Completed Event: Women's Lacrosse at #4 Florida on May 15, 2025 , Loss , 9, to, 11
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Women's Lacrosse
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Chrest Named ACC Player of the Year, Kimel Named ACC Coach of the Year
4/27/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
Baltimore, Md. - The Atlantic Coast Conference announced on Thursday night that Katie Chrest was named ACC Player of the Year for the second straight season and Kerstin Kimel was tabbed ACC Coach of the Year for the fifth time. No. 1 Duke also earned five selections to the All-ACC squad, matching the 2001 team for the most in school history.
Chrest, a senior from Hampstead, Md., became the second player in ACC history to receive Player of the Year in consecutive seasons, joining Maryland's Jen Adams (2000 and 2001). Chrest leads the ACC with an average of 3.07 goals per game and has scored 46 times this season. She has recorded hat tricks in 10 contests and has scored five or more points in six games. She scored a season-high six goals in a 19-8 win over No. 17 William & Mary on April 21. It was just the seventh time in school history a player tallied six or more goals in a game. She also recorded four goals and an assist to help lead the Blue Devils to a 16-10 victory over No. 1 Northwestern on April 7, which snapped the defending national champion's 31-game winning streak. On Feb. 25 against No. 5 Maryland, Chrest broke the school record for career goals and is now two shy of hitting the 200 mark for her career at 198 goals. One month later on March 26, she set the school record for career points and is now 10 points away from cracking the top-five in ACC history with 262 career points. She is a Tewaaraton nominee and has been named ACC Player of the Week twice this season.
Kimel received her fifth ACC Coach of the Year honor in just her 11th season at Duke. She has led the Blue Devils to a a 14-1 record on the year and to a No. 1 ranking for only the second time in school history. They were the top-ranked team in the 2002 season and have been ranked No. 1 for three straight weeks this year. She led Duke to a school-record nine straight wins to start the season and has nine victories over ranked teams, including against squads in the top-five and five against top-10 foes. The nine wins over ranked teams is one shy of the school record set in 2001. Kimel's team leads the nation in winning percentage (.933), is second in scoring offense (15.6) and scoring margin (+7.87), third in caused turnovers (12.53) and fifth in scoring defense (7.73).
Duke received five players on the All-ACC teams which tied for the most in a single season. Chrest headlined the group with her second straight selection. Joining Chrest are Leigh Jester, Michelle Menser, Rachel Sanford and Kristen Waagbo.
Jester, a junior from Ridgewood, N.J., made her first career appearance on the All-ACC team. She is tied for 10th in the ACC with 2.67 points per game. She also ranks tied for third on the team with 12 assists and is one of four players with 40 points this season. She has 10 games this season with two or more goals and has recorded three or more points in eight contests. She was named National Player of the Week by Inside Lacrosse and womenslacrosse.com on April 10 after recording two goals and four assists against No. 1 Northwestern and three goals in a win over No. 10 Notre Dame.
Menser, a junior captain from Wayne, Pa., earned her first selection to the All-ACC squad. She has 11 goals on the season with seven coming in five ACC contests. She helped lead the Blue Devils to a victory over No. 3 North Carolina on March 8 when she scored three goals. She is second on the team with 32 ground balls. She has tallied two or more ground balls in nine games and caused a turnover in 10 contests this year.
Sanford, a sophomore from Greenwich, Conn., was named to the All-ACC team for the second straight season. She is ranked second in the ACC and 11th in the nation with an average of 2.0 caused turnovers per game. She is also ninth in the conference with 2.73 points per game. She leads the team with 38 ground balls and 32 turnovers. She is a Tewaaraton nominee and was a preseason first team All-America. Over the last eight games she has averaged 2.25 goals, 1.13 assists, 3.38 points, 3.13 ground balls, 2.5 draw controls and 1.63 caused turnovers. She scored six points against Virginia Tech on March 22 and five points against No. 17 William & Mary on April 21. She has four games with four or more ground balls, nine with two or more draw controls and nine outings with two or more caused turnovers.
Waagbo, a junior from Ellicott City, Md., earned her first All-ACC selection. She is currently leading the Blue Devils with 25 assists and 63 points. She ranks second in the ACC and 18th in the country with 1.67 assists per game and 4.2 points per contest. She has recorded nine games this season with three or more goals, nine outings with two or more assists and 11 contests with four or more points. She is a two-time National Player of the Week. She received the honor from womenslacrosse.com on March 14 after leading Duke to victories over No. 3 North Carolina and No. 6 Princeton with four goals and four assists. The next week she received the honor from Inside Lacrosse on March 20 after posting four goals and two assists in a 10-8 win over No. 6 Georgetown. She is a Tewaaraton nominee and preseason third team All-America.
The Blue Devils earned the top seed for the ACC Tournament on a tiebreaker based on goal differential. They will await the winner of the quarterfinal game between fourth-seeded Maryland and fifth-seeded Boston College. Duke will play its semifinal game at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. The tournament is being held at the M & T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Md.
Chrest, a senior from Hampstead, Md., became the second player in ACC history to receive Player of the Year in consecutive seasons, joining Maryland's Jen Adams (2000 and 2001). Chrest leads the ACC with an average of 3.07 goals per game and has scored 46 times this season. She has recorded hat tricks in 10 contests and has scored five or more points in six games. She scored a season-high six goals in a 19-8 win over No. 17 William & Mary on April 21. It was just the seventh time in school history a player tallied six or more goals in a game. She also recorded four goals and an assist to help lead the Blue Devils to a 16-10 victory over No. 1 Northwestern on April 7, which snapped the defending national champion's 31-game winning streak. On Feb. 25 against No. 5 Maryland, Chrest broke the school record for career goals and is now two shy of hitting the 200 mark for her career at 198 goals. One month later on March 26, she set the school record for career points and is now 10 points away from cracking the top-five in ACC history with 262 career points. She is a Tewaaraton nominee and has been named ACC Player of the Week twice this season.
Kimel received her fifth ACC Coach of the Year honor in just her 11th season at Duke. She has led the Blue Devils to a a 14-1 record on the year and to a No. 1 ranking for only the second time in school history. They were the top-ranked team in the 2002 season and have been ranked No. 1 for three straight weeks this year. She led Duke to a school-record nine straight wins to start the season and has nine victories over ranked teams, including against squads in the top-five and five against top-10 foes. The nine wins over ranked teams is one shy of the school record set in 2001. Kimel's team leads the nation in winning percentage (.933), is second in scoring offense (15.6) and scoring margin (+7.87), third in caused turnovers (12.53) and fifth in scoring defense (7.73).
Duke received five players on the All-ACC teams which tied for the most in a single season. Chrest headlined the group with her second straight selection. Joining Chrest are Leigh Jester, Michelle Menser, Rachel Sanford and Kristen Waagbo.
Jester, a junior from Ridgewood, N.J., made her first career appearance on the All-ACC team. She is tied for 10th in the ACC with 2.67 points per game. She also ranks tied for third on the team with 12 assists and is one of four players with 40 points this season. She has 10 games this season with two or more goals and has recorded three or more points in eight contests. She was named National Player of the Week by Inside Lacrosse and womenslacrosse.com on April 10 after recording two goals and four assists against No. 1 Northwestern and three goals in a win over No. 10 Notre Dame.
Menser, a junior captain from Wayne, Pa., earned her first selection to the All-ACC squad. She has 11 goals on the season with seven coming in five ACC contests. She helped lead the Blue Devils to a victory over No. 3 North Carolina on March 8 when she scored three goals. She is second on the team with 32 ground balls. She has tallied two or more ground balls in nine games and caused a turnover in 10 contests this year.
Sanford, a sophomore from Greenwich, Conn., was named to the All-ACC team for the second straight season. She is ranked second in the ACC and 11th in the nation with an average of 2.0 caused turnovers per game. She is also ninth in the conference with 2.73 points per game. She leads the team with 38 ground balls and 32 turnovers. She is a Tewaaraton nominee and was a preseason first team All-America. Over the last eight games she has averaged 2.25 goals, 1.13 assists, 3.38 points, 3.13 ground balls, 2.5 draw controls and 1.63 caused turnovers. She scored six points against Virginia Tech on March 22 and five points against No. 17 William & Mary on April 21. She has four games with four or more ground balls, nine with two or more draw controls and nine outings with two or more caused turnovers.
Waagbo, a junior from Ellicott City, Md., earned her first All-ACC selection. She is currently leading the Blue Devils with 25 assists and 63 points. She ranks second in the ACC and 18th in the country with 1.67 assists per game and 4.2 points per contest. She has recorded nine games this season with three or more goals, nine outings with two or more assists and 11 contests with four or more points. She is a two-time National Player of the Week. She received the honor from womenslacrosse.com on March 14 after leading Duke to victories over No. 3 North Carolina and No. 6 Princeton with four goals and four assists. The next week she received the honor from Inside Lacrosse on March 20 after posting four goals and two assists in a 10-8 win over No. 6 Georgetown. She is a Tewaaraton nominee and preseason third team All-America.
The Blue Devils earned the top seed for the ACC Tournament on a tiebreaker based on goal differential. They will await the winner of the quarterfinal game between fourth-seeded Maryland and fifth-seeded Boston College. Duke will play its semifinal game at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. The tournament is being held at the M & T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Md.
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