Lempers Named ACC Goalkeeper of the Year, Four Cavaliers Earn All-ACC Team Honors

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia field hockey junior goalkeeper Nilou Lempers was named the ACC Goalkeeper of the Year as four Cavaliers earned All-ACC team honors announced Monday (Nov. 3) by the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Lempers was also voted to the All-ACC First Team alongside grad student midfielder Suze Leemans and junior Mia Abello. Senior Lauren Kenah was named to the second team.

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

Lempers helped anchor the Cavaliers defense that logged eight shutouts, six against ranked teams. A native of the Netherlands, Lempers has recorded 57 saves while allowing only nine goals against. She ranks second in the NCAA this season in save percentage with 0.864. The goalkeeper specific award beginning in 2023, Lempers is the first goalkeeper from Virginia to earn the honor.

Earning All-ACC first team accolades, Leemans has netted four goals with four assists this season with 11 goals in her career. This marks the seocnd consecutive season in which Leemans has earned the honor. Abello has notched six goals with two assists this season with 15 goals scored in her career as a Cavalier. Both Abello and Leemans were named to the NFHCA NCAA Division I Watchlist at the beginning of the season.

In her fourth season with the Cavaliers, Kenah earned All-ACC second team honors. Kenah has been a key member of the Cavalier’s midfield registering three assists this season and seven in her career. This marks the first ACC team honors of Kenah’s career.