2019 ALL-SSC Selections, Swanson and Gallagher Earn Player and Coach of the Year
MELBOURNE, Fla. - Thirty-five student-athletes are recognized as All-Conference in the fifth year of Sunshine State Conference women's lacrosse. Claire Swanson of the University of Tampa is awarded Player of the Year honors, while UT's Kelly Gallagher repeats as Coach of the Year. Patricia Werker from Florida Southern College takes home Freshman of the Year accolades. Voting for the All-SSC Women's Lacrosse Team was conducted among the league's head coaches.
All-SSC History: SSC Players and Coaches of the Year | All-SSC Teams
Swanson played in 17 games at midfield for Tampa in 2019, tallying 60 points from 46 goals and 14 assists with a .554 shooting percentage. The Cheyenne, Wyoming native also provided the Spartans with 137 draw controls, 39 ground balls, and 24 caused turnovers. The sophomore ranks first in conference draw controls per game (8.06) and is Top-10 in SSC points per game (3.53) and goals per game (2.71). Swanson is the first Tampa women's lacrosse athlete to earn Player of the Year honors.
Werker started 14 games in goal for Florida Southern, accumulating 650 minutes between the pipes this season. The Nesconset, New York product recorded 75 saves and allowed 93 goals for a .446 save percentage in 2019. Her 8.58 goals against average helped the Moccasins secure an 11-2 record while she was in net. Among conference goalkeepers, she ranks third in goals against average (8.58) and fifth in save percentage (.446). Werker is the second FSC women's lacrosse athlete to win Freshman of the Year1 accolades.
Gallagher repeats as Coach of the Year following Tampa's 2019 SSC tournament championship and share of the regular season title. In her sixth year leading the Spartans program, Gallagher led her team to a 14-3 overall record, the No. 4 IWLCA ranking, and six wins over Top-20 teams. Gallagher remains the first from Tampa to be honored as Coach of the Year and is the second coach to win the award twice2.
Rollins' Kallie German and Lindsay Van Beck highlight the 2019 list of repeat All-SSC winners. German and Van Beck become the second and third women's lacrosse athletes to earn First Team honors four times3. Florida Tech's Olivia Going wins her third straight First Team award, while her teammate Samantha Schiano along with Sam Keesey of Florida Southern and Tampa's Alexa Scudillo & Bridget Sutter repeat as First Team from 2018. In total, 16 of 26 upperclassmen award winners from this year repeat as an All-SSC selection.
Player of the Year: Claire Swanson, Tampa
Freshman of the Year: Patricia Werker, Florida Southern
Coach of the Year: Kelly Gallagher, Tampa
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| 2019 Women's Lacrosse All-SSC First Team | ||||
| Attack | Kallie German*^•# | Rollins | Sr. | Centreville, Maryland |
| Attack | Riley Bannatyne | Florida Southern | Jr. | Maitland, Florida |
| Attack | Kristyn Staley | Tampa | So. | Middletown, Maryland |
| Attack | Carly Vaccaro | Tampa | Jr. | Mooresville, North Carolina |
| Attack | Hannah Ashton~† | Rollins | Jr. | Berwyn, Pennsylvania |
| Attack | Leslie Ferguson~ | Saint Leo | Sr. | Marietta, Georgia |
| Midfield | Claire Swanson~† | Tampa | Jr. | Cheyenne, Wyoming |
| Midfield | Samantha Schiano*†• | Florida Tech | Sr. | Perry Hall, Maryland |
| Midfield | Dani Bursinger~† | Florida Southern | Sr. | Powell, Ohio |
| Midfield | Caroline Forester | Tampa | Sr. | Bloomfield Hills, Michigan |
| Midfield | McKenzie Jackson* | Embry-Riddle | So. | Bowie, Maryland |
| Defense | Sam Keesey* | Florida Southern | Sr. | Bel Air, Maryland |
| Defense | Lindsay Van Beck*^• | Rollins | Sr. | Atlanta, Georgia |
| Defense | Alexa Scudillo* | Tampa | Jr. | Millstone, New Jersey |
| Defense | Olivia Going*^ | Florida Tech | Jr. | West Islip, New York |
| Defense | Ashley Salvett | Saint Leo | Jr. | Clay, New York |
| Goalie | Bridget Sutter*@ | Tampa | So. | Evergreen, Colorado |
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| 2019 Women's Lacrosse All-SSC Second Team | ||||
| Attack | Aubriana Benedetto | Florida Southern | Sr. | Rochester, New York |
| Attack | Marina Jozokos~ | Florida Southern | Jr. | Wolfeboro, New Hampshire |
| Attack | Mya Watson~ | Embry-Riddle | So. | Fruit Cove, Florida |
| Attack | Rachel Crawford* | Tampa | Sr. | Arnold, Maryland |
| Attack | Mollie Kaplan | Florida Tech | Jr. | Boca Raton, Florida |
| Attack | Maggie Gladden | Tampa | Jr. | Berwyn, Pennsylvania |
| Midfield | Lily Rizk~† | Rollins | Jr. | Columbus, Ohio |
| Midfield | Brenna Smith | Florida Southern | Fr. | Columbus, Ohio |
| Midfield | Elizabeth Ninesling | Embry-Riddle | Fr. | Allentown, Pennsylvania |
| Midfield | Delaney Chrisco | Saint Leo | Jr. | Wilmington, Delaware |
| Midfield | Maliah Benedetto | Florida Southern | So. | Rochester, New York |
| Defense | Danielle Waters | Tampa | Fr. | Smithtown, New York |
| Defense | Becca Hill | Florida Southern | Jr. | Lutherville, Maryland |
| Defense | Abby Coccagna~ | Tampa | Sr. | Baltimore, Maryland |
| Defense | Brittney Embree~ | Florida Tech | Sr. | Orlando, Florida |
| Defense | Kaitlin Prince~ | Rollins | Sr. | Scarborough, Maine |
| Goalie | Patricia Werker | Florida Southern | Fr. | Nesconset, New York |
| Goalie | Erin Davis | Saint Leo | Jr. | Rehoboth Beach, Delaware |
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* = 2018 First Team ~ = 2018 Second Team @ = 2018 Freshman of the Year
^ = 2017 First Team † = 2017 Second Team • = 2016 First Team
# = 2015 Freshman of the Year
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1 Ashley Seborowski was Co-Freshman of the Year in 2015
2 Corinne Desrosiers, Florida Tech (2016 & 2017)
3 The first to earn four First Team honors was Sara Grenier of Florida Tech (2015-18)