Jans Croon Named ACC Defensive Player of the Year

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia field hockey senior back Jans Croon was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year in honors announced Monday (Nov. 4) by the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Croon was also voted to the All-ACC First Team alongside grad student midfielder Suze Leemans. Grad student midfielder Meghen Hengerer was named to the second team.

The honors were selected by a vote of the league’s nine head coaches.

Croon is the first Cavalier to be named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year, an honor that was first introduced in 2004. This is the fifth time that a Virginia player has earned a top honor from the conference, joining Lori Mastropietro (Player of the Year, 1998), Paige Selenski (Offensive, 2012) and Tara Vittese (2016 & 2017, Offensive).

Croon helped anchor a backline defense that logged five shutouts this season. Croon was also an offensive asset, scoring four goals with two assists.

In her first season playing collegiate field hockey, Leemans scored four goals in her first four games, earning the ACC Offensive Player of the Week award in the second week of the season. She heads into the postseason with five goals and two assists.

Hengerer is in her third season as a team captain, leading the team on the field as a mainstay in the midfield. This season, she has tallied four assists while helping to keep the team ranked in the top four of the NFHCA rankings all season.

These are the first ACC postseason honors for all three student-athletes.

2024 ACC Honors

Offensive Player of the Year – Ryleigh Heck, F, Jr., North Carolina
Defensive Player of the Year – Jans Croon, D, Sr., Virginia
Goalkeeper of the Year – Charley Kramer, GK, So., Boston College
Freshman of the Year – Liz Klompmaker, F, Fr., Cal
Coach of the Year – Erin Matson, North Carolina

First Team All-ACC
Charley Kramer, GK, So., Boston College
Yani Zhong, M, Gr., Boston College
Liz Klompmaker, F, Fr., Cal
Charlie van Oirschot, F, Gr., Duke
Alaina McVeigh, F, Jr., Duke
Ryleigh Heck, F, Jr., North Carolina
Charly Bruder, F, So., North Carolina
Sietske Bruning, M/B, Jr., North Carolina
Bo van Kempen, D, Gr., Syracuse
Suze Leemans, M, Gr., Virginia
Jans Croon, D, Sr., Virginia

Second Team All-ACC
Peyton Hale, B, Gr., Boston College
Eva Kluskens, M, Jr., Boston College
Canisha van Duyn, M, Gr., Cal
Kira Curland, M, Sr., Duke
Frederique Wollaert, GK, Gr., Duke
Aimee Plumb, M, Gr., Louisville
Katie Dixon, M, Gr., North Carolina
Kelly Smith, B, Sr., North Carolina
Cara Sambeth, D/MF, R-Jr., Stanford
Willemijn Boogert, M, Sr., Syracuse
Meghen Hengerer, M, Gr., Virginia
Mia Schoenbeck, B, So., Wake Forest

12 players on the second team due to a tie in the voting