Massa wins record third-straight NEC Player of the Year award, headlines 11 All-NEC honorees

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – For the third-straight season, Bryant University senior faceoff specialist Kevin Massa (Huntington, N.Y.) has been named the Northeast Conference Player of the Year, headlining two major award winners and a record 11 all-conference selections for the Bulldogs, as announced by league officials on the eve of the 2015 NEC Tournament.

Highlighted not only by Massa, but also by repeat NEC Defensive Player of the Year Gunnar Waldt (Freeland, Md.) between the pipes, the third-seeded Bulldogs saw six named All-NEC First Team selections, the most of any program. Bryant added two more to the All-NEC Second Team, while a trio of talented freshmen took home All-Rookie Team honors. The Bulldogs' 11 players honored are the most in program history and the most for any team this season.

Massa and Waldt enjoy top billing on the all-conference slate alongside sophomore attack Tucker James (Essex Fells, N.J.), junior midfielder Collins Gantz (Denver, Colo.), sophomore defenseman Kyle Mummau (Carlsbad, Calif.) and senior defenseman Connor Dent (Havertown, Pa.). Junior attack Shane Morrell (Glen Mills, Pa.) and sophomore longstick midfielder Cody O'Donnell (Smithfield, R.I.) were recognized with second team nods, and the starting trio of attack Cam Ziegler (Carlsbad, Calif.), midfielder Tom Kennedy (Farmingdale, N.Y.) and defenseman Chas South (Lincroft, N.J.) took home all-rookie accolades.

The first four-time All-NEC First Team pick in NEC men's lacrosse history, Massa also becomes the first-ever three-time winner of the league's Player of the Year honor. A two-time All-American, including a first team selection as a junior, Massa has championed the 2015 rule changes to remain one of the top faceoff specialists in the nation. The senior captain enters the 2015 postseason having already cemented six NCAA records and is on pace to set a seventh – this one for career ground balls per game – at the conclusion of the season. Entering Thursday's tournament action, Massa ranks fifth in the nation in faceoff winning percentage, going 194-of-298 (.651) at the X, while ranking third in ground balls per game with 8.60 each time out. He leads the NEC in both categories.

After yet another stellar season between the pipes, Waldt picks up his second-straight NEC Defensive Player of the Year and All-NEC First Team selections in 2015. The only NEC netminder to be ranked inside the nation's top-15 in all three goalie categories, Waldt enters 2015 postseason play ranked 10th in save percentage (.572), 14th in saves per game (10.87) and 15th in goals against average (8.28). Those numbers become even more impressive in conference-only action, where the junior captain allowed a league-low 6.34 goals per game with a .624 save percentage. Waldt totaled 163 saves throughout the regular season and adds 31 ground balls with three caused turnovers.

After earned NEC Rookie of the Year last season, James returns to the all-conference lineup to garner his first All-NEC First Team recognition in 2015. One of just three sophomores to make the top cut, James is an offensive threat from any angle and distance, ranking fourth in the league in both points per game (2.73) and goals per game (1.87) this season, also ranking in the top-10 in assists per outing. The sophomore starter enters postseason play with a 24-game point streak dating back to April 12, 2014 and finished the regular season with three hat tricks. He totaled 41 points on 28 a team-best 28 goals and 13 assists. James also scooped up 29 ground balls.

After making the all-rookie team back in 2013, Gantz makes his first team all-conference debut this spring after leading the Bryant midfield. Gantz ranks third on the team with 25 points, finding the back of the net 15 times while dishing out 10 helpers. He has scored a goal in 11-of-15 contests in 2015, recording a point in all but two.

The second Bulldog sophomore to garner first team honors, Mummau gets his first nod on the top squad following an all-rookie team selection of his own in 2014. Despite suffering a season-ending injury in early April, Bryant's top cover option picked up 14 ground balls and forced seven caused turnovers while consistently covering the opponent's top scoring threat against top competition, including against the likes of then-No. 2 North Carolina and then-No. 7 Yale.

Already a four-year starter, captain, and anchor of the Bulldogs' 13th-ranked defense, Dent stepped in and stepped up following the injury to Mummau, taking over top cover duties against the nation's top two scorers in then-No. 11 Brown's Dylan Molloy (1 goal) and then-No. 8 Albany's Lyle Thompson (2 goals) to round out a spectacular senior season on the backline. The first all-conference honor of the senior captain's career, Dent leads the Bulldogs with 15 caused turnovers, adding 43 ground balls, second only to Massa.

Now a three-time All-NEC honoree, Morrell led the Bulldogs in points in 2015, recording 43 off 27 goals and a team-high 16 assists. The junior attack netted a trio of man-up tallies, the team's only man-down goal of the season and the game winner over Mount St. Mary's April 18. He enters tournament play with 25 ground balls and nine caused turnovers and ranks in the league's top-10 in points per game (third), assists per game (fourth) and goals per game (sixth).

The Bulldogs' top longstick midfielder, O'Donnell lands on the All-NEC Second Team after an all-rookie selection last season. A threat on both sides of the ball, O'Donnell scored four goals while dishing out a pair of assists in 2015. The versatile pole also tallied 15 ground balls and 10 caused turnovers, making the transition back to defense with the injury to Mummau.

A 13-game starter at attack as a first-year Bulldog, Ziegler earned an all-rookie nod after scoring 18 points off 14 goals and four assists this spring. Ziegler ranks fifth on the team in points and fourth in goals, with four of his tallies coming with the man-up unit. He added 20 ground balls and two caused turnovers to a strong rookie campaign.

The team's top frosh on the scoring charts, Kennedy enters Thursday's game fourth on the side with 23 points en route to his own all-rookie team selection. The midfielder ranks second on the team with 13 assists and adds 10 scores, picking up an NEC and ECAC Rookie of the Week nod on April 13.

South, a redshirt-freshman, was a top rookie in the NEC all season long, helping to anchor the Bulldogs' 13th-ranked defense. The only frosh to start all 15 contests for the Black and Gold, South recorded 35 ground balls and 12 caused turnovers while dishing out an assist, the first point of his career, against the Tar Heels March 10.

The third-seeded Bulldogs start their journey to defending their Northeast Conference crown Thursday night, when they look to avenge a 7-6 regular-season overtime loss to second-seeded Hobart at Sweeney Field at 7:30 p.m. on the Saint Joseph's University campus in Philadelphia.

Both of Thursday's NEC Tournament Semifinal matchups can be seen live and free-of-charge on NECFrontRow.com.