Five Terrapins Claim All-ACC Field Hockey Honors
11/1/2001 7:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Nov. 1, 2001
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Maryland mentor Missy Meharg was named ACC Field Hockey Coach of the Year and senior back Autumn Welsh (Macungie, Pa.) added the title "ACC Co-Player of the Year" to her impressive resume as five Terrapins received conference honors at the banquet preceding the 19th Annual ACC Championships in Chapel Hill, N.C.
The tournament, which actually began before the banquet with a 3-1 Virginia win over Duke this afternoon, continues tomorrow as No. 2 Wake Forest meets No. 3 North Carolina at 4 p.m. The top-seeded Terrapins will face the No. 4 Cavaliers at 7 p.m.
Meharg's conference honor is the fourth of her career, having been named ACC Coach of the Year in 1992, 1995 and 1998. Meharg, now in her 14th season as the Terps mentor with a 222-75-9 overall record, stands as the winningest field hockey coach in Terp history and 13th all-time among all Division I head coaches. She has guided the Terrapins to the last three ACC Championships and four overall (1992,1998, 1999, 2000).
Honda Award hopeful Welsh is now a three-time All-ACC honoree (1999, 2000, 2001) in addition to receiving ACC Tournament MVP and All-America honors in 2000. The three-time Mid-Atlantic All-Region selection (1998, 1999, 2000) was ACC Rookie of the Year in 1998 and currently plays on the U.S. National Team. This season Welsh is the backbone of a talented Terp defense that ranks No. 1 nationally with a 0.75 goals against average, and was a rare defender to be named ACC Player of the Week (on Oct. 22).
Two-time All-Americans Rachel Hiskins (Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) is a three-time All-ACC selection (1999, 2000, 2001). She is a two-time All-American, a two-time Mid-Atlantic All-Region honoree and a three-time ACC Player of the Week. Hiskins is only nine assists away from becoming Maryland's all-time leader.
Feisty midfielder Dina Rizzo (Walpole, Mass.) was selected to the All-ACC team for the first time in her career. The two-time All-Region selection (1999 and 2000) ranks second on the Terps' nationally top-ranked scoring offense with 12 goals and 30 points. Rizzo was named ACC Co-Player of the Week for the first time in her career on Sept. 10 and has a propensity for heating up in the postseason.
Now a third-time All-ACC selection, Caroline Walter (Reilingen, Germany) adds the honor to two All-America selections, two Mid-Atlantic All-Region honors, two All-ACC Tournament awards and the 1998 ACC Player of the Year title. Both a skilled athlete and fiery competitor, Walter is largely responsible for Maryland's 194-60 season penalty corner advantage. She is one of seven Terrapins with five goals or more, having tallied 11 points on the season while battling through injury all season long.
The All-ACC selections and the rest of the Terps begin their quest for their fourth-consecutive ACC title on Friday.
Contact: Mark Fratto
301-314-8052 (Phone)
301-314-9094 (FAX)
301-314-TERP (Fan Phone)
fratto@wam.umd.edu
