NORTHBOROUGH, Mass. – The fifth-ranked Salisbury University women's lacrosse team saw three of its own receive All-American honors from the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA).
Natalie Held and
Leah Vilov garnered First-Team All-American praise, while
Mary Hanzsche earned a Second-Team honor,
as announced by the association on Friday afternoon.
Held, a junior from Ellicott City, Md., collects her second All-American honor of 2024 after being tabbed a first teamer by USA Lacrosse Magazine
on May 10. The stellar defender repeated as the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) Defensive Player of the Year in 2024, setting new career highs in draw controls (77), ground balls (50), and caused turnovers (37), while leading the team in all three categories.
Held earns the repeat First-Team nod after headlining a Sea Gull unit that ranks 20th nationally in scoring defense, surrendering a stingy 7.95 goals per contest. She slots second in the C2C disrupting 1.85 possessions per game as well.
Vilov, a senior from Salisbury's Parkside High School, has headlined the Sea Gull offense with a banner year in 2024, firing a career-high 49 goals while adding seven assists. She has also scooped 25 ground balls, forced 18 turnovers, and logged 13 draw controls.
Vilov shattered her career numbers this season, surpassing her prior best goal total on April 7, just 12 games into the campaign. She has logged three or more points in 14 of her 20 starts in 2024. The IWLCA accolade is the first of her career.
Hanzsche, a senior from Berwyn, Pa., has served as one of SU's best feeders, ranking second on the squad in both assists (37) and points (66) while ranking third in the C2C in both figures. She has dished out three or more helpers in eight different contests.
Hanzsche has also blown her prior career bests out of the water this season. Her 29-goal total is 20 finishes more than her prior most in a single campaign, while she has logged five more assists than any year of her SU career in 2024. The IWLCA All-American nod is the first of her career.
The Sea Gulls begin their Final Four fight on Friday, May 24 with a regular-season rematch against the ninth-ranked William Smith Herons. Opening draw is set for 3 p.m. from Donald J. Kerr Stadium in Salem, Va. on the campus of Roanoke College.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football and men's and women's swimming, and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 23 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 199 conference championships, and 45 Academic All-Americans.
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.
