GREENSBORO, N.C. (theACC.com) – North Carolina senior Erin Matson earned Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year honors for a record-tying fourth time, and regular-season champion Louisville swept the league’s remaining major field hockey awards.
Cardinals senior Alli Bitting was recognized as the ACC Defensive Player of the Year, while UL goalkeeper Mila de Kuijer was selected as the conference’s Freshman of the Year in a vote of the league’s head coaches. Louisville’s Justine Sowry received the nod as ACC Coach of the Year.
Matson, Bitting and de Kuijer were also voted to the All-ACC first team announced Wednesday, and Louisville led all schools with four first-team selections. The Cardinals and second place Syracuse each placed a combined five players on this year’s All-ACC first or second teams. Each of the ACC’s seven teams had at least one player chosen.
Hailing from Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, Matson becomes the second field hockey student-athlete to be voted the ACC Offensive Player of the Year four times, joining former Maryland All-American Katie O’Donnell (2007-10). Matson enters the ACC Championship as the league’s all-time leader in goals scored with 103, including 21 this season.
The national leader in goals scored and total points (50) this season despite missing three games due to an injured pinky finger, Matson was recognized as the ACC Offensive Player of the Week on four occasions this fall.
Bitting has been a defensive mainstay for a Louisville team that has allowed just 16 goals in 18 games (an ACC-leading .848 goals allowed per contest) while posting seven shutouts.
A native of Hummelstown, Pennsylvania, Bitting was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Week on Aug. 31 and has also contributed offensively with a pair of goals and three assists.
De Kuijer has been another main player in the Cardinals’ successful defensive scheme, allowing just 16 goals in 1,129 minutes played and ranking seventh-nationally with a save percentage of .805.
A native of Leiden, The Netherlands, de Kuijer has not allowed more than two goals in any game this season.
Sowry, whose team posted a 6-0 mark in conference play and will carry a 16-2 overall record into the ACC Field Hockey Championship as the No. 1 seed, was honored as the ACC Coach of the Year for the first time since the Cardinals joined the conference in 2014. Louisville finished atop the ACC regular-season standings after being projected to tie for fifth in the league’s preseason coaches’ poll.
In addition to holding the No. 4 spot in the latest NFHCA national rankings, Louisville also holds the fourth spot in the latest NCAA RPI heading into postseason. Sowry guided the program to its first-ever NCAA semifinal appearance last season.
Six ACC teams ended the regular season ranked among the top 25 teams in the NFHCA coaches’ poll, including three among the top 10 in No. 4 Louisville, No. 9 Syracuse and No. 10 North Carolina.
Louisville will receive a first-round bye as the ACC Field Hockey Championship opens Thursday at Syracuse’s J.S. Coyne Field. Quarterfinal action on Thursday finds No. 7 seed Duke (6-10, 0-6) paired against No. 2 Syracuse (12-4, 4-2) at 3:30 p.m., while No. 3 North Carolina (10-6, 4-2) faces No. 6 Wake Forest (7-9, 1-5) at 6 p.m.
ACC Network will show all tournament action live, with Mike Corey handling play-by-play and Leah Secondo on color.
2021 All-ACC Field Hockey Team
Offensive Player of the Year: Erin Matson, North Carolina, F, Sr.
Defensive Player of the Year: Alli Bitting, Louisville, D, Sr.
Freshman of the Year: Mila de Kuijer, Louisville, GK, Fr.
Coach of the Year: Justine Sowry, Louisville
First Team All-ACC
Fusine Govaert, Boston College, B, Gr.
Alli Bitting, Louisville, D, Sr.
Julie Kouijzer, Louisville, D, Jr.
Aimee Plumb, Louisville, F, So.
Mila de Kuijer, Louisville, GK, Fr.
Erin Matson, North Carolina, F, Sr.
Cassie Sumfest, North Carolina, M, Sr.
Quirine Comans, Syracuse, F, Gr.
Pleun Lammers, Syracuse, F, So.
Amber Ezechiels, Virginia, D, Sr.
Meike Lanckohr, Wake Forest, D/M, Jr.
Second Team All-ACC
Sky Caron, Boston College, B, Gr.
Sarah Johnson, Boston College, M/B, Gr.
Jonna Kennedy, Boston College, GK, Sr.
Eva Nunnink, Duke, B, Gr.
Katie Schneider, Louisville, F, Sr.
Meredith Sholder, North Carolina, M, Sr.
Carolin Hoffmann, Syracuse, M, Gr.
Eefke van den Nieuwenhof, Syracuse, B, So.
Charlotte de Vries, Syracuse, F, Jr.
Annie McDonough, Virginia, M/F, Sr.
Nat Friedman, Wake Forest, M, Jr.
ACC Field Hockey Release
https://theacc.co/ACCfhRelease
NFHCA Poll
https://nfhca.org/polls/division-i/