5 Liberty Players Selected to 2023 NFHCA All-Region Teams
11/29/2023 11:46:00 AM | Field Hockey
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty field hockey program featured five players on the 2023 National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division I All-South Region teams.
The Lady Flames had three players named to the first team in Jodie Conolly, Azul Iritxity Irigoyen and Bethany Dykema. Meanwhile, Reagan Underwood and Martu Cian both earned their first career all-region nods, as both players were selected to the NFHCA All-South Region second team. Liberty's five all-region selections are the most on any team in the South Region, more than national champion North Carolina (4), Final Four participants Duke (4) and Virginia (4) and BIG EAST champion Old Dominion (4).
Liberty's five honorees are tied for the second most in program history, matching the 2022 and spring 2021 teams. The fall 2021 squad holds the program record with six all-region recipients. A total of 29 Lady Flames have been tabbed to an all-region team in head coach Nikki Parsley's seven years at the helm (2017-23).
Liberty finished with a 17-3 record in 2023, including a perfect 7-0 BIG EAST mark. The Lady Flames won the outright BIG EAST regular season title for the second time in the last three seasons and earned the program's first at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Field Hockey Championship. Liberty finished No. 7 in the final Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll and No. 9 in the final NCAA Field Hockey RPI listing.
The Lady Flames competed in the NCAA Tournament for a third straight year. No. 7 Liberty fell 2-1 in overtime to No. 11 Syracuse in the Sweet 16.
Division I teams are separated into five regions: Mid-Atlantic, Mideast, Northeast, South and West. Each region honors up to 16 student-athletes on a first team and up to 16 student-athletes on a second team. The NFHCA Division I All-Region team announcement is first in a list of postseason accolades to come out over the next several weeks. Next to be announced are the NFHCA Regional Players of the Year on Dec. 7, followed by NFHCA All-American teams on Dec. 12 and the NFHCA National Player of the Year on Dec. 15.
Jodie Conolly (NFHCA All-South Region first team)
Conolly is now a four-time all-region selection in her time at Liberty and has five total all-region awards in her career. This is the fifth-year senior's first all-region first team nod after being named to the second team during the 2022, fall 2021 and spring 2021 seasons as well as the 2019 season while a member of the Boston University field hockey squad.
The 2023 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, Conolly also earned All-BIG EAST first team honors and was tabbed to the BIG EAST All-Tournament team. The defender from Pietermartizburg, South Africa was selected as the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week four times this fall.
Conolly appeared in and started all 20 games for Liberty and led the squad with career bests in goals (11) and points (34) while ranking second in assists (12, tied for career best). She finished the season ranked 10th in the nation and second in the BIG EAST in assists per game (0.60). Conolly was also No. 18 in the country and third in the conference in points per game (1.70). She also led the team in defensive saves with two. Conolly notched her first career three-goal game in a Liberty uniform, doing so in the Lady Flames win over Connecticut on Oct. 20. Conolly and the Liberty defense finished second in the nation in goals-against-average (0.91) in 2023. Conolly wrapped up her time at Liberty with 28 goals, 34 assists and 90 points in four seasons.
Azul Iritxity Irigoyen (NFHCA All-South Region first team)
A senior goalkeeper, Iritxity Irigoyen earns her third straight first team all-region award. The Buenos Aires, Argentina native was tabbed the 2023 BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year. She was also named an All-BIG EAST first team honoree for the third time and is a four-time All-BIG EAST recipient overall. Iritxity Irigoyen earned four BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week awards this fall, along with two NFHCA Division I Defensive Player of the Week honors and one BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll distinction. She was also named to the NFHCA Senior Team.
Iritxity Irigoyen started all 20 games in goal for the Lady Flames, compiling a 17-3 mark, 0.93 goals-against-average (No. 2 in nation), 63 saves, a .768 save percentage (No. 12 in nation) and seven shutouts. In seven BIG EAST regular season games, Iritxity Irigoyen held a 7-0 record with a 0.44 GAA, .870 save percentage, 20 saves and four shutouts.
The netminder had a pair of seven-save games on the year, both on the road. Iritxity Irigoyen made seven saves in Liberty's 2-1 double overtime win at No. 1 North Carolina (Oct. 8) and also made seven stops at No. 13 Duke (made Final Four) on Sept. 10.
Iritxity Irigoyen was a 12-time BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week for her career, the most such awards in league history. Iritxity Irigoyen is also the winningest goalkeeper in program history with 60 victories. She is also the program's career shutouts leader with 24.
Bethany Dykema (NFHCA All-South Region first team)
Dykema has now been selected to the all-region team four times in her career. This is the third straight season she has been tabbed to the first time. The fifth-year senior defender was an All-BIG EAST first team and BIG EAST All-Tournament team selection. The Newport News, VA. native earned BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week honors on Sept. 5 as well as BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll status two times this well.
In 20 games this year, all starts, Dykema totaled six goals (tied for third on team), 13 assists (most on team) and 25 points (second on team). Dykema's 0.65 assists per game ranked sixth nationally, and she wrapped up her career as the program's all-time career assists leader with 47. Dykema totaled three goals, five assists and 11 points in seven BIG EAST regular season matches. The defender scored the first two goals of the game in Liberty's 3-1 triumph at Virginia (Final Four qualifier) on Aug. 29 and had six assists in the final three regular season games. She tallied a career-high three assists in the 3-0 home win over UConn, Oct. 20.
Dykema and the Liberty defensive unit set a new program single-season record for lowest goals-against-average, 0.91. Dykema, also a NFHCA Senior Team selection, will continue her playing career with the U.S. Women's National Team. Dykema is the first player in program history to be selected to Team USA. Dykema and the U.S. Women's National Team will play a two-match series against New Zealand in Charlotte, N.C on Dec. 9 and 10. The two-match series will serve as preparation for the FIH Olympic Qualifier in January.
Reagan Underwood (NFHCA All-South Region second team)
Underwood earns her first career all-region honor. The senior midfielder from Sinking Spring, Pa. was tabbed to the All-BIG EAST first team. She garnered BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll distinction on Aug. 29.
Underwood finished the season with a single-season career-high five goals, along with six assists and 16 points (career high) in 20 games (all starts). She notched three goals, one assist and seven points in seven BIG EAST regular season contests. Underwood's goals in league play came against Old Dominion, Quinnipiac and Villanova. The senior scored the game-winning goal on a penalty stroke in overtime of Liberty's 2-1 victory over Indiana, Aug. 27 in Lynchburg.
Martu Cian (NFHCA All-South Region second team)
Cian, a junior midfielder, receives her first career all-region accolade. An All-BIG EAST second team honoree, Cian started all 20 games this season and finished the year with six goals (tied for third on team), two assists and 14 points (fifth on team). The Buenos Aires, Argentina native scored the game-winning goal in double overtime of Liberty's 2-1 triumph at No. 1-ranked and eventual national champion North Carolina (Oct. 8).
Cian also scored a goal against No. 14 Harvard, an NCAA Tournament team, and found the back of the cage against Providence, Temple, Villanova and Longwood. The midfielder garnered inclusion on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll in back-to-back weeks (Oct. 3, Oct. 10) in early October.
The Lady Flames had three players named to the first team in Jodie Conolly, Azul Iritxity Irigoyen and Bethany Dykema. Meanwhile, Reagan Underwood and Martu Cian both earned their first career all-region nods, as both players were selected to the NFHCA All-South Region second team. Liberty's five all-region selections are the most on any team in the South Region, more than national champion North Carolina (4), Final Four participants Duke (4) and Virginia (4) and BIG EAST champion Old Dominion (4).
Liberty's five honorees are tied for the second most in program history, matching the 2022 and spring 2021 teams. The fall 2021 squad holds the program record with six all-region recipients. A total of 29 Lady Flames have been tabbed to an all-region team in head coach Nikki Parsley's seven years at the helm (2017-23).
Liberty finished with a 17-3 record in 2023, including a perfect 7-0 BIG EAST mark. The Lady Flames won the outright BIG EAST regular season title for the second time in the last three seasons and earned the program's first at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Field Hockey Championship. Liberty finished No. 7 in the final Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll and No. 9 in the final NCAA Field Hockey RPI listing.
The Lady Flames competed in the NCAA Tournament for a third straight year. No. 7 Liberty fell 2-1 in overtime to No. 11 Syracuse in the Sweet 16.
Division I teams are separated into five regions: Mid-Atlantic, Mideast, Northeast, South and West. Each region honors up to 16 student-athletes on a first team and up to 16 student-athletes on a second team. The NFHCA Division I All-Region team announcement is first in a list of postseason accolades to come out over the next several weeks. Next to be announced are the NFHCA Regional Players of the Year on Dec. 7, followed by NFHCA All-American teams on Dec. 12 and the NFHCA National Player of the Year on Dec. 15.
Jodie Conolly (NFHCA All-South Region first team)
Conolly is now a four-time all-region selection in her time at Liberty and has five total all-region awards in her career. This is the fifth-year senior's first all-region first team nod after being named to the second team during the 2022, fall 2021 and spring 2021 seasons as well as the 2019 season while a member of the Boston University field hockey squad.
The 2023 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, Conolly also earned All-BIG EAST first team honors and was tabbed to the BIG EAST All-Tournament team. The defender from Pietermartizburg, South Africa was selected as the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week four times this fall.
Conolly appeared in and started all 20 games for Liberty and led the squad with career bests in goals (11) and points (34) while ranking second in assists (12, tied for career best). She finished the season ranked 10th in the nation and second in the BIG EAST in assists per game (0.60). Conolly was also No. 18 in the country and third in the conference in points per game (1.70). She also led the team in defensive saves with two. Conolly notched her first career three-goal game in a Liberty uniform, doing so in the Lady Flames win over Connecticut on Oct. 20. Conolly and the Liberty defense finished second in the nation in goals-against-average (0.91) in 2023. Conolly wrapped up her time at Liberty with 28 goals, 34 assists and 90 points in four seasons.
Azul Iritxity Irigoyen (NFHCA All-South Region first team)
A senior goalkeeper, Iritxity Irigoyen earns her third straight first team all-region award. The Buenos Aires, Argentina native was tabbed the 2023 BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year. She was also named an All-BIG EAST first team honoree for the third time and is a four-time All-BIG EAST recipient overall. Iritxity Irigoyen earned four BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week awards this fall, along with two NFHCA Division I Defensive Player of the Week honors and one BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll distinction. She was also named to the NFHCA Senior Team.
Iritxity Irigoyen started all 20 games in goal for the Lady Flames, compiling a 17-3 mark, 0.93 goals-against-average (No. 2 in nation), 63 saves, a .768 save percentage (No. 12 in nation) and seven shutouts. In seven BIG EAST regular season games, Iritxity Irigoyen held a 7-0 record with a 0.44 GAA, .870 save percentage, 20 saves and four shutouts.
The netminder had a pair of seven-save games on the year, both on the road. Iritxity Irigoyen made seven saves in Liberty's 2-1 double overtime win at No. 1 North Carolina (Oct. 8) and also made seven stops at No. 13 Duke (made Final Four) on Sept. 10.
Iritxity Irigoyen was a 12-time BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week for her career, the most such awards in league history. Iritxity Irigoyen is also the winningest goalkeeper in program history with 60 victories. She is also the program's career shutouts leader with 24.
Bethany Dykema (NFHCA All-South Region first team)
Dykema has now been selected to the all-region team four times in her career. This is the third straight season she has been tabbed to the first time. The fifth-year senior defender was an All-BIG EAST first team and BIG EAST All-Tournament team selection. The Newport News, VA. native earned BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week honors on Sept. 5 as well as BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll status two times this well.
In 20 games this year, all starts, Dykema totaled six goals (tied for third on team), 13 assists (most on team) and 25 points (second on team). Dykema's 0.65 assists per game ranked sixth nationally, and she wrapped up her career as the program's all-time career assists leader with 47. Dykema totaled three goals, five assists and 11 points in seven BIG EAST regular season matches. The defender scored the first two goals of the game in Liberty's 3-1 triumph at Virginia (Final Four qualifier) on Aug. 29 and had six assists in the final three regular season games. She tallied a career-high three assists in the 3-0 home win over UConn, Oct. 20.
Dykema and the Liberty defensive unit set a new program single-season record for lowest goals-against-average, 0.91. Dykema, also a NFHCA Senior Team selection, will continue her playing career with the U.S. Women's National Team. Dykema is the first player in program history to be selected to Team USA. Dykema and the U.S. Women's National Team will play a two-match series against New Zealand in Charlotte, N.C on Dec. 9 and 10. The two-match series will serve as preparation for the FIH Olympic Qualifier in January.
Reagan Underwood (NFHCA All-South Region second team)
Underwood earns her first career all-region honor. The senior midfielder from Sinking Spring, Pa. was tabbed to the All-BIG EAST first team. She garnered BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll distinction on Aug. 29.
Underwood finished the season with a single-season career-high five goals, along with six assists and 16 points (career high) in 20 games (all starts). She notched three goals, one assist and seven points in seven BIG EAST regular season contests. Underwood's goals in league play came against Old Dominion, Quinnipiac and Villanova. The senior scored the game-winning goal on a penalty stroke in overtime of Liberty's 2-1 victory over Indiana, Aug. 27 in Lynchburg.
Martu Cian (NFHCA All-South Region second team)
Cian, a junior midfielder, receives her first career all-region accolade. An All-BIG EAST second team honoree, Cian started all 20 games this season and finished the year with six goals (tied for third on team), two assists and 14 points (fifth on team). The Buenos Aires, Argentina native scored the game-winning goal in double overtime of Liberty's 2-1 triumph at No. 1-ranked and eventual national champion North Carolina (Oct. 8).
Cian also scored a goal against No. 14 Harvard, an NCAA Tournament team, and found the back of the cage against Providence, Temple, Villanova and Longwood. The midfielder garnered inclusion on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll in back-to-back weeks (Oct. 3, Oct. 10) in early October.
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— Liberty Field Hockey (@LibertyFH) November 29, 2023
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