Mwaturura Leads Long List Of Trinity Field Hockey Academic Award Recipients
Hartford, Conn., July 28, 2009 - Trinity College field hockey senior midfielder Christine Mwaturura (Helensvale, Zimbabwe) was named to the ESPN The Magazine College Division At-Large Academic All-American Third Team, the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District First Team, and as one of just two NCAA Division III field hockey players to receive an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. Mwaturura and her teammates Karli Del Rossi (Mantua, N.J.), Meg Ryan (Newburyport, Mass.), and Lyndsey Waddington (Granby, Conn.) were also selected to the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Fall All-Academic Team, Mwaturura was named as Trinity's Susan E. Martin Award winner as the College's top senior female scholar athlete and Waddington earned Trinity's Board of Fellows Award as the College's top junior female scholar athlete. Those four and juniors Natalie Kinder (Wilbraham, Mass.) and Carrie Wolcott (Hamilton, Mass.), and sophomores Brady Keeshan (Greenwich, Conn.) and Robyn Williams (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe) were each also named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division III National Academic Squad.
Each student-athlete selected to the NESCAC All-Academic Team must be a junior or a senior starter or key reserve for a varsity team and maintain at least a 3.35 grade-point average, and each player represented on the NFHCA National Squad must have a 3.30 g.p.a or better. Mwaturura, Ryan, Waddington, and Kinder are each three-time NFHCA National Academic Squad members, while Del Rossi and Wolcott are each making their second appearance on the NFHCA National Academic Squad. Trinity also earned an NFHCA National Academic Team Award for maintaining a g.p.a. of 3.0 or better.
The Trinity field hockey squad, coached by Anne Parmenter (8th season), posted its best record since 1998 at 13-5 overall and qualified for the NESCAC Championship Tournament for the fourth time in five years with a 6-3 conference mark. The Bantams defeated Amherst, 1-0, on the road to win the first NESCAC Championship Tournament game in the program's history, before dropping a 1-0 overtime loss at top-seeded and eventual champion Tufts in the semifinals. Trinity qualified for the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament for the first time since 1998 and hosted its first-ever NCAA Tournament game in the opening round. The Bantams trounced Neumann, 7-0, in the NCAA First Round, but lost a heartbreaking, 5-4 decision in overtime, after taking a 4-0 lead in the first half, against Rowan in the NCAA Second Round at Messiah College.
Mwaturura, who started all 17 games in which she played and performed equally well on defense and in the midfield, recorded three goals and three assists for nine points with two game-winning goals and two defensive saves in 2008. She was selected was selected to the womensfieldhockey.com Division III All-American First Team and the Longstreth/NFHCA Division III All-American Second Team in the fall. A two-time, All-NESCAC and all-regional selection and a national all-rookie selection in 2005, Mwatutura was chosen as the NESCAC Player of the Week once this season, after scoring both goals in a 2-0 win at Bowdoin that snapped the Polar Bears' 31-game winning streak and 39-game home winning streak. Mwaturura made a triumphant return to the squad in the fall after spending the 2007 fall semester studying in China. An alum of the Chisipite School, Mwaturura graduated from Trinity in May with a degree in economics and Asian Studies. She is the daughter of Beatrice and Christopher Mwaturura.
Del Rossi, who started all 18 games at forward for the Bantams, led the team in scoring for the second straight year with a team-high 17 goals (0.94 per game, 4th in NESCAC) and three assists for 37 points (2.06 per game, 4th in NESCAC). A two-time All-NESCAC and all-regional selection, Del Rossi was selected as the NESCAC Player of the Week once this season for totaling four goals in wins over Mass.-Dartmouth and Colby. She finished her outstanding career with 34 goals and 16 assists for 84 points in 62 games. An alum of the Peddie School, Del Rossi graduated from Trinity in May with a degree in psychology at Trinity. She is the daughter of Karen and John Del Rossi.
Ryan, who played in 17 games with 12 starts and scored once, is a graduate of Newburyport High School and is majoring in economics at Trinity. She is the daughter of Kathy and Mike Ryan. Waddington started all 18 games in the Bantam midfield and scored her only goal of the season in a 1-0 triumph at Amherst in the NESCAC Quarterfinals. Waddington is a graduate of Granby High School and is majoring in American studies at Trinity. She is the daughter of Kathy and Craig Waddington. Kinder, who played in three games on defense in 2008, is a graduate of Minnechaug High School and is majoring in mathematics at Trinity. She is the daughter of Jenny and Jeff Kinder. Wolcott notched six goals and nine assists (0.44 per game, 8th in NESCAC) for 21 points, while starting all 18 games at forward for the Bantams. A graduate of the Groton School and a mechanical engineering major at Trinity, she is the daughter of Lisa and Charlie Wolcott. Keeshan appeared in 16 games with 11 starts at defense and forward and notched one goal and one assist. A graduate of Greenwich Academy, she is the daughter of Jackie and John Keeshan.
Williams, who played in 16 games with 15 starts, was equally effective at forward and in the midfield. She finished second on the team in all scoring categories with 11 goals (0.69 per game, 7th in NESCAC) and eight assists (0.50 per game, 5th in NESCAC) for 30 points (1.88 per game, 5th in NESCAC) and recorded three game-winning goals. Williams, who returned to the field hockey turf this fall after concentrating on playing varsity squash and tennis for the Bantams as a freshman, graced the Longstreth/NFHCA All-American Second Team, the Longstreth/NFHCA All-Regional First Team and the All-NESCAC First Team in 2008. A graduate of the Girls' College, she is the daughter of Sheila and Trefor Williams.
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