Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 5/4/17
From Press Release
St. Joseph’s University senior attacker Nora McCallion (Academy of Notre Dame de Namur) and junior defender Kristen Kelbon (Bishop Eustace Prep-NJ) were voted onto the 2017 Atlantic 10 All-Conference First Team and second-seeded Saint Joseph’s placed six Hawks on the A-10 All-Conference Teams, as voted on by the league’s head coaches and announced on Wednesday afternoon.
Sophomore attacker Rebecca Lane and graduate student midfielder Mallory Grey were tabbed to the A-10 Second Team while freshman attacker Hope Anhut (Hopewell Valley Central-NJ) and freshman midfielder Julia Pash arned spots on the All-Rookie Team. McCallion, a double major in accounting and finance, was also selected to the A-10 All-Academic Team for the second consecutive year, as voted on by the league’s Sports Information Directors.
Finishing the regular season at 11-6 overall and 7-2 in the Atlantic 10, the Hawks earned the second seed and a first-round bye for the 2017 Atlantic 10 Women’s Lacrosse Championship, hosted on St. Joe’s Sweeney Field on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday, May 7.
The Hawks will face the winner of today’s game between No. 3 Richmond (7-2 A-10) and No. 6 La Salle (3-6 A-10) on Friday at 3:30 p.m.
The championship expanded to six teams last year, giving UMass (9-0 A-10) and the second-seeded Hawks a bye into Friday’s semifinals. The winner of Sunday’s championship final will receive the A-10’s automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
No. 5 Davidson defeated No. 4 George Mason, 14-13, and will face No. 1 UMass (9-0 A-10) on Friday at 1:00 p.m.
All five games of the Lacrosse Championship will be streamed through the A-10 Network for free, which can be accessed from Atlantic10.com. Parking for the event will be located in the main University Lot, as well as the Hawks Landing Parking Facility on 54th Street. There will be a $10.00 charge per vehicle.
Earning her second consecutive First Team nod, McCallion led SJU in points (67), goals (47), shots (89), and shots on goal (70) and ranked second in assists (20). The senior co-captain ranked fifth in the league in total points and shot percentage (52.8%), sixth in total goals, goals per game (2.76), and points per game (4.13), 10th in total assists, and 12th in assists per game (1.18). Through nine A-10 contests, McCallion went for 37 points on 28 goals and nine assists, an average of 4.1 points per league game. The attacker recorded a hat trick against Davidson and hit the back of the net twice at UMass before going for four goals and a helper at Duquesne.
McCallion put up eight points on four goals and four assists against VCU and went on to score a season-high seven goals at George Mason the following weekend. After a hat trick at St. Bonaventure, McCallion tallied seven points on four goals and three assists in the regular-season finale vs. George Washington. McCallion scored in 16 of 17 total games this year and was named the A-10 Player of the Week twice – back on February 21 after a an eight-point effort (5g, 3a) in SJU’s season-opening win over American and on May 2 after her performances against the Bonnies and Colonials. McCallion ties for first all-time in career games played at SJU (67) and ranks in SJU’s top-five for career points (187), goals (132) and assists (55).
McCallion becomes just the third Hawk in program history to be selected to the A-10 First Team twice in a career, joining Jenna Martino (2008, 2009) and Bernadette Smith (2000, 2001).
In her first season as a starting defender for the Crimson and Gray, Kelbon led the Hawks in ground balls (33) and ranked second in caused turnovers (20). The junior went for three ground balls and two caused turnovers at George Mason and followed up with four ground balls and three caused turnovers at Richmond. Kelbon turned in four ground balls and four draw controls at Duquesne and added three ground balls and two caused turnovers vs. La Salle. Kelbon consistently made the small hustle plays that made the difference, such as causing turnovers and scooping up ground balls at key points of games and using her speed to single-handedly earn clears for the Crimson and Gray.
A-10 All-League Teams
First Team
Attack
Holly Turner, Massachusetts
Hannah Burnett, Massachusetts
Kim Egizi, Richmond
Nora McCallion (Academy of Notre Dame), Saint Joseph’s
Midfield
Alexa McGovern, George Mason
Allee Ilgenfritz, La Salle
Hannah Murphy, Massachusetts
Sky Hyatt, VCU
Defense
Hannah Warpinski, George Mason
Sarah Crowley, Massachusetts
Kristen Kelbon (Bishop Eustace-NJ), Saint Joseph’s
Goalkeeper
Megan Gianforte, Richmond
Attack
Sam Geiersbach, Richmond
Marissa Brown, Richmond
Rebecca Lane, Saint Joseph’s
Midfield
Nicole Pettiglio, Davidson
Caroline Queally, Richmond
Mallory Grey, Saint Joseph’s
Defense
Anna Gordon, La Salle
Kira Greer, George Mason
Becca Taub, George Washington
Taylor Fischer, Massachusetts
Allison Ryan, Massachusetts
Leslie Espenschied, Richmond
Jalen Middllebrooks, St. Bonaventure
Goalkeeper
Melissa Semkiw, George Mason
All-Rookie Team
Shayne Antolini, Davidson
Hailey Johnson, George Mason
Melissa Semkiw, George Mason
Caroline Kiernan, George Washington
Kaitlyn Cerasi, Massachusetts
Stephanie Croke, Massachusetts
Lauren Hiller, Massachusetts
Sam Geiersbach, Richmond
Megan Gianforte, Richmond
Hope Anhut, Saint Joseph’s
Juila Pash, Saint Joseph’s
Kerriann McTavish, VCU
Offensive Player of the Year: Holly Turner, Massachusetts
Defensive Player of the Year: Sarah Crowley, Massachusetts
Midfielder of the Year: Hannah Murphy, Massachusetts
Rookie of the Year: Sam Geiersbach, Richmond
Coach of the Year: Angela McMahon, Massachusetts
