Northwestern University Athletics
NU Garners Two Major ALC Awards
5/11/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
May 11, 2004
ALC All-Conference release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
EVANSTON, Ill. - Given the surprising success the Northwestern women's lacrosse team had this season, especially in the American Lacrosse Conference, it came as little shock to see the Wildcats well decorated when the all-conference teams and major awards were announced Tuesday. That did not make it any less exciting, though.
The Wildcat program garnered two of the four major postseason honors, as freshman Kristen Kjellman was named the ALC Rookie of the Year while head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller was named the ALC Coach of the Year. They mark the first major ALC awards won by a Northwestern player or coach.
Kjellman -- who also earned first-team all-conference honors -- led the Wildcats in scoring this season with 45 goals and 13 assists for 58 points. Her 45 goals place her third among all conference players, as well as tied for 10th on Northwestern's single-season list (all of the other players in the Top 10 played during the previous era of lacrosse at NU, from 1982-92). Her 58 points are fourth in the ALC and ninth on NU's single-season list. Kjellman also finished second on the team with 30 draw controls.
"It says a lot about Kristen that she was given this award," said Amonte Hiller. "I am really happy for her -- there are some tremendous freshmen in our league this year. She showed on a number of occasions that she was our leader on the field; she took over some games and really helped us make the step to the next level as a program."
Amonte Hiller's award was hardly a surprise, given the success the 'Cats had in 2004. Picked to finish fifth in the conference, the team instead won a share of its first ALC crown and will host an NCAA Tournament game Thursday in just its third year as a varsity program. The Wildcats won 13 games in a row at one point, and finished the season ranked sixth in the IWLCA national coaches poll.
"It is always humbling to receive accolades from your peers," said Amonte Hiller. "I thought Johns Hopkins had a great season, and obviously Vanderbilt came on strong and got the win over us to end the season. We work hard as a staff, and it is really the players who make it happen out there. This award is a product of what they have accomplished."
Kjellman was joined on the All-ALC First Team by Courtney Koester, who earned her second consecutive first-team honor. Four Wildcats players earned second-team All-ALC recognition -- Sarah Albrecht, Ashley Gersuk, Ashley Koester and Lindsey Munday. For Munday and Koester, it was the second-straight year they earned second-team all-conference.
The ALC Player of the Year was Michelle Allen of Vanderbilt, while the Goalie of the Year was Lee Tortorelli of Penn State.
