HOUGHTON, N.Y. – After a record setting team season, six members of the Houghton field hockey program have been honored with all-conference honors by the Empire 8 Conference, in voting by the E8 coaches announced today.
 
Sara Carter, Deborah Cross, Bekah Davie, Elzandie Du Plessis, Jace Hunzinger, and Madison Tadusz were each named to the All-E8 Second Team.
 
Carter finished the season with two defensive saves and was a key member of the Highlander defense that recorded six shutouts and allowed just 39 goals in 20 games.
 
Cross finished third on the team with nine goals and added five assists. She led the team with 60 total shots and 42 shots on goal. She added two game-winning goals and two defensive saves.
 
Davie had a spectacular sophomore campaign, leading the team and co-leading the conference with 18 goals (on just 32 shots on goal). She added three assists and two game-winning goals. She had two three-goal games during the season. Davie now has 30 goals in two seasons, putting her seventh in program career goals. Her season goals rank fourth in Houghton history.
 
Du Plessis finished with eight goals and six assists in her debut campaign. Her speed helped lead the Houghton attack, which finished with a program record 69 goals in 20 games. The freshman had two late goals in the final regular season game against Washington & Jefferson to help Houghton clinch the No. 3 seed in the E8 Tournament. She had one game-winning goal.
 
Hunzinger was another Highlander with a record-breaking season. She finished with seven goals and a conference leading 18 assists. The assist total is the highest for a single season in Highlander history. She now has 30 assists in just two seasons, which ties her with Houghton's career mark. Last year's E8 Rookie of the Year five games with two or more assists, including a program-tying four in a win over Lancaster Bible.
 
Tadusz was a steady presence in goal for the Highlanders, producing a 14-6 record with 101 saves and a 2.01 goals against average. She finished tied with a conference-high five shutouts on the campaign.
 
In addition, Katherine Manley was named Houghton's representative on the 2022 Field Hockey Sportswoman of the Year Team. The Empire 8 Conference emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete's experience in conjunction with an institution's educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen.
 
Houghton's season included the most wins since 2003, a program-record 69 goals scored and the team's first-ever post-season victories. The Highlanders were seeded No. 3 in the Empire 8 Tournament and advanced to the E8 championship game.
 
Read the Full Release from the Empire 8.