From http://www.cornellbigred.com/news/2017/5/17/womens-lacrosse-catie-smith-named-iwlca-first-team-all-american.aspx
GRAND LAKE, Colo. — After a record-setting year on the Cornell backline, senior defender Catie Smith has been named a First-Team All-American, the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association announced on Wednesday. Smith is just the fourth player in program history to earn first-team honors and the first since Sarah Averson in 2003.
This is the second straight year that Smith has been named an All-American, as she was named an IWLCA Third-Team All-American in 2016. The 2017 Ivy League Defender of the Year, Smith was named to the IWLCA All-Northeast Region First Team last week and on Tuesday was tabbed as the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Co-Defensive Player of the Year.
Smith finished the season as the Big Red’s leading take-away defender for the third consecutive year and set a single-season caused turnover program record for the second straight year with an Ivy League-best 42. The tri-captain also led the team in ground balls (45) and draw controls (47) and became just the second player in school history to reach 100 career caused turnovers on May 5 against Harvard in the Ivy League Tournament semifinals. Smith was the backbone of a Cornell defensive unit that continually ranked in the top 10 nationally in scoring defense and never gave up more than 12 goals in a game for the first time since the 2003 season.
The Berwyn, Pa. native had at least one caused turnover in 18 of the 19 games that Cornell played this season, recording multiple caused turnovers in 13 contests. She finishes her Big Red career second all-time in caused turnovers with 105. Smith’s impressive outing against Harvard on April 29 – five caused turnovers, three ground balls and one draw control – earned her one of two Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week honors in 2017. She was also one of just three defenders named to the Tewaaraton Award top 25 and earned First-Team All-Ivy League honors as well as a nod to the 2017 Ivy League All-Tournament Team.
Smith is just the fourth Cornell player to be named a First-Team IWLCA All-American, joining Tina Hennessey ’93 (1992-93), Jaimee Reynolds ’02 (2002), and Sarah Averson ’03 (2003).
She is one of 48 Division I All-Americans named by the IWLCA committee and one of three Ivy League players selected for the first team. The IWLCA will honor the National All-Americans at the IWLCA All-American Banquet on Saturday June 3, 2017 at the Hunt Valley Inn in Hunt Valley, Md.