ERIE, Pa. – Senior Kristi Buckenheimer (Beaver, PA/Beaver) was named the 2023 Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Co-Defensive Player of the Year, while Rachel Sickeri (DuBois, PA/DuBois) was voted Newcomer of the Year and Patrick O'Driscoll garnered Coach of the Year honors, headlining the All-AMCC team announced on Tuesday.
O'Driscoll is earning Coach of the Year for the eighth time in his 18 years with the program. He led the Lions to their 16th overall AMCC Championship. Buckenheimer as also selected to the first team, along with Trinity Prestash (Phillipsburg, PA/West Branch), Mia Zec (Cranberry Township, PA/Seneca Valley), Audra Kuzma (Center, PA/Central Valley), Nicole Croushore (Smithton, PA/Yough) and Riley Morningstar (North Huntingdon, PA/Norwin). On the second team with Sickeri was Lizzie Hoff (Moon, PA/Moon). Rounding out the All-Conference honors was Marlene Andrade (Walnut Creek, CA/Clayton Valley Charter) on the third team.
Buckenheimer, recently named to the AMCC All-Tournament Team, started and played in all nine conference games at center back. She scored three goals as a defender in AMCC action and led the defense that only allowed two goals for a .22 goals-against average (GAA), while posting seven shut outs. Overall, Buckenheimer helped the defense post a league-best 0.84 GAA in 19 contests.
Prestash, a junior captain, is making her third appearance and second straight on the first team. She ranked second in goals and points in conference games (11 goals, 24 points), while leading with four game winners in eight conference games. Prestash scored a career-high four goals in the win over Carlow and averaged 3.00 points per game. Overall, she ranked second with 14 goals and three assists for 31 points.
Zec, a senior captain, repeats as an AMCC first-team selection. She played and started in seven conference games, controlling the midfield for the Lions. Zec had two goals and one assist for five points. Overall, Zec has five goals and two assists for 12 points and one game winner.
Morningstar, recently named to the AMCC All-Tournament Team, led the conference in save percentage (.889) and goals-against average (0.15) in AMCC action. She has four shutouts in seven games played. Overall, she is first with 11 wins, second in goals-against average (0.89) third in save percentage (.797). Morningstar had a season-best 11 saves against Carnegie Mellon, while making a pair of stops in the penalty-kick shootout in the AMCC Championship game.
Kuzma started and played in all nine AMCC games. The junior midfielder posted 2.67 points per game in conference play and ranked fourth in goals with 10 and fifth in points with 24. Kuzma also dished out four assists. All her points were registered in AMCC contests. Kuzma also had two game winners, while posting an eight-point game with three goals and two assists vs. Pitt-Bradford.
Croushore played in five conference games, starting in four. She led the defense that only allowed two goals for a .22 goals-against average (GAA), while posting seven shut outs. Overall, Croushore helped the defense post a league-best 0.84 GAA in 19 contests.
Sickeri, recently named to the AMCC All-Tournament Team, proved she is the top freshman in the conference with eight goals and 10 assists for 26 points in nine conference games. She led the AMCC with 10 assists and was third in points. Sickeri registered five points in the wins over Pitt-Bradford, Penn State Altoona and Hilbert. Overall, she is ranked tied for first in assists and fifth in points.
Hoff landed on the second team after being selected to the third team a year ago. She ranked tied for 10th in the AMCC with 15 points in nine conference games. She scored five goals and dished out five assists. Hoff scored a pair of goals vs. Hilbert for four points. Overall, she tallied six goals and eight assists for 20 points.
Andrade played in every game this season, including all nine conference games. The freshman scored six goals and one assist for 11 points. She netted a pair of goals against La Roche at outside midfielder.
