PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Sophomore Natalie Merrick (East Longmeadow, Mass.) took home the top honor, and four other Plymouth State University field hockey student-athletes were recognized as the Little East Conference (LEC) announced its major award winners and all-conference selections on Tuesday.
 
Merrick was voted the LEC Goalkeeper of the Year and earned All-LEC First Team honors. Graduate students Ellie Monahan (Watertown, Mass.) and Jasmine Peterson (Alexandria, N.H.) were also First Team selections, while senior Abby Bsullak (Poland, Maine) earned All-LEC Second Team honors. Sophomore Claire Toleman (Cambridge, N.Y.) rounded out the awards as Plymouth State's recipient of the Twelfth Player Award.
 
Under fourth-year head coach Molly Bolduc, Plymouth State finished the season 7-12. The Panthers went 5-2 in conference play – a four-win improvement from last fall – to capture the No. 2 seed for the LEC Tournament after being picked sixth in the Preseason Coaches' Poll. Plymouth State hosted a semifinal match for the first time since 2011, falling to No. 3 seed Keene State, 3-1.
 
 
Natalie Merrick:

• A 5-4 goalkeeper, Merrick missed the first nine games of the season but quickly established herself as one of the league's top goalkeepers upon returning to the field.
• Despite an abbreviated season, she tied for the lowest goals-against average in the LEC (1.66) and led the conference in save percentage (.823). She also ranked third in saves per game (6.58).
• Merrick recorded double-digit saves five times, including four of the final five games of the season.
• She made 13 saves in her season debut, a 2-1 win over Keene State on Oct. 2, and turned aside a season-high 15 shots in a double-overtime setback to VTSU Castleton on Oct. 20.
• This is her first postseason honor.

 
 
Ellie Monahan:

• A 5-6 forward, Monahan led the Panthers with 11 goals and ranked second on the team in assists (7) and points (29).
• She ranked among the LEC's top 10 in nearly every major offensive category, including goals (tied fifth), goals per game (seventh), assists (seventh), assists per game (eighth), shots (ninth), shots per game (10th), points (tied fifth) and points per game (seventh).
• Monahan also ranked among the conference leaders in shots on goal, tying for third with 53 and ranking second in shots on goal per game (2.79).
• She recorded at least one point in 11 of 19 games, scored three game-winning goals and logged more than 1,100 minutes – the most of any Panther.
• Monahan earned All-LEC Second Team honors last fall.

 
 
Jasmine Peterson:

• A 5-8 midfielder, Peterson started all 19 games and logged more than 1,000 minutes on the season.
• She ranked among the LEC's top 25 in shots (36), shots per game (1.89), shots on goal (21) and shots on goal per game (1.11).
• Peterson finished the season with two goals and two assists, scoring both of her goals during the final week of the regular season.
• She found the back of the cage at Eastern Connecticut on Oct. 24 before adding another goal against WestConn on Oct. 31 in the contest that secured the No. 2 seed for the Panthers.
• This is her first postseason honor.

 
 
Abby Bsullak:

• A 5-6 midfielder, Bsullak set career highs in goals (6), assists (5) and points (17) while starting 18 games.
• She ranked among the LEC's top 20 in all major offensive categories, including shots (tied 12th), shots per game (tied 13th), shots on goal (tied 14th), shots on goal per game (13th), goals (tied 17th), goals per game (16th), assists (tied 11th), assists per game (tied 11th), points (tied 17th) and points per game (16th).
• She had a pair of multi-goal games, including two goals and an assist for five points against Dean on Sep. 16.
• Bsullak earned the Twelfth Player Award last fall.

 
 
Claire Toleman:

• A 5-5 forward, Toleman started all 19 games and finished tied for eighth in the LEC with two defensive saves, ranking tied for 13th in defensive saves per game (.11).
• She contributed three goals on the season, including goals in each of the final two games.
• Toleman scored Plymouth State's lone goal in the LEC Tournament semifinal against Keene State.
• This is her first postseason honor.