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Gators Claim Four AAC Awards, Seven Named All-Conference

  via the UF press release   Ronbeck, Kavanagh, Trombetta and Hicklen sweep major awards.  GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The No. 18 Florida women’s lacrosse team claimed four major American Athletic Conference postseason awards and had seven players named to the First Team, as the league announced Wednesday. The awards come just one day before the Gators take on Vanderbilt in the American Athletic Conference semifinal in Cincinnati, Ohio. Florida is coming off its ninth-straight regular season conference championship after having defeated Cincinnati on April 27. Lindsey Ronbeck earned AAC Attacker of the Year honors, Shannon Kavanagh was tabbed as AAC Midfielder of the Year, Cara Trombetta notched Defensive Player of the Year accolades, while Haley Hicklen was named Goalkeeper of the Year for the third-straight season. Senior Lindsey Ronbeck earned AAC Attacker of the Year honors after racking up 90 points on 76 goals and 14 assists through 17 games. The senior is averaging 4.47 goals per game and 5.29 points per game and sits second overall in Florida record books in both categories (goals – 230, points – 296). Ronbeck is coming off a record-breaking performance against Cincinnati, having scored nine goals – a program record for most goals in a game. She currently sits third among active Division I players in goals scored (230) and fifth in points (296) and has been named a Tewaaraton Top-25 Nominee for her efforts this season. Sophomore Shannon Kavanagh was named AAC Midfielder of the Year after having recorded 54 goals and 19 assists through 17 games this season. The sophomore is averaging 3.18 goals per game and 4.29 points per game throughout the 2019 campaign. She has notched 13 hat tricks in 17 games, including recording a career-best five goals, which she has done four times this season. Kavanagh also controls the draw circle for Florida, coming up with 81 draw controls this year, including 13 against UConn. That was not only a career-high, but also marked the second-best total in program history. Junior Cara Trombetta was tabbed as the AAC Defensive Player of the Week after leading a defense that has allowed just 7.60 goals per game in conference play. Over the course of the season, Trombetta has become Florida’s all-time leader in caused turnovers, surpassing the previous mark of 87 by Caroline Fitzgerald. Among active Division I players, Trombetta sits 13th in caused turnovers with 101, the sixth-best mark for any junior in the country. She has caused 31 turnovers, picked up 34 groundballs, won 10 draw controls and picked up the first assist of her career. Senior Haley Hicklen notched her third-consecutive Goalkeeper of the Year honor, becoming the first Florida player to achieve that accolade three times in a career. This season, Hicklen has recorded 155 saves with a .468 saves percentage. In conference play, she has only allowed 6.8 goals per game. Earlier this season, Hicklen became Florida’s all-time leader in saves, surpassing Mikey Meagher’s mark of 407. She also has her name atop the record books in the groundballs category, surpassing Caroline Fitzgerald’s previous record of 152. Among active Division I players, Hicklen sits 14th in saves (537) and fifth in groundballs (179). Florida had seven First Team All-AAC honorees in Sabrina CristoderoGrace HausHicklen, Kavanagh, Sydney PirrecaRonbeck and Trombetta. Cristodero – a one-time Second Team All-BIG EAST selection – earned a spot on the First Team for the first time in her career. Haus notched the first conference postseason honor of her career, while Pirreca notched her third First Team honor. The Gators face off against Vanderbilt on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. on the American Digital Network. Notables
  • Florida’s seven first-team honorees were the most of any school, with the next closest school having three (Cincinnati, Temple)
  • Haley Hicklen notched her third consecutive Goalkeeper of the Year awards and sits in the company of Mikey Meagher (2013, ALC) as Florida’s only two goalies to earn the accolade
  • Shannon Kavanagh earned her first Midfielder of the Year award after having won BIG EAST Freshman of the Year a season ago
  • Cara Trombetta took home her first Defensive Player of the Year award on Wednesday
  • Lindsey Ronbeck was named Attacker of the Year for the first time in her career
  Attacker of the Year: Lindsey Ronbeck, Florida* Midfielder of the Year: Shannon Kavanagh, Florida Defender of the Year: Cara Trombetta, Florida* Goalkeeper of the Year: Haley Hicklen, Florida Freshman of the Year: Kylie Nause, Cincinnati Coaching Staff of the Year: Cincinnati First Team All-Conference A: Monica Borzillo, Cincinnati* A: Kylie Nause, Cincinnati A: Grace Haus, Florida A: Lindsey Ronbeck, Florida* A: Maddie Gebert, Temple* A: Gabby Fornia, Vanderbilt M: Sam Mlkvy, Cincinnati M: Sydney Watson, UConn* M: Shannon Kavanagh, Florida* M: Sydney Pirreca, Florida* M: Bridget Whitaker, Temple M: Julie Blaze, Vanderbilt* D: Morgan Dukes, Cincinnati D: Cara Trombetta, Florida* D: Sabrina Cristodero, Florida D: Kara Nakrasius, Temple GK: Haley Hicklen, Florida Second Team All-Conference A: Olivia Miles, UConn A: Lia Laprise, UConn A: Ally Stanton, ECU A: Olivia Thompson, Temple A: Sophie Furlong, Vanderbilt A: Emily Mathewson, Vanderbilt M: Amanda Donovan, Cincinnati M: Amber Lambeth, Temple M: Jen Rodzewich, Temple M: Melanie Becker, Vanderbilt D: Adrianna Fess, Cincinnati D: Courtney Taylor, Temple D: Melissa Hawkins, Vanderbilt D: Halle Regan, Vanderbilt GK: Giuliana Durso, Cincinnati GK: Maryn Lowell, Temple *denotes unanimous selection  

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