The Yale women’s lacrosse team and its coaching staff received multiple awards from the Ivy League, according to an announcement on Apr. 28. Six players were recognized for their achievements this season, along with the entire coaching staff.
These honors reflect a successful season for the Bulldogs, who won their fourth overall and second outright Ivy League Championship in program history. The team finished Ivy League play with a 6-1 record and has tied for ninth-most wins in school history with 12 victories this year.
Senior defender Emmy Pascal was named Defender of the Year, while first-year attacker Kate Gould earned Rookie of the Year honors. The Yale coaching staff—Erica Bamford (head coach), Colleen Smith (associate head coach), Molly Palella (assistant coach and recruiting coordinator), and Brooklyn Neumen (assistant coach)—was named Ivy League Coaching Staff of the Year. Senior attacker Ashley Newman was selected Academic All-Ivy League.
Two players made first team All-Ivy: Gould and Pascal. Junior defender Katie Clare and sophomore goalkeeper Niamh Pfaff were named to the second team, while junior attacker Ashley Kiernan received honorable mention recognition. Notably, Clare set career highs in caused turnovers this season; Gould became Yale’s first Rookie of the Year since 2002; Kiernan established new personal bests in goals and points; Pascal is a Tewaaraton Award nominee; Pfaff improved her save percentage significantly over last year.
The Bulldogs started their season with a seven-game winning streak, reached as high as No. 5 in national rankings by ILWomen, and are seeded No. 1 for the upcoming Ivy League Tournament where they will face Brown in Friday’s semifinal at Reese Stadium.
All-Ivy selections are determined by votes from league coaches based on performance during conference games.
