Swanson, Minickene Tabbed CNE Players of the Week
BEVERLY, Mass. — Endicott field hockey senior forward Tori Swanson (Farmington, Conn.) and sophomore goalkeeper Faith Minickene (Madison, Conn.) have been named the Conference of New England's (CNE) Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, the league office announced on Monday afternoon.
TORI SWANSON, OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Swanson led the Gulls with nine points during a 3-0 week as she recorded three goals and three assists including a come from behind 2-1 overtime win against No. 1 Middlebury on Sunday.
Against the Panthers, trailing 1-0 in the fourth quarter, Swanson earned the Gulls a penalty corner with just under eight minutes to play which Endicott then scored on to tie the game. Then in overtime, she forced a turnover on the left side of the circle, cut through the Panthers' defense, and slipped a shot through the five hole for the game-winning goal at the 66:50 mark. The tally also moved Swanson into sole possession of first place as the all-time points leader in program history (155 points, 63 career games) and snapped Middlebury's 60-game non-conference unbeaten streak, which dated back to the 2017 season.
The senior started the week against Southern Maine with one goal and one assist in a 4-1 victory and then followed up versus Gordon with a season-high four points (one goal and two assists).
This is Swanson's sixth career CNE Offensive Player of the Week award (9/11/23, 10/30/23, 9/16/24, 9/23/24, 10/28/24).
FAITH MINICKENE, DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Minickene led the Gulls to a perfect 3-0 record on the week. The sophomore recorded 25 saves (.926 save percentage) and a 0.77 goals against average in 156:50 total minutes of action.
Against No. 1 Middlebury, Minickene finished the contest with 18 saves (ranks sixth all-time in a single game) and a .947 save percentage. She made a clutch save in overtime as the Panthers had a breakaway opportunity. After the Gulls tied the game, Minickene and the defense fended off three penalty corners, and the netminder made two big stops.
She started the week versus Southern Maine by stopping seven shots (.875 save percentage) and then picked up the win against Gordon in 30 minutes of action.
This marks Minickene's second career CNE Defensive Player of the Week award (9/23/24).
No. 23 Endicott (8-1) visits Keene State on Wednesday, October 1 at 6:30 PM.
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(Photo Credit - Bradley Griffin '28)