IWLCA Players of the Week – March 21, 2023

The IWLCA has chosen 10 student-athletes for the IWLCA Player of the Week awards for the week ending March 19, 2023. This weekly award recognizes the best offensive and defensive performances by players in Division I, II, III, and the NAIA each week during the regular season.

Co-Offensive Player of the Week

Gretchen Gilmore – Pennsylvania State University

Gilmore had a major offensive performance in both of No. 25 Penn State’s wins this week, including a 13-12 victory over Towson University and a 16-14 win against No. 14 Princeton. She scored four goals and two assists against Towson en route to her first hat trick of the season. She recorded a double hat trick against the Tigers with her final two goals of the day proving to be the game-winners for the Nittany Lions. Gilmore also picked up one ground ball and caused two turnovers as well. Penn State moved to No. 20 in the latest ILWomen/IWLCA Division I Poll.

Co-Offensive Player of the Week

Izzy Scane – Northwestern University

Scane and the Wildcats defeated the No. 1 team in the country that had not lost in over 40 regular season games. Taking down the University of North Carolina, 13-9, Scane led the ‘Cats with four goals, an assist, a ground ball and caused a turnover. The victory was No. 3 Northwestern's first over UNC since 2014 and the Tar Heels' first regular season loss since 2019. It was also the Wildcats' first win over a No. 1 ranked team since 2019. With the win, Northwestern bumped up to the No. 2 ranking in the latest ILWomen/IWLCA Division I Poll. Scane currently leads the country as well as her team in goals with 46.  

Defensive Player of the Week

Bryn McCaughey – University of Denver

McCaughey totaled seven caused turnovers, four ground balls and one draw control over two games last week. She also scored the second goal of her career in No. 6 University of Denver’s win over the University of Delaware. McCaughey now averages 2.33 caused turnovers per game, which ranks 9th among all NCAA Division I players. The undefeated 9-0 Pioneers are now No. 4 in the country in the latest ILWomen/IWLCA Division I Poll.

Offensive Player of the Week ­

Minnie Bittell – Northern Michigan University

Bittell netted five goals on six shots in Northern Michigan University’s 13-11 victory over Concordia University-Saint Paul. She became Northern Michigan’s all-time leading goal-scorer, with 112 in her career. She also added two ground balls, two caused turnovers, and five draw controls. 

Defensive Player of the Week

Ashlee Wargo – Bentley University

Wargo helped lead Bentley to two overtime wins over ranked teams this past week, defeating No. 2 Florida Southern, 13-12, and No. 18 Saint Leo, 17-16. The sophomore goalie recorded a combined 24 saves for the week.

Co-Offensive Player of the Week

Gianna Bruno – Colby College

Bruno tallied a combined five goals and eight assists to go with seven ground balls and four caused turnovers last week. The senior attacker scored three goals and three assists in a victory over previously unbeaten No. 7 Wesleyan University. She registered a season-high five assists and scored twice in the win over Plymouth State University. Bruno’s six points against Wesleyan mark the most the Cardinals have allowed to a single player this season.

Co-Offensive Player of the Week

Walker McKnight – Washington and Lee University

McKnight recorded a career-best five goals off six shots and went 3-3 from the hashes to lead the No. 4 Generals to a 16-5 win over No. 2 Tufts University. The win pushed Washington and Lee to the No. 2 slot in the latest ILWomen/IWLCA Division III rankings.

Defensive Player of the Week

Caroline Kranich – Washington and Lee University

Kranich made a career-high 13 saves in the No. 4 Generals win over No. 2 Tufts. The junior goalkeeper held the Jumbos to just four goals off of 14 free positions and conceded only one goal during settled attack. She made six stops in the second quarter alone and allowed Washington and Lee to go on a 10-0 run from the second to the fourth quarter.

Offensive Player of the Week

Ella Grace Geidd – Marian University

Geidd led Marian in scoring, including a five-goal game against Madonna University, the Knights' first ever Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) game. She also had a five-groundball outing with a hat trick in a win over Wittenberg University.

Defensive Player of the Week

Talia Myers – Keiser University

Myers had another strong day in the midfield for the Seahawks, collecting a career-high 10 draw controls in the win over No. 10 Savannah College of Arts and Design. With 41 on the season, she continues to lead the team in that category and added to her groundball total of 21 on the year which ranks second on the team.