Best Male Athlete: Charlie Congleton ’07
Men’s Lacrosse

With all the offense the men’s lacrosse team put up this season—177 goals in 18 games—it would be easy for attention to be drawn away from the Cardinals’ All-American goalie Charlie Congleton ’07. But with Wesleyan winning five NESCAC games by a single goal, Congleton’s talents took center stage in the Cards’ run to the NCAAs. Congleton’s goals-against average of 6.38 this season—good enough to lead the NESCAC—was down from 6.73 in 2006, the year in which he was first named an All-American. Congleton’s importance to the Cardinals goes beyond statistics. He made crucial stops in tight games, most recently against Bates in the regular season finale. With the Cardinals and Bobcats tied in the final minute and Bates in possession of the ball, a mix-up in the Wesleyan defense left one attacker uncovered about five yards from the Cardinal goal. Bates got the open man the ball but Congleton got the better of him, stoning the attackman from point-blank range with an instinctual stick save. The Cardinals went on to win the game in overtime. The Cards will rely on more of the same from Congleton as they take the field in the NCAAs.

Best Female Athlete: Ellen Davis ’07
Women’s Track and Field

Without question, Ellen Davis ’07 is the most prolific distance runner in Wesleyan history. Coming off of her indoor season in which she won the NCAA Division III National Championship in the 5k indoor event, Davis added to her career accomplishments with a record-breaking performance at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia on April 26. With a time of 16:28:22 in the 5k event, Davis broke yet another Wesleyan record, eclipsing the 17-year record of 16:57.9 by nearly 30 seconds. Davis’ record-setting time is the eighth fastest time in Division III history, and is the top time in the 5k event in Division III this year. Her record-setting performance easily qualified her for the NCAA Division III Championship. Davis sat out the 5k event in the NESCAC Tournament, and finished a respectable sixth place in the 1500 meter event. She also rested at the New England Division III Championship as she looks to ready herself for the Division III Championship, where she will be a heavy favorite to land a second consecutive national championship.

Male Rookie of the Year: Mike Moody ’10
Men’s Track and Field

This season, Mike Moody ’10 has provided a tremendous boost to the men’s outdoor track team as one of the top javelin throwers in the country. While Moody landed one of his more disappointing throws over the weekend with his fourth place finish of 174’6” at the New England Division III Championships as he battled an injury, he quickly established himself this season as the best javelin thrower in Wesleyan history. At the NESCAC Championships at Middlebury last weekend, Moody took home the NESCAC trophy with his dominating first place throw of 186’6”, nine feet more than the second place finisher. Moody burst on the scene in the first meet of the outdoor season, with his first place throw of 185’9” at the Trinity Invitational on March 31, breaking the 10-year Wesleyan record by 11 feet. The Portland, ME native broke his own record two weeks later at the Elmer Swanson Invitational with a throw of 187’11”.

Female Rookie of the Year: Meaghan Dendy ’10
Softball

For a Cardinal team full of veteran leadership, Meaghan Dendy ’10 provided a youthful spark for Wesleyan softball both at the plate and on the mound. Dendy hit .385 with 45 hits, putting her second on the team in both categories behind Marcia Whitehead ’08. Dendy was also perfect on the basepaths, swiping seven bags in as many attempts. On the hill, her ERA of 3.30 was second on the team as well but first among Cardinal starters. Dendy got Wesleyan’s twelve-game winning streak started with a masterful performance against Coast Guard (6.1 innings pitched, one earned run, five strikeouts) in the Cardinals’ 2-1 win. She also won four games during the long win streak and went 8-11 with 5 runs scored and an RBI in a three-game series with Little Three rival Amherst last month. The Cards will graduate a few key contributors, but look to be in good hands down the road with Dendy leading the way.

Best Men’s Team: Men’s Lacrosse

The men’s lacrosse team entered the spring with high expectations after last year’s run to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament, and with a record of 16-2 (8-2 NESCAC) it’s safe to say the Cardinals have lived up to the hype. Wesleyan entered last weekend’s NESCAC Final Four ranked third nationally on the InsideLacrosse.com poll before falling 11-6 in the conference championship to archrival Middlebury for the fourth year in a row. The Cards may get another shot at the Panthers, though, as Wesleyan’s impressive season earned the Cardinals a bye through the first round of the NCAA, setting them up for a home date next Saturday against the winner of the first round game between Middlebury and Mount Ida. Wesleyan, which outscored its opponents 177-100 this season, was third in the NESCAC in goals per game and led the league in goals against average. The Cardinals also had two players in the top five in the conference in total points: Jason Ben-Eliyahu ’09 racked up 51 and Russ Follansbee ’09 tallied 42, an astonishing seven of which were game-winning goals.

Best Women’s Team: Softball

Although the softball team was knocked out of the NESCAC Tournament over the weekend, the Lady Cards enjoyed their most successful campaign in team history. After finishing with a 13-21 record a year ago with just one win in the NESCAC, the softball team took the rest of the conference by surprise, finishing with a 21-15 final record and 9-3 mark in the NESCAC West division. The Cards also qualified for the NESCAC Tournament for the first time in Wesleyan history. The softball team set team records for wins in a season with 21, while also rewriting the record books with a 12-game winning streak. Several Cardinals had career years, led by Marcia Whitehead ’08 whose 122 career hits landed her in first place all-time. Molly Gaebe ’07 also etched her name into the record books, as her 64 RBIs and 23 doubles over her career are both team records, in addition to her team records for ERA (2.14) and strikeouts (397). The softball team returns all but two starters, and will be favorites to qualify for the NESCAC Tournament once again next spring.

Best Men’s Team – Honorable Mention: Men’s Crew

While the men’s crew team was edged by top ranked Trinity in the New England Championships over the weekend, the Cardinals nonetheless solidified their position as the second-best team in New England. The Cardinals claimed second place behind Trinity in the main varsity eight event, finishing over five seconds ahead of Williams’ third-place boat. The crew team also captured second place in the second varsity eight. One of the main highlights of the crew team’s season was its dominating performance in the Little Three competition against Williams and Amherst on April 20, where the Cards took home their first Little Three Title in nearly a decade. Entering the competition as the second-ranked team in the nation, the Cards lived up to their billing as they soundly defeated the Ephs by 3.3 seconds in the varsity eight event with a time of 6:05.8. The second varsity eight also recorded a resounding 15-second victory over the Ephs, while the third and fourth varsity boats also won their events to complete the sweep. The men’s crew team rounds out its season at the ECAC Championships at Whitney Point, NY this weekend.

Best Women’s Team – Honorable Mention: Women’s Lacrosse

The women’s lacrosse team enjoyed a successful 2007 campaign, finishing with a record of 8-6 (5-4 NESCAC). The Cards’ regular season efforts were enough to earn them the program’s first ever home NESCAC playoff game. The Cards faced a must-win game versus Bates on the final day of the regular season in order to earn the home playoff contest. The team traveled to Maine and got a hard-fought overtime victory over Bates, earning the chance to play Amherst at home the next day to open the NESCAC tournament. While the Cards fell in that contest, the season went down as the best ever for the team in NESCAC play. Courtney Tetrault ’07 led the Cards offensively in her final season, racking up a program-record 31 assists to go with 16 goals. Tetrault’s 47 points was tops on the team and good enough for tenth in the NESCAC. Sophia Kim ’08 poured in 28 goals to pace the team, placing her thirteenth in the NESCAC. The Cards’ defense ranked fourth in the NESCAC in goals against average and the Cards’ goalkeepers, led by starter Rachel Stemerman ’09, earned a combined 53.6 percent save percentage. The team will look to a strong cast of returning players next season to build on 2007’s success.