Oct. 30, 2009

Complete Release in PDF Format

UMass Lowell's Sammy Macy (Tewksbury, MA) earned 2009 Northeast-10 Conference Player of the Year honors, as announced during the tournament banquet held on Friday in Easton, MA.

Macy was joined on the NE-10 All-Conference First Team by senior defender Laura Sullivan (Norwood, MA) and junior forward Katie Enaire (Amesbury, MA), while seniors Ashley Smith (Killingworth, CT) and Molly Clay (Rockport, MA) were named to the All-Conference Second Team.

Macy has started all 20 of the River Hawks' games during the 2009 campaign, which has seen them play to a 16-4 record so far and earn a trip to the Northeast-10 semifinal. She led the NE-10 in goals (23), points (53) and points per game (2.65). Taking 134 shots on goal in 20 games, she was drawn to the net and took 55 more chances than her nearest teammate. Clutch for UMass Lowell, she also tallied seven game-winners on the year, ranking her second in the conference. She was also named NE-10 Player of the Week twice during the regular season.

Sullivan, a co-captain, has been a leader for UMass Lowell on and off the field. She has started all 20 games for the River Hawks, playing nearly every minute of every game, guarding the backfield. She added one assist on the year, made a defensive save and helped anchor the River Hawks' defense that allowed just 1.50 goals per game, third in the conference.

Also on first team was Macy's scoring partner, Enaire. She also started every game for UMass Lowell and was close behind Macy with 20 goals and six assists on the year for 46 points. Enaire ranks second in the NE-10 in points (46), tied for third in goals (20) and third in goals per game (1.00). Enaire was one of the most consistent offensive producers for the River Hawks and tied a school record with nine points in a single game on Sept. 19 in a 9-1 win at home over Saint Anselm.

Smith, like Sullivan, helped the River Hawks' impressive backfield as a veteran in the defensive corps and started all 20 games for UMass Lowell. She made one defensive save on the year and added a career-best four assists on the year. She also earned the NE-10's inaugural Defensive Player of the Week honor at the start of the 2009 season.

Clay, a consistent and reliable midfielder, started every game for the River Hawks and added five goals and three assists for 13 points on the year. She is a skilled, poised and confident player that is a catalyst for many of UMass Lowell's offensive drives.

The #3 seed River Hawks will play #2 Bentley on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. at Stonehill's W.B. Mason Stadium for the 2009 Northeast-10 Conference Tournament Semifinal and their chance to advance to the championship game for the seventh consecutive year.