Annalise Penikis '13 Completes Stellar Collegiate Lacrosse Career
Midfielder Annalise Penikis '13 is racking up end-of-the-season accolades, including the Centennial Conference Player of the Year award. She is only the second member of the Swarthmore College women's lacrosse program to win the honor, becoming the first since Julie Noyes '95 in 1995.
Penikis is a biology major and statistics minor from Swarthmore, Pa. Last season, she was the first student-athlete in Centennial Conference history to lead the league in goals, points and assists. The Centennial Conference's points leader also had a strong connection to Swarthmore Athletics before ever putting on a uniform, as she is the daughter of Associate Professor of Economics Amanda Bayer.
"My parents have been able to go to every game," Penikis recently told CBS Philly. "I've been playing lacrosse my whole life, so it's just been great to be able to play with my best friends and play all the time, whenever I want. It's been a lot of fun." Listen to the complete interview.
Head Coach Karen Borbee raves about what Penikis has brought to the team. "She is energy. She is always up. She's always ready to go. She's always pushing herself, she's always bringing everyone along with her. She just loves to watch lacrosse, she loves to play lacrosse. What makes her special is this energy that she brings. The energy, in combination with her talent, just makes her a special player."
Penikis is a first team All-Centennial selection for the third consecutive season, becoming just the 14th player in the 20-year Conference history to do so. She wrapped up her outstanding Garnet career with a 53-goal, 37-assist senior season. She scored in every game of her 50-game Garnet career, which is the second longest scoring streak in Centennial Conference history. Despite playing just three seasons, Penikis finishes her career second all-time in career assists (114), fourth all-time in career points (298), and fifth all-time in career goals (184).
She was named to the All-Metro Region first team for the third consecutive season by the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA), making her eligible to be considered for IWLCA All-America honors. The IWLCA All-America teams will be announced on May 23. Penikis was also selected to play in the 2013 IWLCA/DeBeer North/South Senior All-Star lacrosse game. The game will be held at Cabrini College on Sunday, May 26th.
Penikis also took home the Dinny Rath Award, given by the Friends of Swarthmore Athletics in honor of Dinny Rath, who chaired the Women's Physical Education Department, coached primarily women's swimming and archery, and taught numerous physical education classes from 1931 to 1965. The award is presented to the senior woman who has consistently demonstrated a high degree of achievement, along with a regard for fair play and awareness of the positive values of competition, while contributing to the intellectual life of the Swarthmore community.
