CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – Loyola Maryland junior defender Kristen Yanchoris was named the Patriot League Women’s Lacrosse Scholar-Athlete of the Year and one of the 12 members of the sport’s Academic All-Patriot League Team, when it was announced by the League office on Wednesday.
To be eligible for the Scholar-Athlete of the Year award and Academic All-Patriot League squad, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average (GPA) and be a starter or key player in his/her sport. Freshmen or students in their first academic year at their school are not eligible for the honor.
Yanchoris, the 2018 Patriot League Women’s Lacrosse Defensive Player of the Year, is a business administration and marketing major, carrying a 3.96 cumulative GPA. This season, Yanchoris is a three-time all-League selection and was named an ILWomen Midseason All-America First Team defender, as she leads the Greyhounds with 18 caused turnovers. In the classroom, the junior is a five-time Dean’s List selection and has been inducted into the Chi Alpha Sigma Student-Athlete National Honor Society, in addition to the Business Honor Society, Beta Gamma Sigma. The two-time academic all-League selection is also the co-chair of Loyola Maryland Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).
Bucknell senior Eve Lukowski, the League’s 2016 scholar-athlete of the year, earns a spot on the academic all-League team for the third time. Lukowski, a managing for sustainability major, has a 3.95 cumulative GPA, while having earned the 2018 Bucknell Athletics’ Robert A. Latour Award, presented for extraordinary service to Bucknell and the local community. This season in 16 games, Lukowski finished with seven goals and four assists for 11 points, while posting a .636 shooting percentage. The senior attacker is also a Beta Gamma Sigma inductee.
In addition to Yanchoris and Lukowski, three more members of the 2018 academic all-League team have earned the distinction in the past. Lafayette senior defender Dana Smith (International Affairs/Mathematics-Economics, 3.98 GPA), Lehigh senior defender Kayleen Kelly (Industrial and Systems Engineering, 3.88 GPA) and Navy junior defender Marie Valenti (Ocean Engineering, 3.47 GPA) are all making their second appearance on the squad. Kelly and Valenti were also All-Patriot League Second Team honorees.
Boston University senior goalkeeper Christine Laible (Business Admin. & Management, 3.89 GPA) makes her first appearance on the squad along with Colgate senior defender Kelly Haberl (Physics, 3.97 GPA). Bucknell sophomore defender Jessie Britton (Biomedical Engineering, 3.90 GPA) makes her first appearance, joining Lukowski to give the Bison two representatives on the academic all-League team.
Lafayette had a League-high three student-athletes selected to the team with Smith and junior attackers Jane Kirby (psychology and government & law, 3.5 GPA) and Emma Novick (psychology and government & law, 3.84 GPA). Kirby is also an All-Patriot League Second Team selection, after finishing among the League leaders with 54 goals.
Senior defender Kierstyn Voiro (finance, 3.51 GPA), a two-time first-team all-League selection joins Kelly to give the Mountain Hawks two members of the academic all-League team.
Loyola Maryland senior attacker Hannah Savage (accounting, 3.798 GPA), a second-team all-League selection, joins Yanchoris on the squad. Savage led the Patriot League and finished 15th in NCAA DI with 3.22 assists per game and finished fifth with 4.44 points per game.
Scholar-Athlete of the Year and academic all-League honors are nominated and voted on by the Patriot League’s women’s lacrosse sports information directors, who cannot vote for their own student-athletes. The Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year for each individual sport comprises a pool of nominees for the Patriot League Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards given out over the summer. One male and one female are selected for this honor.
2018 Patriot League Women’s Lacrosse Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Kristen Yanchoris, Loyola Maryland (Jr., D)
2018 Patriot League Women’s Lacrosse Academic All-League Team
Christine Laible, Boston University (Sr., GK)
Jessie Britton, Bucknell (So., D)
Eve Lukowski, Bucknell (Sr., A)
Kelly Haberl, Colgate (Sr., D)
Jane Kirby, Lafayette (Jr., A)
Emma Novick, Lafayette (Jr., A)
Dana Smith, Lafayette (Sr., D)
Kayleen Kelly, Lehigh (Sr., D)
Kierstyn Voiro, Lehigh (Sr., D)
Hannah Savage, Loyola Maryland (Sr. A)
Kristen Yanchoris, Loyola Maryland (Jr., D)
Marie Valenti, Navy (Jr., D)
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its third decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.