ESU Lacrosse All-Region History (PDF)  |  2019 IWLCA Division II All-Region Teams

EAST STROUDSBURG – East Stroudsburg University, which made its third-straight Division II tournament appearance and advanced to the Atlantic Region final for a second year in a row, was recognized with five IWLCA First Team All-Atlantic Region performers on Thursday afternoon.

Senior midfielder Emma Rufolo, senior midfielder TJ Jefferis, junior goalkeeper Tatyana Petteway, junior midfielder Hana Cicerelle and sophomore attacker Krista Mitarotonda were all honored for the Warriors, who were one of only two teams in Division II to receive five first-team All-Region selections.

Rufolo and Petteway become the first three-time All-Region honorees in program history, with records dating back to the early 2000's. Cicerelle and Mitarotonda land on the first team for a second-consecutive year, while Jefferis is named All-Region for the first time after garnering second team All-PSAC accolades earlier this month.

The Warriors finished the year with a final record of 15-6, and they are 59-18 in the past four seasons overall under head coach Xeni Barakos-Yoder, a 2011 ESU graduate.

Rufolo (Woodstock, Md./Chapelgate Christian Academy) was one of the top performers for the Warriors in all three areas of the field throughout her collegiate career. She led the team in ground balls (70), and caused turnovers (52), ranked second in draw controls (81) and had at least one point in every game this season while contributing 38 goals and 21 assists.

The 2017 PSAC Athlete of the Year and a third team IWLCA All-America selection last spring, Rufolo totaled 107 goals, 49 assists, 199 ground balls, 178 draw controls and 126 caused turnovers in three seasons after joining the program as a transfer from Division I Gardner-Webb. She was previously first team All-Region last year, and she was a second team All-Region honoree in her debut season at ESU.

Petteway (Nanuet, N.Y./Albertus Magnus) continues to lead the nation in save percentage (.548) with only three games remaining in the Division II season. She stopped a career-high 211 shots overall on the year, with a save percentage of 60 percent or higher in eight of 21 appearances. A third team All-America selection and the PSAC Freshman of the Year in 2017, Petteway will enter her senior season ranked second all-time in team history in total saves (596). She is 42-12 with a .532 save percentage through her first 58 collegiate appearances.

Cicerelle (Broadway, N.J./Warren Hills) earns repeat first team accolades after leading the Warriors with 81 points (52 G, 29 A) on the year. She became the third ESU player in team history to total 80+ points in a single season, and she was also second on the team in ground balls (43) and third in both draw controls (37) and caused turnovers (18). Cicerelle had multiple points in the first 11 games of the spring, with a season-high eight on two separate occasions. She enters next year ninth all-time with 189 points, just 63 back of Lauren Nunes' school-record total of 252.

Mitarotonda (Rockaway, N.J./Morris Knolls) surpassed 60 goals for a second-straight year after scoring a team-high 61 times in 2019. Kristin Restivo, who totaled a team-record 72 goals in 2000, is the only other Warrior to score more than 60 in a single season. Mitarotonda had 78 points overall, and she also led the team with 91 draw controls. She had a program-record 12 hat tricks, including a career-high seven goals in a win at Lock Haven on April 2. A first team All-American and the PSAC Freshman of the Year in 2018, she has 128 goals and 26 assists in her first two seasons at ESU.

Jefferis (Phoenixville, Pa./Phoenixville) achieves All-Region status for the first time after contributing a career-high 49 goals and 19 assists in her final collegiate season. She had 11 hat tricks on the year, and scored a team-high nine goals during the Warriors' four postseason contests. Jefferis recorded at least one point in each of her last 32 games at ESU dating back to 2018. She graduates with 201 career points, a total which ranks tied for fifth in program history, and her 73 career assists are third all-time at ESU.

The Warriors' five first-team All-Region selections were tied with last year's squad for the most in program history during a single-season. ESU had the highest number of first team honorees in the Atlantic Region; only Regis (6) had more in all of Division II.