Four University of Delaware Players Named to All-CAA Squads; Kaleikau Earns First Team Honors
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File Photos Courtesy of Mark Campbell
RICHMOND, Va. -- First team all-league attackman Grant Kaleikau (at right) was one of four University of Delaware players selected to the All-Colonial Athletic Association Men’s Lacrosse teams announced Friday by the league office.
In addition to Kaleikau’s honors, senior midfielder John Austin (below left) and senior faceoff specialist Dan Cooney (below right) were named to the All-CAA second team while redshirt freshman longstick midfielder Brandon Worrall (bottom left) earned a spot on the CAA All-Rookie team.
The selections were made from a vote of the seven league head coaches. Massachusetts junior attackman Will Manny was named CAA Player of the Year, Drexel senior defenseman Dana Wilber was picked as Defensive Player of the Year, Drexel freshman Ryan Belka was named Rookie of the Year, and Massachusetts head coach Greg Cannella was named Coach of the Year.
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Undefeated and No. 1 ranked Massachusetts will take on No. 3 seed Drexel in the CAA championship game Saturday in Amherst, Mass. Delaware, the two-time defending CAA champion, finished the season with a record of 6-9 overall for head coach Bob Shillinglaw.
Kaleikau, a history major from Germantown, Md. (Watkins Mill HS/Bridgton Academy), earned All-CAA honors for the second straight year after being named to the All-CAA second team in 2011. A pre-season Tewaaraton Trophy National Player of the Year candidate, Kaleikau led the Blue Hens in scoring for the second straight year as he recorded 23 goals and 34 assists for 57 points.
He scored a point in each of his final 18 games at Delaware dating back to last season and finished his career ranked No. 6 all-time at UD for assists (91) and No. 14 for total points (149). A No. 27 pick by Chesapeake in the Major League Lacrosse Draft in January, Kaleikau also ranked among the national scoring leaders, ranking No. 3 in NCAA Division I in assists per game and No. 16 in points per game.
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Austin, a sociology major from Shoreham, N.Y. (Shoreham-Wading River HS), made a remarkable comeback just to get on the field this season. After suffering a season-ending ankle injury just five games into the 2011 season, Austin returned to action in the fall but was sidelined again with a torn achilles tendon. Not expected to see action until mid-season, Austin made a remarkable comeback, returning in mid-February and missing only the first two games of the season.
He went on to rank third on the team with 15 goals and scored at least once in each of the final eight games, including multiple-goal efforts in three of the last four contests. A two-time MLL draft pick, Austin scored 41 goals during his career as a five-time letterwinner.
Cooney, a history major from Middletown, Del. (Ridge, N.J. HS), earned a spot on the All-CAA second team for the second consecutive season. A four-year regular as a faceoff specialist, Cooney currently ranks 12th in NCAA Division I in groundballs per game (6.13) and 12th in faceoff winning percentage (.594). He also added two goals and two assists. During his career, he won 525 faceoffs (No. 4 all-time at Delaware) for a .558 win percentage (No. 4) and scooped up 271 groundballs (No. 5). He also was a two-time CAA All-Tournament selection during his career.
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Worrall, a finance major from Plainsboro, N.J. (West Windsor North HS), was one of just two longstick midfielders named to the CAA All-Rookie team. After sitting out as a redshirt during the 2011 season, he broke into the lineup this spring and played a key role for the Blue Hen defense.
He saw action in 15 games with one start and recorded 15 groundballs while ranking third on the team with 11 caused turnovers, including three each vs. Stony Brook and Mercer.
AGATE:
Colonial Athletic Association All-Star Teams:
1st Team: Attack - Grant Kaleikau (Delaware), Matthew Mackrides (Penn State); Will Manny (Massachusetts); Midfield - Kyle Bergman (Drexel), Anthony Biscardi (Massachusetts), Adrian Sorichetti (Hofstra); Longstick Midfield - Frank Tufano (Drexel); Faceoff Specialist - Anthony Toresco (Massachusetts); Defense - Tom Celentani (Massachusetts), Ryan McGarvey (Penn State), Dana Wilber (Drexel); Goalkeeper - Austin Kaut (Penn State).
2nd Team: Attack - Robert Church (Drexel), Jack Forster (Penn State), Art Kell (Massachusetts); Midfield - John Austin (Delaware), Thomas DeNapoli (Towson), Aaron Prosser (Drexel); Longstick Midfield - Ryan Hollenbaugh (Massachusetts); Faceoff Specialist - Dan Cooney (Delaware), John Antonides (Hofstra); Defense - John Fennessy (Towson), Mark Mullen (Hofstra), Greg Rushing (Massachusetts); Goalkeeper - Tim McCormack (Massachusetts).
All-Rookie: Tyler Begley (Hofstra), Ryan Belka (Drexel), Jack Donnelly (Penn State), Ryan Izzo (Massachusetts), Justin Mabus (Towson), Michael Malave (Hofstra), Jojo Ostrander (Towson), Ryan Reilly (Hofstra), Michael Richards (Penn State), Brandon Worrall (Delaware).
CAA Player of the Year: Will Manny (Massachusetts)
CAA Defensive Player of the Year: Dana Wilber (Drexel)
CAA Rookie of the Year: Ryan Belka (Drexel)
CAA Coach of the Year: Greg Cannella (Massachusetts)
