Baltimore, Md. - University at Albany's John Battaglino has been chosen Northeast Region Division I Coach of the Year by the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Association (IWLCA), an announced on Monday, June 27.
Battaglino, the America East Conference Coach of the Year, was previously been named the nation's top coach for the 2011 season by Inside Lacrosse, Snyapse Sports and WomensLax.com. Battaglino led the Great Danes to the America East regular-season and tournament championships, plus a school record for single-season victories. UAlbany (18-1) made its first NCAA Tournament appearance since the program became a varsity sport in 1992. The Great Danes defeated Dartmouth in the first round, before losing to eventual national champion Northwestern in the NCAA quarterfinals.
UAlbany earned a national top-10 ranking in both the IWLCA and deBeer/Inside Lacrosse polls for the first time in program history. The Great Danes were the third America East Conference program to win an NCAA Tournament game, as Boston U. advanced to the quarterfinals in 2005 and 2008. Under Battaglino's direction, UAlbany ranked second nationally in scoring defense at 7.32 goals per game, sixth in scoring margin (5.74 gpg) and 18th in scoring offense (13.05 gpg). Nikki Branchini and Taylor Frink were named to the IWLCA All-America second team.
Paw Prints: UAlbany's Nikki Branchini has been selected the 2011 IWLCA Scholar-Athlete of the Year ... Branchini earned her undergraduate degree in history and with a minor in education last month and is expected to attend law school in the fall ... the senior defensive midfielder was previously voted to the Capital One/CoSIDA Women's At-Large Academic All-America national second team ... Ariana Parker and Anna Berman were picked to the Inside Lacrosse All-Freshmen Team in the honorable mention category ... Parker tallied 44 goals and three assists for 47 points, the second-highest single-season scoring total by a UAlbany freshman ... Berman posted a 6.82 goals against average and a .463 save percentage in his first season as a collegiate goalkeeper.
