2016 Empire 8 Women's Lacrosse All-Tournament Team
St. John Fisher: Hayley Peets (G) – MVP, Chrissy Cook (M), Cori Holbrook (M), Abbie Reed (M/D), Jamie Wallace (M)
Ithaca: Morgan Cadwell (M), Riley Marion (M), Molly Long (D)
Nazareth: Carly Gates (M), Bri Rizzari (G)
Stevens: Mary Beth Irwin (M), Vicki Alvarez (M)
Tournament Most Valuable Player
Hayley Peets, Jr., St. John Fisher
Goalie -- Pittsford, NY
In her first season as the primary netminder for the Cardinals, Peets guided the program to its fifth consecutive conference title. She was fantastic in both Empire 8 Tournament games, playing a pivotal role in the run to the title. She made eight saves and relinquished only five goals in Fisher’s 11-5 victory over the Stevens Institute of Technology in the E8 Semifinal. Peets continued her strong play in the 9-8 overtime win over Ithaca College in the final. She stopped eight more shots, including a crucial save on an IC free-position shot 40-seconds into the overtime period. The tournament MVP award is the first of her career. Peets enters the NCAA Tournament with a 5.45 goals-against average and a .458 save percentage.
Chrissy Cook, Sr., St. John Fisher
Midfield -- Black River, NY
Cook led the Cardinals with six points on five goals and one assist in the two conference tournament contests. She scored a game-high four points, which included a hat-trick, all coming off of free-position opportunities, in St. John Fisher’s 11-5 win over Stevens. She added a pair of goals, including the overtime game-winner in the 9-8 victory over Ithaca. Cook enters the NCAA Tournament with 27 goals and seven assists.
Cori Holbrook, So., St. John Fisher
Midfield -- Syracuse, NY
Holbrook racked up five points on four goals and one assist on the Cardinals’ run to the conference title. She netted a pair of goals and added a helper in the win over Stevens, while she scored twice, including the clutch overtime-forcing goal in the final against Ithaca. Holbrook leads the team with 39 goals and 40 draw controls for the year.
Abbie Reed, Jr., St. John Fisher
Midfield/Defense -- Marietta, NY
Wallace marked five points, all coming on goals in the conference tournament. She posted a hat-trick effort in the win over the Ducks, while she tickled the twine one time in each half and came away with a game-high five draw controls in the tournament final against the Bombers. She has 25 points on 21 goals and four helpers, while she ranks second on the team with 32 draw controls on the year.
Jamie Wallace, Jr., St. John Fisher
Midfield -- Central Square, NY
Reed was a stalwart in her own defensive zone for the Cardinals over the two games of the conference tournament. She collected three ground balls, caused a pair of turnovers, and won one draw control in the win over Stevens. The junior led all players with a game-high four ground balls and added one draw control in the tournament final against Ithaca. Reed enters the NCAA Tournament as the team’s leader with 32 ground balls and 22 caused turnovers.
Morgan Cadwell, Jr., Ithaca
Midfield -- Watertown, NY
Cadwell continued her stellar season on offense with a four-goal performance in a pair of conference tournament games. She tallied twice against Nazareth and scored two additional goals in the championship game against the Cardinals. Three of her four tallies came on free-positions, giving the junior midfielder 22 free-position goals on the season.
Riley Marion, Sr., Ithaca
Midfield -- Dartmouth, MA
Marion’s all-around performance was a key factor in Ithaca reaching the conference title game. She bulged the net five times against Nazareth in the E8 Semifinal, with four of those five tallies occurring in the second half. Marion was held to one goal the following afternoon in the title game, but was able to contribute with four draw controls, three ground balls, and a pair of caused turnovers. She finished the tournament with averages of 3.0 goals, 2.5 ground balls, 3.5 draw controls, and 1.5 caused turnovers.
Molly Long, So., Ithaca
Defense -- Ithaca, NY
Long anchored Ithaca’s defense in the Empire 8 Tournament, which helped the top-seeded Bombers reach Sunday’s title game. She averaged 2.5 caused turnovers, 1.0 ground balls, and 0.5 draw controls in the two playoff contests. Long will look to add to her season totals of 30 ground balls and 27 caused turnovers at this weekend’s NCAA Division III Championship First Round game against Regis College.
Carly Gates, Sr., Nazareth
Midfield -- Vestal, NY
Gates had one of the most impressive performances of the E8 Tournament in the semifinal round against the host Bombers. She registered seven points against Ithaca with four tallies and a trio of helpers. Her seven-point effort was the highest single-game point total of this year’s tournament. Gates concluded her senior season with 44 points on 27 goals and 17 assists.
Bri Rizzari, Fr., Nazareth
Goalie -- Rochester, NY
Rizzari got the start between the pipes for Nazareth in the team’s conference semifinal bout against top-seeded Ithaca. The rookie netminder shined for the Golden Flyers, making 13 saves, which was the second-highest save total the Rochester, NY, native has produced during her freshman campaign. She finished the year with 93 saves with a goals-against average of 8.79 and a save percentage of .500.
Mary Beth Irwin, Jr., Stevens
Midfield -- Boston, MA
Irwin led the Stevens offense in last Saturday’s Empire 8 Semifinal with a team-high three points on a pair of goals and one assist. The three-point effort against the Cardinals increased her season’s point total to 18 on 13 tallies and five helpers.
Vicki Alvarez, So., Stevens
Midfield -- Pine Beach, NJ
Alvarez controlled a pair of draws, caused one turnover, and collected one ground ball in the E8 Semifinal bout with St. John Fisher. She finished her sophomore season as the team leader in caused turnovers (21) and also totaled 23 draw controls to go along with 23 groundballs.