DeMeo, Martin, Batcheller take home major NEC awards, seven named All-NEC

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Headlined by three major award winners, the Bryant University women's lacrosse team placed seven on the All-Northeast Conference teams that were announced on the eve of the 2017 NEC Tournament.

Sophomore attack Jess DeMeo (Mount Sinai, N.Y.) was named the NEC Offensive Player of the Year, senior defender Molly Martin (Island Park, N.Y.) earned her second-straight NEC Defensive Player of the Year honor and head coach Jill Batcheller was named NEC Coach of the Year for the fourth-consecutive year.

DeMeo and Martin also earned first team all-league honors and were joined by freshman attack Caitlin Breglia (Long Beach, N.Y.) and junior goalie Samantha Santeramo (Wantagh, N.Y.). Sophomore middie Lauren Britton (Monmouth Beach, N.J.) and senior defender Carly Cronin (Feeding Hills, Mass.) were tabbed second team selections, while Breglia also earend NEC All-Rookie honors.

Bryant has now been home to each of the last four NEC Offensive Players of the Year. DeMeo, the 2016 NEC Rookie of the Year, joins Lisa Vendel ('14), Lauren Descalzo ('15) and Nicole Britton ('16) as the other Bulldogs to win the league's top offensive honor. DeMeo finished the year with 46 goals and eight assists (54 points), ranking third in the league in goals per game (3.07) and third in points per game (3.60). She has posted nine hat tricks on the year, including four-straight entering the postseason, and tied the Division I program record with seven goals against UMass Lowell.

Martin becomes the first player in NEC history to earn back-to-back defensive player of the year honors. The leader of the NEC's top defense, Martin has posted 39 ground balls and 26 caused turnovers on the season. She ranks 40th nationally in caused turnovers per game and 59th nationally in ground balls per game. Martin set the DI program record for caused turnovers with 103 in her career and will break the all-time program record for games played in the semifinal on Friday. She has now earned First Team All-NEC honors each of the last three seasons. 

The architect of one of the most dominant stretches for a team in NEC women's lacrosse history, Batcheller earns her unprecedented fourth-straight coach of the year honor. She has led the Bulldogs to an 11-4 record and their second perfect regular season (7-0). Bryant is 53-18 overall and 26-2 in NEC play over the last four years.

Breglia earns first-team honors and all-rookie honors after posting 50 points (34g, 16a) in her first season with the Black and Gold. She is ranked eighth in the league in goals per game, sixth in assists per game and eighth in points per game. Breglia has recorded seven hat tricks this season, including back-to-back five-goal games against Sacred Heart and Central Connecticut.

Santeramo has been the backbone of Bryant's defensive unit this year, putting together one of the best seasons for a goalie in program history. She has posted an 8.10 goals against average and a .521 save percentage on the year to earn first team honors for the second-straight year. Santeramo ranks seventh nationally in goals against average and sixth in save percentage. She has held all but four opponents to less than 10 goals this year and has allowed less than eight goals per game in league play. Santeramo was sensational against a strong Delaware team, posting the sixth-most saves (19) of any player in Division I this season.

Britton earns Second Team All-NEC honors after playing a vital role in Bryant's midfield. She has posted 15 goals and three assists and has added 21 draw controls, 16 ground balls and 10 caused turnovers. Britton recorded her only hat trick of the season at Robert Morris and has posted a season-high four draw controls twice.

Cronin, a first teamer each of the last two years, picks up her third-straight all-league honor. Another big part of Bryant's league-leading defense, Cronin has 36 ground balls, 34 draw controls and nine caused turnovers. She has started every game over the last three years and has posted four ground balls in each of her last three games. Cronin picked up a career-high seven ground balls against Navy.

The top-seeded Bulldogs open the NEC Tournament on Friday afternoon against fourth-seeded Sacred Heart. Opening draw is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.