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ANN ARBOR, MICH - Hours after scoring six goals in Hartwick's 15-8 opening round of the CWPA Eastern Water Polo Championships, Kirsten Hudson (Wellington, New Zealand) was named the Northern Division player of the year for the second consecutive season, it was announced at the Eastern Championship banquet, Friday evening.
Hudson, who ranked fifth in the nation heading into this weekend's play, becomes the second Hartwick player to win the honor twice. In 2001 and 2002, Megan Thomson was recognized with the same honor. Hudson, also a 2007 first team recipient, was one of four Northern Division first team honorees for Hartwick in 2008.
Including her performance versus the Bears in the opening round, Hudson has posted 97 goals, 52 assists for 149 points in 29 games this season. With at least two more games to go, the sophomore is three goals away from becoming only the second Hawk to reach 100 goals in a season. Former two-time All-American, Bronwen Knox posted 102 in 2005 and then a nation's best 127 in 2006. She is five points away from passing Knox's school record 153 set in 2006.
Jessica McKee (Tustin, Calif.) was named as the Northern rookie of the year. The freshman has made instant impact on the roster in her inaugural season. With her two goals in the victory over Brown, she became the fifth Hawk to surpass the 50-goal plateau for the season. McKee was second on the squad with 53 drawn kick-outs and fourth on the team in points (85) entering this weekend's play.
Ellen Sevigny (Mount Desert, Maine), Megan Dahl-Smith (Montreal, Quebec) and Jessica Dorman (Auckland, New Zealand) all joined Hudson on the league's first team.
Sevigny, a second first team selection, is concluding her collegiate career in primary fashion. The senior ranked second on the team and 27th in the country with 61 goals and had posted 105 points entering the weekend. She is five goals away from establishing a personal best for a single season, while her point and steal (67) totals serve as career highs.
Dahl-Smith, like Sevigny, has posted single-season career-highs in goals, points and steals. In the victory over Brown, the senior surpassed the 50-goal mark for the first time in her career. She had 60 points and 34 steals on the season heading to Ann Arbor. This was Dahl-Smith's first time being selected to the first team. As a junior, she was a second team honoree.
Dorman got the nod as the first team goalie. The freshman has already made an impact on the Hartwick record book for single-season saves. Dorman, who was ranked second in the country in the most recent national statistics, has 387 stops on the year, which bested the previous record of 363 set in 2004.
Hartwick placed one on the second team in Barbara Amaro (Sao Paulo, Brazil). This marks the second consecutive time the junior received the recognition. In 2008, Amaro has established single-season career-highs in goals (30), points (56), and steals (56).
