3 Spartans earn postseason field hockey honors

Three members of the MSU field hockey team were honored by the Big Ten on Thursday when the conference announced its yearly awards.

Freshman forward Abby Barker and junior midfielder Adelle Lever were named Second Team All-Big Ten, and senior defensive back Angie Lucik was named MSU’s Big Ten Sportsmanship Honoree. The awards marked the first time in Barker and Lever’s careers that they were named to an All-Big Ten team.

Barker had a phenomenal first season with the Spartans (7-13 overall, 1-5 Big Ten) leading the team in goals during the regular season, with nine. Barker also had three game-winning goals for the Spartans and one assist on the year. After a 1-0 Spartan win against Ball State in which Barker scored the only goal for the Green and White, she was named co-Big Ten Freshman of the Week.

Lever was a defensive presence for the Spartans during the season, recording four defensive saves in the regular season, which was good enough for second in the Big Ten. Lever was a benchmark of consistency for the team, starting in every game this season and notching two goals.

Finally, Lucik was chosen as the Spartan who best represented sportsmanship for the 2011 season. She has been named All-Academic Big Ten for the past three years, and her presence as a leader for the Spartans has been undeniable as she was one of two seniors on a team that featured nine freshman players.