Three Spiders Listed On VaSID All-State Field Hockey Team
12/13/2004 | Field Hockey
Dec. 13, 2004
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - Richmond juniors Allie Howard, Holly Cram and Michelle Swartz were named part of the Virginia Sports Information Directors' (VaSID) 2004 All-State Field Hockey team, officials announced over the weekend. The honors mark the most ever single season placements on the team in school history. Each of the last two seasons the Spiders have had two athletes on the 16-member list.
Howard and Cram were both selected as First Team South Region All-Americans Nov. 16 then picked up second and third team National All-America honors Nov. 23. For Swartz, the honor is the first of her career and her second postseason honor. Last season Lydia Decembrino and Howard were part of the VaSID squad, while Decembrino and current Richmond assistant, Jill Murphy, were awarded honors in 2002.
Howard, the Atlantic 10 Conference's Offensive Player of the Year in 2003, won the Spiders' first conference Defensive Player of the Year honor since 2002 following this season. She also earned the A-10 Championships' Most Outstanding Player honor, and finished the season ranked in a tie for 17th among the national leaders in assists with 12. Howard ended the season among the Top-3 in the Atlantic 10 in points (28) and assists (12). The Lancaster, Pa., native ranked tied for sixth in the conference with eight goals and was tied for the team lead in assists. She was a part of a defensive effort for the Spiders which limited opponents to just 16 goals on 135 shots, including just three goals on 29 shots during conference play.
Cram earned Richmond's fourth-consecutive A-10 Offensive Player of the Year honor prior to the Atlantic 10 Championships this season. She finished up 2004 ranked tied for third in the nation in points (67) and second among the nation's leaders in points per game (3.19). The Glasgow, Scotland, native ended the season as Richmond's single-season leader in goals and points after topping Dawn Reyerson's marks from 1993 in both categories. The junior also finished atop seven offensive categories in the Atlantic 10 and ranked fourth among the national leaders in goals (29) and third in goals per game (1.38).
Swartz earned the Atlantic 10 Conference Field Hockey Student-Athlete of the Year award following arguably the best campaign of her three-year career. The Severna Park, Md., native finished the season with a school record 11 shutouts in 21 games. The previous Spider mark for single-season shutouts was nine, set by Swartz as a freshman. The keeper ranked third in the nation and led the A-10 with a goals-against average of 0.73. Her .805 save percentage also was among the nation's best at 13th. She did not allow more than two goals in a total of 20 contests, and was the backbone for Richmond's defensive unit which limited opponents to just 16 goals on 135 shots, including just three goals on 29 shots during conference play.
Richmond wrapped up its season Nov. 13 falling to top-ranked and top-seeded North Carolina, 3-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Spiders finished their season with a mark of 18-3 after recording their third-straight undefeated Atlantic 10 Conference Championship.