Decker Named CAC Rookie of the Year, Smith Earns All-Star Honors as Well

York, Pa. – St. Mary's College of Maryland's Paige Decker (Clarksville, Md./River Hill) was tabbed as the 2011 Capital Athletic Conference Field Hockey Co-Rookie of the Year as conference commissioner, Tom Byrnes, released this year's all-league selections Thursday afternoon.  Decker shares the honor with University of Mary Washington's Amy Abernathy.

Senior Susan Smith (Chestertown, Md./Queen Anne's County) also reaped all-conference honors today as Smith garnered a spot on the second team.

Decker is the second Seahawk to earn the rookie of the year award since its inception in 1997.  Fellow teammate, junior forward Lauriann Parker (Woodbine, Md./Glenelg), was the first St. Mary's player to earn the award in 2009.

Decker completed a solid rookie campaign as the Seahawks' second leading scorer with eight goals and 17 points.  The 5-8 forward also shared the team lead with two game-winning goals.  Playing in 16 games with 15 starts, she posted a 0.800 shot-on goal percentage as 24 of her 30 shots were on target.  Decker tallied season-bests of two goals and four points in a 3-1 win over Wesley College on October 22.

This is Smith's first-ever postseason honor.  She tallied four points on one goal and two assists to finish fifth in team scoring.  The 5-4 midfielder started all 17 games for the Seahawks and was instrumental in St. Mary's offensive penalty corners as Smith inserted the ball into play on 28 of the team's 104 corners.

St. Mary's ended the 2011 season with a 6-11 record, including a 4-3 mark in league action.