Hackett named America East Rookie of the Year; Six earn America East honors
BOSTON -- Bryant University men's lacrosse freshman Johnny Hackett was named the America East Rookie of the Year and six Bulldogs earned All-America East honors, the league announced on Wednesday afternoon.
The Winnetka, Ill., native becomes the sixth rookie of the year in program history and was one of six Bulldogs to earn a spot on an all-conference team. Hackett also earned first-team honors along with senior Kevin Groeninger. Timmy Hackett and Drew Lucas were named to the All-America East Second Team, while Jack Lonsinger joined Hackett on the all-rookie team.
Hackett is the first major award winner for the Bulldogs as members of the America East and comes on the heels of one of the best offensive seasons by a rookie in program history. He's already set Bryant freshman records for goals (39) and points (49) in a season, surpassing the marks set by future hall of fame Marc O'Rourke. Hackett is tied with Lonsinger for second in the league - and first nationally among freshmen - in goals per game (2.79), and ranks eighth in the league with 3.50 points per game. He has recorded six hat tricks on the year, including a season-high seven against UMBC. Hackett's debut season also includes two four-goal games and two six-goal games.
Groeninger enters the America East Championships with a team-leading 60 points on 33 goals and 27 assists. Playing attack for the first time in his Bryant career, Groeninger has shattered his career highs this spring, becoming just the fifth player in DI program history to record 60+ points in a single season. He also is just three assists shy of becoming the first player to post 30+ goals and 30+ assists in the same season. Groeninger has posted multiple points in all 14 games, has 11 multi-goal games and eight multi-assist games on the season. He has recorded 5+ points on six occasions, including a career-high seven against both Quinnipiac and Vermont. In addition, Groeninger was named to the America East All-Academic team. He has a 3.77 GPA as a Finance major.
Timmy Hackett finished the regular season with career-highs in goals (20), assists (22) and points (42) on his way to all-conference honors for the second-straight year. Playing out of the midfield, Hackett has multiple points in all but three games this season and has recorded a point in 20-straight games dating back to last season. Hackett recorded his first-career hat trick in the season opener and enters the America East Championships with four on the year.
Lucas also earns all-league recognition for the second-straight year. An NEC All-Rookie selection last season, Lucas jumps up to the second team in the America East. Lucas has started all 14 games and has produced 50 ground balls and 19 caused turnovers. He's also chipped in offensively, posting two goals and four assists. He has three or more ground balls in all but three games and has six games in which he has caused multiple turnovers. Lucas posted back-to-back two-point games against Manhattan and Fairfield.
Lonsinger earns a spot on the America East All-Rookie team after putting together an outstanding regular season. He enters the postseason tied for the team and national freshmen lead with Johnny Hackett with 2.79 goals per game. Lonsinger and Hackett have both broken the Bryant freshmen scoring record this season. The Verona, N.J., native opened his season with a hat trick vs Providence and seven more against Boston University. He enters the postseason with seven hat tricks and multiple goals in 11 of the 14 games he's played in.