Honoring the top girls lacrosse players, teams and coaches from Greater Sussex County

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Alexis Ashton

North Warren senior attack

No team had an answer for the Patriots senior attack over the course of the season as she finished with 137 goals, the most in the New Jersey during the 2021 season. She guided North Warren to a 7-8 record with six goals or more in all 13 games.

Ashton scored double-digit goals in six separate games and added 19 assists over the course of the season. The Fairleigh Dickinson-Madison commit closed her high school career with 289 goals.

TEAM OF THE YEAR

Kittatinny

The Cougars had a dream season, winning 12 games for the first time since 2014 in three less games. They finished 12-3 and took home the NJGILL Colonial North Division crown with a perfect 6-0 record. Kittatinny opened its season with eight straight wins, including six by eight goals or more.

The Cougars' lone losses came to H/W/S champion Hunterdon Central in the tri-county quarterfinals, Vernon and eventual North, Group 1 champion Glen Rock in the opening round. Kittatinny had three players finish with 40 goals or more over the course of the season.

COACH OF THE YEAR

Steve Carlson, Vernon

The Vikings head coach integrated younger, inexperienced players and helped them find success against a gauntlet of a schedule. The Vikings finished 10-8 with big victories over Glen Rock, Randolph and Kittatinny. They alspushed Voorhees in the H/W/S semifinals. Carlson will return three of his four leading scorers to try and make a run next season.

FIRST TEAM

Aine Byrne

Sparta sophomore midfielder

In her first varsity season in the center of the field for the Spartans, Byrne was the team's best distributor with 18 assists. As an all-around weapon, the Sparta sophomore added 26 goals, 65 draw controls and 18 forced turnovers.

Mikayla Cooke

Kittatinny senior midfielder

The Sienna commit was the team's MVP across her last two seasons with the Cougars. Cooke did it all in her final season while helping them notch 12 wins. She led the team with 74 draw controls and 71 ground balls. She also scored 43 goals and handed out 27 assists on the season.

Nicole Crowder

Hackettstown senior midfielder

One of the top offensive weapons in the area, Crowder found the back of the nets 57 times over the course of the campaign. She also won 56 draws, scooped 24 ground balls and forced 16 turnovers for the Tigers.

Nicole Delaportas

Jefferson sophomore attack

The Falcons sophomore could be counted upon to find the back of the net in nearly all of the team's games. She filled the stat sheet in her first varsity season, scoring 24 goals, dishing out 13 assists while also winning 42 draws and securing 35 ground balls. 

Madisen Dippel

Kittatinny senior attack

No one found the goal for the Cougars more than Dippel, who closed her senior season with a team-high 84 points on 47 goals, also a team-high, and 37 assists. She also notched 28 draw control wins and secured 43 ground balls on the season.

Sarah Douglas

Kittatinny senior defense

The Cougars' three-year letter winner was the heart of the team's defense which gave up an area-best 7.7 goals per game. Douglas forced 20 turnovers and reeled in 37 ground balls on the season.

Audrey Flannery

High Point junior attack/midfielder

The Wildcats junior was a massive source of offense for her team as she fired in 66 goals, most in Sussex County, and added 15 assists on the season. Flannery notched a hat trick in all but two out of the team's 14 games over the course of the season. She scored 57 percent of High Point's goals in the season.

Olivia Lamonica

Jefferson junior goalie

Lamonica proved that she was up to the task in her first season between the pipes for the Falcons. She stopped 187 shots over the course of the season, stopping 54.3 percent of the shots she faced. Lamonica stopped double-digit shots in 10 of the team's 18 games on the season.

Jordan Lewicki

Vernon senior midfielder

The Vikings senior midfielder was an integral leader in helping bring along the inexperienced players on the team. She finished with 31 goals — second on the team — and added four assists. As the Vikings' faceoff specialist, she also won 51 draw controls and scooped up 27 ground balls. 

Leah Moore

Sparta sophomore attack

Moore provided the Spartans with a much-needed scoring threat in her first varsity season as she deposited a team-high 38 goals and led the team with 49 points after adding 11 assists. 

Sydney Riker

Vernon senior goalie

Vikings goalie was instrumental in helping the team reach the Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex Tournament semifinals. Riker came on strong late in the second and stopped 101 saves over the course of 18 games. She will be taking her talents to Robert Morris for the 2022 season.

Lexi Vizzini

Vernon junior attack

Vizzini continued her rise as the Vikings' top scoring threat, as she closed her junior season with 47 goals and 17 assists. The Vikings junior posted nine hat tricks over the course of the season despite missing the preseason as she completed the volleyball season.

Madison Woollen

Kittatinny senior attack

The Cougars senior was an excellent two-way offensive player for the Cougars, finishing with 40 goals and the same number of assists in her final season for the Hampton school. Woollen's 40 assists were the most in Sussex County. She also chipped in 21 ground balls.

Avery Young

Jefferson sophomore midfielder

The Falcons appear to have their goal-scoring weapon for the next two seasons as Young proved to be a dynamic attack from the midfield. She led her team with 55 goals and 17 assists while controlling the draw with 59 wins and added 57 ground balls on the season.

SECOND TEAM

Jenna Bargfrede, Sparta senior

Emma Barling, Lenape Valley senior

Paloma Burgos, Vernon senior

Kayla Cuttito, Lenape Valley senior

Madelyn Haug, Kittatinny sophomore

Sarah Leppard, Jefferson junior

Madison Maguire, Pope John junior

Norah Monaghan, Sparta junior

Chloe Naylor, Lenape Valley junior

Chloe Neubauer, Hackettstown senior

Laney Oostdyk, Jefferson sophomore

Alexa Shotwell, Kittatinny sophomore

Alyssa VanDalina, Vernon senior

Sidney Van Tassel, Vernon freshman