterian and Coastal Carolina. She also added a total of 12 assists with five coming in conference.
Sophomore Mary Accomando was named to the Big South All-Academic Team. Accomando, a biology major from Beverly, MA, sports a 3.351 GPA and was named to the Dean's List in the spring of 2012. This season on the field Accomando scored eight goals and recorded six assists.
