Big South Announces Women's Lacrosse Players of the Week - April 23
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (www.BigSouthSports.com) – Wofford attacker Bria Folley (Walpole, Mass.) has been named the Big South Women’s Lacrosse Offensive Player of the Week, while Radford midfielder River Rupert (Falls Church, Va.) is the Defensive Player of the Week for matches played April 15-21, it was announced today. In addition, Longwood goalkeeper Cybella Smith (Dallas, Ga.) has been named the Freshman of the Week.
Foley tallied seven goals and seven assists in two games for the Terriers. She added 13 draw controls, two ground balls and one caused turnover. The junior opened the week with five points on three goals and two assists against High Point while also finishing with nine draw controls and two ground balls. She then put up a nine-point performance on Saturday in a win at Gardner-Webb with four goals and five assists to go along with four draw controls, one ground ball and one caused turnover. She put nine of her 12 shots on goal overall (=75.0 percent) with two of her goals coming via free-position opportunities.
Rupert totaled seven caused turnovers and five ground balls while helping hold opponents to a combined 12 goals in two Radford wins. Opening the week against Gardner-Webb, she set a career-high with four caused turnovers to go with three ground balls and one assist as the Highlanders held the Runnin’ Bulldogs to just six goals. The sophomore then added another three caused turnovers with two ground balls while holding the opponent to just six goals for a second consecutive game. Additionally, Rupert was a major contributor to Radford’s 91-percent success rate across two contests.
Smith posted a career-high 15 saves for Longwood in a one-goal loss to Furman on Wednesday. She faced 35 shots overall and finished with a save percentage of .469 in a full 60:00 minutes of action, as she made a variety of big saves in a back-and-forth match between two of the top teams in the Big South standings. Eight of her saves were made in the first half, while the other seven came over the final two quarters. It marked the first time in Smith’s career having played the full game in cage.
Also nominated for Offensive Player of the Week: Sophie Shaw (Furman), Emma Duchscherer (Gardner-Webb), Jordan Miles (High Point), Riley McDonald (Longwood), Gabby DiVirgilio (Mercer) and Mady Cheney (Radford).
Also nominated for Defensive Player of the Week: Grace Gibson (Furman), Aislinn Washburn (Gardner-Webb), Aryss Lindsey (High Point), Miranda Helfenbein (Longwood), Kayla Soltys (Mercer) and Lily Barger (Wofford).
Also nominated for Freshman of the Week: Rachel Sbei (Furman), Jamie Weber (Gardner-Webb), Ava Welsh (High Point), Ansley Walters (Mercer), and Brooke Meltcher (Wofford).