NEWS
Big Post-Season Honors for Davidson Field Hockey
The Wildcats have a lot to celebrate.
Naaktgeboren Wins Player of the Year, Seven 'Cats Get A-10 Honors - Almquist named A-10 Coach of the Year after leading 'Cats back to the postseason
Sib Naaktgeboren (8)
WASHINGTON — Led by an Atlantic 10 Conference Offensive Player of the Year honor for Sib Naaktgeboren, four First Team selections and a Coach of the Year Award for Zoe Almquist, the Davidson field hockey team had a program-record seven members earn A-10 postseason awards, the conference announced late Wednesday afternoon.
Head coach Zoe Almquist
The league's leading scorer, Naaktgeboren is the first Wildcat player to earn one of the A-10's major awards. The Netherlands-born senior forward also earned a spot on the First Team, after twice previously being a Second Team honoree. A Communication Studies major, she was named to the All-Academic Team as well.
Celie Constantine (11)
Naaktgeboren was joined on the First Team by senior midfielders Celie Constantine and Hannah Merritt and freshman forward Lourdes Wolf, giving the Wildcats a program-best four on the first unit. Junior back Matilda Collins earned a Second Team spot for the second straight year, while Wolf also earned an All-Rookie Team honor and was joined there by goalkeeper Avery Foster.
Hannah Merritt (15)
Naaktgeboren scored 20 goals and totaled 46 points (also a league best) during the regular season and last weekend took over the top spots in the Davidson record book in those single-season categories. She has been named A-10 Offensive Player of the Week three times this year, including this week when she scored five goals in a 2-0 weekend highlighted by a hat trick in the 5-0 Halloween night victory over Saint Louis, which clinched the tournament berth.
In Davidson history, she ranks third in career points (85), is tied for third in assists (21) and is tied for sixth with 32 goals.
Matilda Collins (30)
Almquist, in her seventh season, led the Wildcats to their first A-10 postseason berth since 2015 and the team's first 10-win and winning season since 2011. She's the second Davidson coach to be named A-10 Coach of the Year (Ginny Turner, 2015).
Constantine ranks second in the A-10 with nine assists and has also contributed two goals to total 13 points, second-most on the team. The primary inserter on attacking penalty corners, Constantine has also climbed the Davidson record list with 20 career assists.
Lourdes Wolf (20)
Merritt and Wolf have each contributed four goals and two assists as two of the six Wildcats with double-digit points.
Collins, primarily a back, ranks second on the team with five goals, and the recognition is her third straight from the A-10 (All-Rookie in 2023).
Foster has played in all 18 games in-goal and was A-10 Rookie of the Week this week after a 2-0 weekend with one goal allowed.
Goalkeeper Avery Foster (97)