The Empire 8 Athletic Conference has announced the 2017 Field Hockey All-Conference teams as voted on by the conference’s coaches. In addition, the Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and Coach of the Year have been selected.
Player of the Year: Emily Markarian, St. John Fisher
Emily Markarian repeats at the Player of the Year and becomes just the second player in league history to win the award twice; Tara Wilkes of Hartwick College won the honor in 2002 and 2003. Markarian led the Cardinals and the conference with 50 points on the season, powered by an E8-best 23 goals scored. She scored two or more goals in a game seven times, including a season-high four tallies in a non-conference win over Oswego. Her 23 goals set a new single season program record for Fisher, while her 50 points on the season tied her record from 2016. Markarian’s unstoppable offensive play helped Fisher’s offense total 63 goals and 3.32 tallies per game. In conference only games she led the league with 24 points and 11 goals.
Rookie of the Year: Bre Socker, St. John Fisher
Bre Socker played in all 19 games for Fisher making 18 starts. She ranked second on the team and third in the conference with 32 points (13g, 6a). Her 13 goals included a league-high five game-winning goals. She registered at least one point in 14 of her games played including a season high six points when she tallied a hat-trick against Rochester. In Empire 8 only games, Socker ranked third with 13 points and third with five goals scored. Socker is the third Cardinal to earn the Rookie of the Year honors as Markarian and Lindsay Scott were honored in 2014 and 2016, respectively.
Coach of the Year: Washington & Jefferson College
Jomara Coghlan and her assistant coach Mary Plotas enjoy their first E8 Coaching Staff of the Year honor. Coghlan previously earned the individual Coach of the Year honor in 2007 and 2010. Coghlan and Plotas guided their team to a perfect 7-0 record in league play and the No. 1 seed in the E8 Tournament, where the Presidents’ won the program’s second Empire 8 conference title and clinched its second trip in to the NCAA Division III tournament. Washington and Jefferson finished the season with a 13-5 record including eight shutouts.
Sportsmanship Team
One member of each team was named that institution’s representative on the 2017 Field Hockey Sportswoman of the Year Team. Empire 8 emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete’s experience in conjunction with an institution’s educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen.
Empire 8 2017 Field Hockey All-Conference Teams