ATTLEBORO, Mass.—Lesley University senior Hannah Landerholm (Edmonds, Wash.) has been named New England Collegiate Conference Female Senior Student-Athlete of the Year, announced by NECC Assistant Commissioner for Media Relations, Roger Crosley.
"We are extremely excited and proud of Hannah," said Lesley Athletics Director Jen Benway. "She is a prime example of a Division III student-athlete as she has excelled on the field, in the classroom, and in the community. She leads by example and has represented Lesley University in supreme fashion throughout her career. We will miss her here in Cambridge but know that she will quickly find success."
Landerholm is the fourth Lesley female student-athlete to receive the award, joining Leah Miller '14, Jenna Fralick '12, and Alyson Durben '11 as Lynx who have been honored. The award is given annually to the top female student-athlete from the ten NECC member schools. Voting was conducted by the Athletic Director's representing each conference institution, and candidacy was based on a student-athlete's commitment to athletics and academics while also accounting for leadership and community service roles throughout their time on campus.
Landerholm was the NECC Women's Soccer Player of the Year in both 2013 and 2014 and helped lead the Lynx to NECC Championships and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2012, 2013 and 2014. In her senior campaign, she was voted National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) First-Team All-New England, NSCAA All-East Region Scholar Second Team (an honor she also earned her junior year), ECAC DIII New England First Team, New England Women's Intercollegiate Soccer Association (NEWISA) First Team, and played in the NEWISA Senior Bowl.
Landerholm graduated on Saturday, May 16th with a degree in Biology along with a minor in Psychology. She was a team captain her senior year and has been active in the Lesley Student Athlete Advisory Committee. She has a lengthy record of community service including running a soccer camp for urban youth, working with Cradles to Crayons packaging school supplies for homeless or low-income children, and participating in the United Somali Youth Soccer Camp. She has been part of a project entitled "Helping Hands: Monkey Helpers for the Disabled" where she assisted in caretaking and training of capuchin monkeys for para- and quadriplegics, and is active in "Friends of Jaclyn" providing community support and fundraising for a pediatric brain cancer survivor, who also became an honorary team member.
Regis' Michael Beluch was honored by the NECC with the Male Senior Student-Athlete Award. Click here to see the official release from the conference.
To qualify for the NECC Senior Student-Athlete Award a student must have reached senior academic standing, maintain a minimum 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale, show evidence of strong athletic accomplishment, compete in 50% or more of his or her institution's games through his or her career, exhibit a commitment to good sportsmanship and the rules of the Conference, and must have competed on the team for a minimum of three years.