Grantham, PA — Messiah made the 2011 season one of the best in the program's history.
This week, the team was formally recognized for it.
Senior
Kara Geiman earned Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Third Team All-American status, and was joined by junior
Rachel Coyle, junior
Rachel Dirksen and sophomore
Taylor Phillips with IWLCA First Team All-Metro Region honors, the most first team all-region selections for a single season within the program's 15-year history.
Geiman and senior
Andrea Thomas were also selected to take part in the IWLCA's annual North-South game, while fourth-year head coach
Heather Greer was chosen to coach the south team, the first such selection for a Messiah coach in program history.
“These are all incredible honors which we are very pleased to accept,” Greer said. “It sounds trite, but these awards don't happen without the entire team. Individuals don't get honored without team success, so we really view these awards as a direct result of how we performed as a team this season.”
As the honors would attest, Messiah did quite well in 2011, winning a program-record 14 consecutive games before advancing to the NCAA Tournament 'Sweet 16' — equaling a program-best finish. The Falcons won their second MAC Championship under Greer and finished ranked 12th in the final IWLCA Top 20 Coaches Poll, the highest rating in program history.
Geiman was a big reason for those results, as the Westminster, Maryland native scored a team-leading 54 goals while dishing out a team-best 41 assists, leading a potent Falcons' attack with 95 points. Geiman's 45 draw controls were tied for third-most on the team, while she also scooped up 44 ground balls, the second-highest total on the squad.
Geiman became the program's fourth player to earn IWLCA All-American honors and first under Greer, joining Megan Duke (second team middie, 2006), Erin Gallagher (third team defense, 2006) and Kayte Hall (third team attack, 2005).
What made Geiman's award so special, perhaps, was her unique route, as after earning the MAC Rookie of the Year award as a freshman, Geiman did not participate in college lacrosse as a sophomore or a junior. After being a member of the Falcons' swimming program as a sophomore and briefly transferring away from Messiah as a junior, Geiman's career came full-circle, ending as one of the best lacrosse players to ever don a navy and white uniform.
“I don't think Kara's career panned out exactly as she thought it would, but she finished with an absolutely incredible season,” Greer said. “(Being named an All-American) is the highest honor you can get in lacrosse. I'm thrilled for her. She ended very strong, and that's all you can really ask of anyone.”
Coyle, Dirksen and Phillips all joined Geiman with First Team All-Metro Region honors, the first players to acquire first team all-region accolades under Greer. Dirksen was the only repeat honoree, adding to a Second Team All-Metro Region selection last year. As a junior, Dirksen was again a do-it-all middie, scoring 43 goals while dishing out 15 assists. She also corralled 57 draw controls and picked up 31 ground balls, numbers that were second- and third-best on the team, respectively.
Coyle earned her first all-region honor as an absolute monster in the midfield, finishing with a team-leading 73 draw controls, 61 ground balls and 47 caused turnovers — the last of which was the 16th-best average in the entire nation. She also got in the act on the offensive end to score 12 goals and hand out six assists.
All Phillips did, meanwhile, was cement herself as one of the finest goalies in school history — in only her second year in the cage. Phillips' .572 save percentage was tops among all of NCAA Division III competition, while her 4.12 goals-against average was second-best in the nation. She finished with 139 saves. Phillips anchored a low-D unit that combined to post three shutouts in 2011 — a new single-season program record.
Thomas was a big reason for that, earning her first All-MAC honor as a defender, forcing 27 turnovers while picking up 26 ground balls. Thomas will join Geiman (and Greer) at the IWLCA North-South game Saturday, June 11 at the Champions' Cup, held at the United Sports Training Center in Downingtown, Pa. Geiman and Thomas are the seventh and eighth players from Messiah to participate in the annual senior all-star game.
“It's an incredible honor for Kara and Andrea to be selected to participate in this game,” Greer said. “It's a last hurrah to be able to compete against the people you've played with and against all year. It's a really, really high-level of play. It's a fun game, but it's also super competitive.”
Greer will be at the helm of the 20-member Division III South squad, a team Greer says is “loaded with talent.” Greer will have a chance to practice with her team Friday before the game.
“It's an honor to be selected to coach and I'm really looking forward to it,” Greer said. “It's going to be a lot of fun.”
The IWLCA North-South games will be a part of a busy weekend, as the organization will honor Geiman and the rest of the All-Americans Saturday night at the IWLCA All-American banquet, to be held at the Crowne Plaza Valley Forge in King of Prussia, Pa. Complete details are available at the
IWLCA website.
IWLCA All-Region Players Under Head Coach Heather Greer
2011
Kara Geiman,
Rachel Coyle,
Rachel Dirksen,
Taylor Phillips — First Team All-Metro Region
2010
Rachel Dirksen — Second Team All-Metro Region
2009
Jen Venter, Brianne Brennan — Second Team All-Metro Region
2008
Kirstyn Wheeler, Brianne Brennan — Second Team All-Metro Region
