Trio of Wildcats Earn All-Big Ten Honors

11/5/2014 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey

Nov. 5, 2014

Game Photo

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Three Northwestern Wildcats earned All-Big Ten distinction when the conference's field hockey postseason honors were announced Wednesday.

Senior goalkeeper Maddy Carpenter (Wilbraham, Mass./Suffield Academy) and junior back Lisa McCarthy (Dublin, Ireland/Mount Anville) were named to the first team while junior midfielder Charlotte Martin (St. Louis, Mo./John Burroughs) was recognized as a second-team selection.

Carpenter earned the first All-Big Ten honor of her career. She has posted a 1.29 goals-against average this season, including a 1.22 mark against league opponents. Carpenter has posted four shutouts in 2014 and sports a conference-best .762 save percentage in Big Ten play. She was twice named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week this year.

After being named to the All-Big Ten Second Team each of the last two years, McCarthy made the move up to the first team in 2014. The steady anchor of the Northwestern back line has played a huge role in the Wildcats ranking second in the league with an average of 1.32 goals allowed per game. McCarthy has also contributed to the NU attack, ranking second on the squad with 10 assists and fifth with five goals.

Martin has been a reliable force in the midfield for the 'Cats, contributing to both the attack and the defense. Her efforts have been a large reason why Northwestern ranks ninth nationally with a 1.27 team goals-against average. Offensively, Martin leads the Wildcats and ranks fourth in the Big Ten with 14 assists. The All-Big Ten recognition is the first of her career.

In addition, senior Kristin Wirtz (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park) was named the team's recipient of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. The student-athletes chosen for the honor are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. These student-athletes must also be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.

Northwestern (13-6, 6-2 Big Ten) opens up Big Ten tournament play in Ann Arbor, Mich., on Thursday. The third-seeded Wildcats take on sixth-seeded Iowa at 4:30 p.m. Central time.

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