FIELD HOCKEY: GNAC Announces All-Conference & Major Awards

Winthrop, Mass. - The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) office announced their major awards/all-conference teams on Tuesday afternoon (Nov. 11). Voting was conducted for each of the major awards and all-conference teams by the league's 11 head coaches before postseason play had begun. 

Colby-Sawyer's Brooke Farquhar was voted Offensive Player of the Year, while New England College had two student-athletes win major awards on the defensive side with Martina Hill earning Defensive Player of the Year and Makenzie Anderson collecting her second consecutive Goalkeeper of the Year award. Dean College Head Coach Megan Gutierrez collected Coach of the Year honors while Saint Joseph's (Maine) freshman Ava Markham was named Rookie of the Year. Elms College won the institutional sportsmanship award. Full list of honorees below.

Offensive Player of the Year 

Brooke Faruqhar, Colby-Sawyer (So.)

Sophomore Brooke Farquhar put on an absolute offensive clinic this season that put her not only as the league-leader but ranked her amongst some of the nation's best. Faruqhar scored a league-leading 28 goals (17; second in GNAC play) that put her third in the nation while boasting a 1.47 goals per game average, fourth best in NCAA DIII. Farquhar was just as effective in getting her teammates involved, setting her teammates up 13 times on the season (eight in conference play) and putting herself in the top-10 nationally. The Gorham, Maine native also led the league in points with 69 (league-best 42 in GNAC action), which also put her 3.63 points per game average amongst the third and fourth best in the nation. Her impact offensively drew the Chargers to the three seed in the conference and ultimately led them to the GNAC Championship game. This is Farquhar's second major award as she previously took home the 2024 Rookie of the Year last season. The sophomore was GNAC Offensive Player of the Week three times this season and was the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Off. Player of the Week once this year.

Defensive Player of the Year

Martina Hill, New England College (Sr.)

Senior Martina Hill led a very strong New England College defense that allowed a league-leading 18 goals on the season and only five goals in conference play. The Pilgrims defensive line allowed 0.87 goals a game, which ranked them in the top-10 nationally. The Abbot, Maine native was the heart and soul of an NEC backline that put up a league-leading 10 shutouts on the season. New England College finished as the four-seed in the GNAC and made the semifinals this past season. She was named GNAC Defensive Player of the Week once this season.

Goalkeeper of the Year

Makenzie Anderson, New England College (Sr.)

Senior Makenzie Anderson concludes her collegiate career with her second consecutive Goalkeeper of the Year honors after earning a league-leading 11 wins (seven in conference), five of them being shutouts. Anderson was the final line of defense of a dominant NEC backline as she only boasted a league-leading 0.72 goals-against average (ninth in DIII) and a league-leading .875 save percentage, which ranked sixth in DIII. Anderson was named Goalkeeper of the Week twice this past season.

Rookie of the Year

Ava Markham, Saint Joseph's (Maine) (Fr.)

Freshman Ava Markham was the main distributor for the Monks offense this past season. Markham had a league second-best 15 assists (eight of them coming in conference play), which was sixth in the nation. The Belfast, Maine native had a 0.75 assists per game average, which was seventh-best in DIII. Markham also chipped in seven goals for the Monks to total 29 points in her first season. Her efforts helped SJC to the two seed in this year's postseason tournament and an appearance in the GNAC semifinals. She was named Rookie of the Week five times in the GNAC this season.

Coach of the Year

Megan Gutierrez, Dean College

Head Coach Megan Gutierrez led a Dean team to history this past season. The Bulldogs collected a 16-7 record and clinched the top-seed at 9-1 in conference play with an elite offense and strong defensive unit. Gutierrez's leadership gave Dean their first-ever appearance to the NCAA Tournament as they won their first-ever GNAC Field Hockey Championship in the program's history and was the school's first-ever GNAC title. Dean's offense averaged 3.6 goals per game, which was second best in the GNAC and top-10 in the nation and totaled 83 goals on the season so far. On the defensive side, the Bulldogs allowed 40 goals, which was fourth-best in the conference, and only allowed a league second-best 11 goals in conference play. 

 Major Awards