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Zilinski Named PSAC Field Hockey Athlete of the Year

BLOOMSBURG—Bloomsburg University field hockey player Sheila Zilinski (Barto/Boyertown) has been named the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference 2002 Field Hockey Player of the Year. Bloomsburg head coach Jan Hutchinson was named the Coach of the Year in voting by the conference coaches.

Zilinski, a first team All-PSAC selection, is joined on the first unit by Shanna Fritz (Benton/Benton), Nikki Hartranft (Oley/Oley Valley), Sharla Partlon (Langhorne/Neshaminy) and Marci Zilinski (Barto/Boyertown).

Named second team All-PSAC was Erin McConnell (Danville/Danville).

Shanna Fritz 1st team	Sheila Zilinski 1st team	Nikki Hartranft 1st team
Marcie Zilinski 1st team	Sharla Partlon 1st team	Erin McConnell 2nd team

Zilinski, a junior, is among the conference leaders in points, goals and assists this season. Through 19 games Zilinski is seventh in points with 30, 1.58 per game. She is also eighth in goals per game with a mark of 0.58 (11 in 19 games) and third in assists per game with 0.42 a game (8 in 19 games). Zilinski had her best game of the year in a win over Slippery Rock when she had two goals and two assists. She also scored three times in a win over Mansfield.

Fritz, a junior, leads the team and the PSAC in scoring with 37 points, 1.95 per game. Fritz, a repeat choice for first team honors in the PSAC, has scored 14 goals (0.74 per game) and has a team-high nine assists (0.47 per game). Fritz had five multi-goal games during the year with her best effort coming against Mansfield when she scored twice and had three assists.

Hartranft, a junior, is second on the team and third in the PSAC in points with 32 (1.68 per game). She has scored 13 goals (0.68 per game) and assisted on six others. Hartranft, a repeat choice for first team All-PSAC, had her best game of the year in a win over Indiana (PA) when she scored twice and had one assist.

Partlon, a sophomore, roamed the midfield area for the Huskies this season and was a key component in the transition from defense to offense for the Huskies. Partlon, a first team All-PSAC choice and Rookie of the Year as a freshman, scored five times and had four assists during the year. In the PSAC title game, with the Huskies leading just 1-0, Partlon scored with eight minutes to play to give Bloomsburg some breathing room as it went on to a 3-0 win.

Zilinski, a junior, was an integral part of the Bloomsburg defense, which limited teams to just nine goals allowed during the year. Late in the season it was the play of Zilinski and the rest of the defense that saw the PSAC name the unit as Field Hockey Players of the Week after limiting three opponents to just 11 shots on goal. For the year opponents averaged just 0.47 goals a game and just 89 shots attempted.

McConnell, a junior, was also a key member of the midfield unit for the Huskies. During the season McConnell scored twice, including the first goal in the PSAC championship game on Nov. 2nd. Defensively in that game she also came up with several big plays to stop potential scoring opportunities for Lock Haven, which propelled the Huskies to their 11th conference title.

Hutchinson is coming off her 11th PSAC title in her 25 seasons with the Huskies. This year she has guided Bloomsburg to a 19-0 record and the No. 1 seed from the South Region entering this weekend's national championship tournament.  The Huskies are currently riding a 28-game winning streak, dating back to last season. Hutchinson has now won the PSAC Coach of the Year Award for field hockey four times since its inception in 1989.  She has a career record of 438-59-20 for a .863 winning percentage and has won nine national championships.