Descalzo and Martin take home NEC weekly awards

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Bryant University women's lacrosse senior attack Lauren Descalzo (Hauppauge, N.Y.) and junior defender Molly Martin (Island Park, N.Y.) have been named Northeast Conference Player of the Week and Defensive Player of the Week, respectively, the league announced Monday.

Descalzo was a force on the offensive end, totaling 10 points (8 goals, 2 assists) during a two-game sample. The senior attacker was a goal-scoring machine during Bryant's second-half comeback against Winthrop on March 12. She beat the goalkeeper four times as the Bulldogs battled back from a 10-4 deficit to force overtime. Descalzo tallied her fifth goal of the game in overtime, lifting Bryant to a 13-12 triumph. The Empire State product, who leads the team with 17 goals this season, started the week by rattling the cage three times in an 11-10 setback to Ivy League member Brown.

Martin piled up the defensive stats as Bryant played a pair of one-goal games last week, averaging 3.5 ground balls and 1.5 caused turnovers per contest. The junior defender opened her week registering three ground balls, two draw controls and a caused turnover in an 11-10 defeat to intrastate rival Brown. Martin was key to Bryant's second-half comeback against Winthrop. The Long Island product caused two huge second-half turnovers as the Bulldogs rallied from a 10-4 deficit. She also picked up four ground balls in the 13-12 overtime victory. Martin leads the Bulldogs with 13 ground balls and eight caused turnovers so far this season.