FH: Esposito and Taylor named to All-New England East Region Team

NEWTON, Mass. – Post-season honors continued for the Lasell University field hockey team on Tuesday as the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) announced the Longstreth/NCAA Division III All-Region Teams for the 2019 season.

Seniors Mindy Esposito (Sunderland, Mass./Frontier Regional) and Sam Taylor (Hanover, Mass./Hanover) represented the Lasers with selection to the New England East Region Second Team. They are the first two Lasers to earn All-Region honors in the same season, and the first since Denise Landry was selected in 2017.

Esposito and Taylor were two of the seven players from the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) to earn All-New England honors, joining three from Saint Joseph's College of Maine and one each from Simmons University and Johnson & Wales University.

A senior defender, Esposito capped her career that included her selection as GNAC Defensive Player of the Year and her second straight All-Conference First Team honor. She anchored a Laser defense that posted four shutouts and a 1.67 goals against average. Esposito started all 20 games and was regularly assigned to defend the left side against the opponents' top-scoring forwards.

A starter on defense in all 80 games in her career, Esposito finished with seven goals, 12 assists and 26 points while collecting six defensive saves.

A senior forward, Taylor wrapped up an outstanding season for the Lasers, earning First Team All-GNAC recognition and competing in the Victory Sports Tours/NFHCA Division III Senior Game last month in Manheim, Pennsylvania. She led the team with 12 goals, nine assists and 33 points, ranking tied for second in the GNAC in assists and tied for third in goals and points.

A four-time All-GNAC selection, including a three-time First Team pick, Taylor also made her mark on the Lasell career record book. She finished her career ranked second in program history with 59 goals, 39 assists and 157 points, and she owns the standard with 15 game-winning goals.

Esposito and Taylor helped Lasell to a 10-10 overall record this season under 10th-year head coach Cait Connolly. The Lasers finished runner-up in the GNAC regular season with a 5-3 record, and advanced to their third straight conference championship game before falling to Saint Joseph's College of Maine.

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