NCAC 20th Anniversary

Edited: 5/26/04

WOOSTER'S HEMMINGER, DENISON'S PEACE HEAD 20TH ANNIVERSARY WOMEN’S LACROSSE TEAM

Wooster’s Beth Hemminger and Denison’s Laura Peace head an impressive list of stellar athletes named to the North Coast Athletic Conference’s 20th Anniversary women’s lacrosse team. Hemminger and Peace are two of the 12 former NCAC Players of the Year represented on the 17-person squad. They are also two of three four-time, first-team All-NCAC selections named.

Hemminger, the Offensive Player of the Year in 2003, guided the Scots to the past two NCAC championships, Wooster’s first-ever in women’s lacrosse. She is the NCAC’s all-time leader with 139 career assists and 300 points. Peace earned Offensive Player of the Year accolades as a junior in 2000 and was Newcomer of the Year in 1998. She is the conference’s all-time leader with 233 career goals. The Big Red won NCAC crowns all four years of her career.

Denison, winners of five NCAC titles in the past 10 years and 14 overall, had seven of the 17 selections. Cheryl Connelly, Offensive Player of the Year in 1994 and two-time first-team selection; Alison Offenburger, the Offensive Player of the Year in 1999 and Newcomer of the Year in 1996; and Sarah Bennett, the Offensive Player of the Year in 1995 are three of those selection. Rounding out the Big Red’s selections are defenders Danielle D’Orazio and Bartley Mitchell, and goalkeeper Abbe Stewart.

Oberlin claimed three NCAC women’s lacrosse titles since 1994. Yeowomen selected to the team are Elizabeth Barry, Offensive Player of the Year in 1997, Katherine Roberts, the Defensive Player of the Year in 1998 and Newcomer of the Year in 1996, and Wendy Scranton, a three-time first-team selection.

In addition to Hemminger, Wooster is represented on the squad by Meg Wood, the 1995 Defensive Player of the Year and a four-time first-team choice, and Laura Slingluff, a three-time first-team honoree.

Ohio Wesleyan and Wittenberg each had two players voted onto the team. Bishop attacker Jenny Feldman, a four-time all-conference selection, and goalkeeper Tracy Scott, the Defensive Player of the Year in 1997, represent OWU. The Tigers’ selections are a pair of four-time all-conference selections: attacker Kati Robbins and defender Cara Romanowski. Robbins was Offensive Player of the Year in 2001 and Romanowski was Defensive Player of the Year in 2002.

The North Coast Athletic Conference will be announcing 20th Anniversary teams in all 22 sports during the 2003-04 academic year. The NCAC was founded in 1983 and began competition in the fall of 1984. The North Coast’s commitment to equity, its broad base of athletic programs and an unwavering insistence on excellence in academics has served as a model for conferences throughout the country.

The NCAC’s 20th Anniversary teams were selected in each sport through balloting by present and former coaches and administrators. Athletes who participated in conference competition between the fall of 1993 through the spring of 2003 were eligible for selection.