GORHAM, Maine  – Seven members of the 2023 Little East Conference Champion University of Southern Maine Huskies' field hockey team have been recognized with post-season honors from the Little East Conference.  Winning its first Little East Conference tournament championship in 20 years, the Southern Maine coaching staff – led by 26-year veteran head coach Bonny Brown Denico '91, '98 – was named the 2023 Coaching Staff of the Year, and senior Jordan Cummings (Auburn, Maine/Edward Little) retained her title as the LEC's Defensive Player of the Year.  Freshman back Jenessa Foster (Pittsfield, Maine/Maine Central Institute) was selected as the conference's Rookie of the Year. 
 
Just the second Husky field hockey player to earn LEC Defensive Player of the Year honors, joining 2003 National Field Hockey Coaches' Association (NFHCA) All-American and Husky Hall of Fame inductee Jesse Superchi '04 on the exclusive list, she is the only repeat performer on that list  Brown-Denico is earning Coach Staff of the Year honors for the third time, previously earning the award in 2007 and 2022.  Foster becomes the fourth Southern Maine field hockey player to earn LEC Rookie of the Year honors, and the first since junior forward Sage Drinkwater (Steep Falls, Maine/Bonny Eagle) earned the honor in 2021. 
 
Cummings, Drinkwater (Steep Falls, Maine/Bonny Eagle) and senior midfielder Hannah Banks (Belfast, Maine) each were named first team All-Little East Conference, while senior midfielder Mary Keef (Westbrook, Maine) and forward Brooke Carson (Bryant Pond, Maine/Oxford Hills) were named the conference's second team. Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Julianna Kiklis (York, Maine) was named to the LEC's 12th Player Award.
 
Cummings, a senior Health Sciences major, played and started in all 23 of the Huskies' games this season, recording four defensive saves.  A central figure in the Huskies' defense, Cummings helped limit Southern Maine's opponents to a 2.22 goals against average, and a 1.46 goals against average when facing LEC opponents.  The Huskies' 2.22 GAA was second overall in the conference, and the 1.46 GAA led the Little East. Cummings finished the season with one goal and one assist.
 
Leading the Huskies with seven defensive saves, Foster was named the Little East Conference's Defensive Player of the Week three times in the 2023 and was named the conference's Rookie of the Week once.  Sliding into a starting role immediately, Foster played and started all 23 of USM's games.  Foster, a Business Management major, had one goal and one assist this season.
 
The 2021 LEC Rookie of the Year, a two-time NFHCA All-Region selection, Drinkwater is earning All-Little East Conference honors for the third time in her career.  Now a three-time first team all-conference pick, the Huskies' forward led USM with 31 points on 11 goals and nine assists, Drinkwater had three game-winning goals during the season, and her nine assists led the team.  In three seasons, Drinkwater, a Linguistics major, has 37 goals and 19 assists for 93 points. She is fourth in career assists, tied for sixth in career goals and is sixth in career points.
 
A talented ball handler, Banks is repeating as an All-LEC selection.  Earning first team honors as a midfielder in 2021, Banks dropped back a line to fill a gap in the Huskies defense in 2022, earning second team honors.  Moving back to the Huskies' midfield, Banks, now a three-time All-LEC pick, earned first team honors for the Huskies. Banks outstanding play in the midfield led to six goals and four assist for 16 points.  Scoring a pair of game-winning goals in 2023, Banks' tally in the Huskies' 1-0 win over Keene State in the LEC Championship helping her team to its first title in 20 years.
 
Carson, the Huskies' second-leading scorer, is earning post-season honors for the second time in her career after scoring 12 goals and six assists for 30 points. Earning second team honors in 2023, after picking up third team honors in 2022,  four of Carson's 12 goals went for game-winners, including the overtime game-winner in a 2-1 triumph over Vermont State Castleton in the semifinals of the LEC tournament.  A Business major, Carson has 37 goals, 14 assists and 88 points in her career. Her 37 goals are eighth in Husky career records, while her 14 assists are tied for ninth. Carson's 88 points are eighth all time.
 
Keef is earning All-Conference honors for the first time in her career. A starter in the Huskies' midfield throughout her career, Keef had a pair of goals and seven assists for 11 points in 2023.  Second on the team in assists, Keef helped orchestrated the Huskies' game-winning goals in a 5-4 thriller against Keene State in the LEC regular season, and in USM's 3-2 overtime road-win at Plymouth State to secure the LEC regular season title.  A Finance major, Keef has four goals and 17 assists in her career. Her 17 assists are sixth in USM career records.
 
Kiklis, a two-time All-LEC selection, battled back from injury to return to goal for the Huskies.  Seeing her first action in limited minutes in early October, Kiklis started the Huskies' final five games of the season, including both of USM's LEC playoff games. Kiklis made six saves in USM's 2-1 overtime win over VTSU-Castleton, and then earned a 1-0 shutout victory against Keene State in the title game. For her efforts she was named the National Field Hockey Coaches' Association Division III Defensive Player of the Week. Finishing the season with a 4-2 record, Kiklis had a 1.66 GAA and a .786 save percentage. A Business Management major, Kiklis has 26 wins in her career and a career 2.194 GAA with a 0.733 save percentage.
 
Brown-Denico, a 1991 alumna of Southern Maine, earned Coach of the Year honors from her peers after guiding the Huskies to its back-to-back  Little East Conference Regular Season Titles finishing the 2023 season undefeated at 6-0. As the number one seed, the Huskies' claimed their first conference tournament title with a 1-0 win over Keene State, claiming the program's first trophy since the 2003 season.
 

2023 Field Hockey All-Little East Conference
Offensive Player of the Year	Emily Harris	VTSU - Castleton
Defensive Player of the Year	Jordan Cummings	Southern Maine
Rookie of the Year	Jenessa Foster	Southern Maine
Goalkeeper of the Year	Kayla Antonucci	Plymouth State
Coach Staff of the Year	Bonny Brown-Denico	Southern Maine
First Team All Conference
Forward	Emily Harris	VTSU - Castleton
Forward	Taylor Healey	Plymouth State
Midfield	Hannah Banks	Southern Maine
Midfield	Alessia Salzillo	Plymouth State
Defense	Jordan Cumming	Southern Maine
Defense	JessSmithson	VTSU-Castleton
Forward	Irini Stefanakos	Keene State
Forward	Taylor Healey	Plymouth State
Defense	Jordan Cummings	Southern Maine
Forward	Sage Drinkwater	Southern Maine
Defense	Emily Saucier	Worcester State
Second Team All Conference
Defense	Bryce Makula	Eastern Connecticut
Forward	Sarah Craig	Fitchburg State
Defense	Lena Spadafore	Fitchburg State
Midfield	Mya Amaral	UMass Dartmouth
Forward	Athena Comeau	Plymouth State
Defense	Alessia Salzillo	Plymouth State
Defense	Hannah Banks	Southern Maine
Forward	Skyla Harthcock	Westfield State
Midfield	Carly Duff	Worcester State
Goalkeeper	Madison Ferrara	Worcester State
Forward	Karalyn Jones	Worcester State
12th Player
Madison Gile	VTSU – Castleton
Jakhelin Cota	Eastern Connecticut State University
Emma Cahoon	Keene State College
Kaylie Pereira	UMass Dartmouth
Jenna Freni	Plymouth State
Julianna Kiklis	University of Southern Maine
Constance Conlan	Western Connecticut State University

 
 
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