Northwestern University Athletics
Kjellman Receives National Weekly Honors
4/26/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
April 26, 2006
EVANSTON, Ill.-- Kristen Kjellman, junior midfielder for the second-ranked Northwestern lacrosse team, has been named this week's womenslacrosse.com and insidelacrosse.com National Player of the Week after the 'Cats knocked off No. 5 North Carolina and No. 8 Johns Hopkins in convincing fashion this past weekend. Both national honors are the second this season for the Westwood, Mass. native.
Kjellman, one of the leading candidates for this year's Tewaaraton Trophy, tallied nine goals and two assists for 11 points to go along with 10 draw controls, two ground balls and five caused turnovers.
Against UNC on Friday, Kjellman lit up the Tarheel defense-the third best defense in the nation coming in at 7.2 goals per contest-for five goals and one assist as the Wildcats won 18-10. She also had seven draw controls and caused two turnovers. Then in the 17-5 win over the Blue Jays on Sunday, Kjellman recorded four goals, her ninth game this season with four or more, and one assist while causing three turnovers and snagging three ground balls.
It was Kjellman's 12th hat trick or better of the season and also put her over the 50-goal plateau for the third-consecutive season. She is the first Wildcat to score 50 or more three straight seasons, and just the second overall, since Kathleen Kochmansky did it from 1982-84. No Northwestern player has ever scored 50 or more four straight years.
Kjellman leads the Wildcats and the American Lacrosse Conference in goals and ranks fourth nationally with 53 (3.79 per game). She also leads the team with 73 points, good for second in the ALC and sixth nationally, and ranks fourth in the NCAA with 4.5 draw controls per game.
The 'Cats are back in action this Friday when they try and clinch the ALC's automatic qualifier with a win at Ohio State. Game time is 6 p.m. CT. They then return home on Sunday against Denver at 2 p.m. CT where the five NU seniors will be honored prior to the game.
