College Field Hockey
Rider's Barretta Honored by the NEC
LAWRENCEVILLE?Rider freshman Amanda Barretta (Roseland/West Essex) was honored by the Northeast Conference as the Rookie of the Week for all games played October 1-7, it was announced by the conference office Monday afternoon. “It is a well deserved honor,” said head coach Lori Hussong. “She had a strong week of practice and played very well against Siena.”
Barretta, a 5-3 forward, scored a goal, her second at the collegiate level, in Rider's 3-1 win over Siena on Sunday as the Broncs remained undefeated (3-0) in conference play. The goal gave Rider a 1-0 lead, five minutes into the game.
“We had a strong week of practice coming of the double-overtime loss to La Salle,” said Barretta, a General Liberal Arts and Education major at Rider. “We picked up our intensity and as a team, we worked really hard to get the win against Siena. It was a team effort.”
“Amanda is constantly improving,” Lori Hussong added. “She is making the adjustments to the speed of the game at the collegiate level and is becoming more and more a factor for us. She is a very tenacious player. She digs deep and makes things happen. As her stick skills become stronger, we look for her to be another Tricia Crotty type of player.”
Crotty, a junior from Lewistown, Pa., currently leads the Broncs in scoring and was the conference Rookie of the Year in 2005.
“It's great to receive an award that Tricia [Crotty] and senior Steph [Walker] (Lyman, Maine/Massabesic) have received in the past,” said Barretta. “To be on the same field as some of the top players in the history of the program has helped me adjust to the collegiate game. To hear the stories of the goals they scored and how many championships they have won has really helped me become a stronger player. The level of play and the intensity of each and every game have been the biggest adjustments from high school. Every game is against a top contending team and every game matters and the intensity and skill level is much higher. My teammates have all been great at helping me become a better player and pick up my game.”
This marks the 21st time under head coach Lori Hussong that the Broncs have been honored with a conference Rookie of the Week award, including the third time this season.
“Dan [Hussong] (assistant coach) did an awesome job recruiting this year,” Lori Hussong added. “Everyone has been able to contribute. It took a little time for the team to gel because we were so young but now that the freshmen are in the mix, they are contributing to the success of the program and we are getting better and better each game.”
Freshman forward Michaela Franey (York, Maine/York) was honored by the conference in back to back weeks at the start of the season.
Rider travels to Lehigh October 10 for a non-conference game as head coach Lori Hussong seeks career win number 100 in her eighth season at Rider.
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