LOCK HAVEN, Pa. — For the third consecutive week, the ESU women's lacrosse team won both PSAC East Athlete and Defensive Athlete Awards, as Sadie Kauffman and Molly Atwell were recognized for their performances against No. 10 West Chester and Shepherd, the conference announced Tuesday afternoon.
 
Kauffman continued her historic pace on the season, finishing with 10 goals and four assists between ESU's 18-12 win over the Golden Rams and 21-4 victory versus Shepherd. Starting the week against West Chester, Kauffman turned in arguably her best performance of the season, leading the Warriors past their toughest test yet. She scored seven times and tallied three assists, recording the 200th point of her career in the third 10-point game in her first two seasons. Her final point of the day came on her seventh goal, which moved her into the top 10 in career points in program history. She rounded out her stat line on the day with eight draw controls, her fourth consecutive game with at least eight, and two ground balls.
 
Versus Shepherd on Saturday, Kauffman only played in the first nine minutes of the game, finishing with a hat trick and an assist before being subbed out. She secured four of the nine draw controls she was on the field for, picking up two ground balls as well. Kauffman moved into seventh place in program history for career points, now with 204, and is well within striking distance of jumping up into the top three before the season ends. Kauffman has now been named the PSAC East Athlete of the Week eight times in her first two seasons, including four times this year, tying Emily Mitarotonda (2023 and 2024) and Kayleigh Pokrivka (2022) for the most conference weekly awards in a season. She also becomes the first player in program history to win a PSAC East Athlete of the Week Award three consecutive weeks in a row.
 
Atwell put together another strong week for her case to be an All-American after her preseason nod, leading the Warriors on the defensive end in another perfect week. Atwell was everywhere in both games, starting with four draw controls, two ground balls, and a caused turnover in ESU's 18-12 win against the Golden Rams. She helped hold West Chester to match their lowest goal total of the season, finishing with the third-most draw controls in the game.
 
Going against Shepherd, she created havoc all game long, finishing with five ground balls, four caused turnovers, and four draw controls as well, leading ESU in each category. Atwell's play on defense has helped lead ESU to the best scoring margin in Division II and second-best scoring defense in the country, as the Warriors have opened the season with 11-straight wins for the second time in program history. Atwell has continued her climb of the program record books as well, reaching 83 caused turnovers and 95 draw controls, ranking seventh and 15^th in each category, respectively. This is Atwell's first time earning the honor in her career.
 
The No. 7 women's lacrosse team only plays one game this week, getting Wednesday off after making it through the PSAC East undefeated its first time around. The Warriors host No. 16 Kutztown at noon on Saturday, April 4, for their Military Appreciation Game.
 

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PSAC Women's Lacrosse Athletes of the Week
East Athlete: Sadie Kauffman (East Stroudsburg)
East Defensive Athlete: Molly Atwell (East Stroudsburg)
West Athlete: Mila Udovicic (Seton Hill)
West Defensive Athlete: Shannon Von Kaenel (Slippery Rock)
 

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PSAC East Weekly Awards
2/25: Sadie Kauffman (Athlete)
3/10: Paige Moreland (Athlete)
3/17: Sadie Kauffman (Athlete) and Abby Simonetti (Defensive Athlete)
3/24: Sadie Kauffman (Athlete) and Abby Simonetti (Defensive Athlete)
3/31: Sadie Kauffman (Athlete) and Molly Atwell (Defensive Athlete)