University of Richmond Athletics
Eight Spiders Honored by A-10; Egizi, Ball and Kwolek Earn Major Honors
05/02/2018 | Women's Lacrosse
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The University of Richmond women's lacrosse team has earned some more hardware to go with its Atlantic 10 Regular Season title.
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Eight different Spiders, along with head coach Allison Kwolek, were honored by the A-10, earning all-conference accolades.
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Kwolek, senior Kim Egizi and junior Julie Ball all took home top honors in 2018. The sixth-year head coach earned A-10 Coach of the Year honors, while Egizi was named Offensive Player of the Year and Ball was named Defensive Player of the Year.
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This is the first time since 2007 and second time ever that the Spiders have swept Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year honors.
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Egizi and Ball were joined on the A-10 All-Conference First Team by Katie Sciandra and Megan Gianforte, while Tegan Helms was named to the All-Conference Second Team. Freshmen Brittney Wright and Rachel Ziemba earned All-Rookie Team nods, and Egizi and Aly Fries were named to the All-Academic squad.
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Kwolek becomes just the second coach to earn A-10 Coach of the Year honor and first since 2006, sharing it with VCU coach Jen O'Brien. After leading the Spiders to a 14-win season in 2017, the team battled to a 14-3 record in 2018, tying the best regular-season mark in program history and matching last year's win total. Kwolek coached the Spiders to their first A-10 Regular Season title since 2010, leading the defense to a No. 3 national ranking in scoring defense and the offense to a 98-goal advantage over opponents this season.
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Egizi has had one of the most complete seasons in program history, leading the squad in the offensive end and becoming the first at Richmond to win Offensive Player of the Year honors since 2009. The 2015 A-10 Rookie of the Year and a four-time all-conference honoree, Egizi finished regular season in a tie for second all-time in career assists at Richmond with 93, and third in points with 249. Through 17 games, the attacker ranks in the top seven in the A-10 in points (2nd), goals (3rd), assists (7th), ground balls (3rd), draw controls (7th) and caused turnovers (5th). Her 79 points this season are just six shy of the single-season record at Richmond, and her four A-10 Player of the Week honors are the most in a single season in conference history. The psychology major was also named to the All-Academic team for the first time this season.
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Ball had a breakout year on the defensive end, becoming the first Spider to earn Defensive Player of the Year honors since 2014. The junior ranks fifth in the nation in caused turnovers per game with 2.76, and broke the single-season record for caused turnovers after causing 47 so far this year. Her 43 ground balls are eighth in the A-10 this season and have helped her garner A-10 Defensive Player of the Week honors three times in 2018. Ball helped the Spider defense post the third-best goals against average in the country this season, allowing just 8.31 per game.
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Sciandra also had a breakout season for the Spiders in the midfield, leading the team and the conference with 58 goals on the year after scoring just 11 in her first season. The midfielder scored four game-winners for the Spiders in 2018 and connected on 32 of the Spiders' 73 free position goals this season while boasting a No. 1 national ranking in free position goals per game. Sciandra's nine-goal outburst against VCU this season broke the program single-game goals record, and her 63 points tie for second on the team and seventh in the A-10.
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Gianforte earns her second-straight First Team honor, tying with Davidson's Rose Woolson for the top goalie spot in the conference. The sophomore started every game in goal for the Spiders, leading the Spiders to the No. 3 scoring defense in the nation. She is currently second in the nation and first in the conference with an 8.25 goals against average, while her save percentage of 0.515 ranks seventh.
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Helms earned her first career A-10 postseason honor after a standout senior campaign. The defender helped the Spiders to the No. 3 scoring defense in the country, matching with some of the conference's top attackers. Helms finished the regular season with 33 ground balls, good for fourth in the team, and 22 caused turnovers, good for third.
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Wright's contributions were immediate this season on the defensive end. The rookie played in all but one game this season and saw significant minutes as a defender, making her first career start against UMass. She collected nine ground balls and caused six turnovers during the regular season for the Spiders while helping the team to a No. 3 national ranking in scoring defense.
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Ziemba made a major impact on the offensive end for the Spiders despite playing in just six games due to injury. The freshman scored six goals and added 10 assists, averaging 1.67 assists per game. She scored two goals and added two assists in her first career appearance at Saint Joseph's, and caused three turnovers and collected three ground balls against George Mason.
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Fries earned her second A-10 All-Academic Team honor after serving as a key reserve on attack in 2018. On the field, she scored 17 times while assisting on three others for 20 points, already eclipsing her 2017 total. Fries has also excelled in the classroom, majoring in Business Administration with concentrations in Finance and Accounting. The top GPA honoree as a freshman and junior, she is a Presidential Scholar and a member of multiple honor societies. Fries has been named to the Dean's List every semester at Richmond.
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The Spiders will look to capitalize on their regular season title when they host the 2018 Atlantic 10 Tournament May 3-6. The No. 2 seed, Richmond will face off against the winner of the quarterfinal matchup between George Mason and VCU.
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The Spiders' semifinal matchup is set for Friday, May 4, at 4 p.m. Tickets will be on sale at the door.
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Eight different Spiders, along with head coach Allison Kwolek, were honored by the A-10, earning all-conference accolades.
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Kwolek, senior Kim Egizi and junior Julie Ball all took home top honors in 2018. The sixth-year head coach earned A-10 Coach of the Year honors, while Egizi was named Offensive Player of the Year and Ball was named Defensive Player of the Year.
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This is the first time since 2007 and second time ever that the Spiders have swept Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year honors.
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Egizi and Ball were joined on the A-10 All-Conference First Team by Katie Sciandra and Megan Gianforte, while Tegan Helms was named to the All-Conference Second Team. Freshmen Brittney Wright and Rachel Ziemba earned All-Rookie Team nods, and Egizi and Aly Fries were named to the All-Academic squad.
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Kwolek becomes just the second coach to earn A-10 Coach of the Year honor and first since 2006, sharing it with VCU coach Jen O'Brien. After leading the Spiders to a 14-win season in 2017, the team battled to a 14-3 record in 2018, tying the best regular-season mark in program history and matching last year's win total. Kwolek coached the Spiders to their first A-10 Regular Season title since 2010, leading the defense to a No. 3 national ranking in scoring defense and the offense to a 98-goal advantage over opponents this season.
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Egizi has had one of the most complete seasons in program history, leading the squad in the offensive end and becoming the first at Richmond to win Offensive Player of the Year honors since 2009. The 2015 A-10 Rookie of the Year and a four-time all-conference honoree, Egizi finished regular season in a tie for second all-time in career assists at Richmond with 93, and third in points with 249. Through 17 games, the attacker ranks in the top seven in the A-10 in points (2nd), goals (3rd), assists (7th), ground balls (3rd), draw controls (7th) and caused turnovers (5th). Her 79 points this season are just six shy of the single-season record at Richmond, and her four A-10 Player of the Week honors are the most in a single season in conference history. The psychology major was also named to the All-Academic team for the first time this season.
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Ball had a breakout year on the defensive end, becoming the first Spider to earn Defensive Player of the Year honors since 2014. The junior ranks fifth in the nation in caused turnovers per game with 2.76, and broke the single-season record for caused turnovers after causing 47 so far this year. Her 43 ground balls are eighth in the A-10 this season and have helped her garner A-10 Defensive Player of the Week honors three times in 2018. Ball helped the Spider defense post the third-best goals against average in the country this season, allowing just 8.31 per game.
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Sciandra also had a breakout season for the Spiders in the midfield, leading the team and the conference with 58 goals on the year after scoring just 11 in her first season. The midfielder scored four game-winners for the Spiders in 2018 and connected on 32 of the Spiders' 73 free position goals this season while boasting a No. 1 national ranking in free position goals per game. Sciandra's nine-goal outburst against VCU this season broke the program single-game goals record, and her 63 points tie for second on the team and seventh in the A-10.
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Gianforte earns her second-straight First Team honor, tying with Davidson's Rose Woolson for the top goalie spot in the conference. The sophomore started every game in goal for the Spiders, leading the Spiders to the No. 3 scoring defense in the nation. She is currently second in the nation and first in the conference with an 8.25 goals against average, while her save percentage of 0.515 ranks seventh.
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Helms earned her first career A-10 postseason honor after a standout senior campaign. The defender helped the Spiders to the No. 3 scoring defense in the country, matching with some of the conference's top attackers. Helms finished the regular season with 33 ground balls, good for fourth in the team, and 22 caused turnovers, good for third.
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Wright's contributions were immediate this season on the defensive end. The rookie played in all but one game this season and saw significant minutes as a defender, making her first career start against UMass. She collected nine ground balls and caused six turnovers during the regular season for the Spiders while helping the team to a No. 3 national ranking in scoring defense.
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Ziemba made a major impact on the offensive end for the Spiders despite playing in just six games due to injury. The freshman scored six goals and added 10 assists, averaging 1.67 assists per game. She scored two goals and added two assists in her first career appearance at Saint Joseph's, and caused three turnovers and collected three ground balls against George Mason.
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Fries earned her second A-10 All-Academic Team honor after serving as a key reserve on attack in 2018. On the field, she scored 17 times while assisting on three others for 20 points, already eclipsing her 2017 total. Fries has also excelled in the classroom, majoring in Business Administration with concentrations in Finance and Accounting. The top GPA honoree as a freshman and junior, she is a Presidential Scholar and a member of multiple honor societies. Fries has been named to the Dean's List every semester at Richmond.
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The Spiders will look to capitalize on their regular season title when they host the 2018 Atlantic 10 Tournament May 3-6. The No. 2 seed, Richmond will face off against the winner of the quarterfinal matchup between George Mason and VCU.
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The Spiders' semifinal matchup is set for Friday, May 4, at 4 p.m. Tickets will be on sale at the door.
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