Aug. 24, 2011
EVANSTON, Ill. -- With two days remaining before the start of the 2011 field hockey season, the Big Ten announced Wednesday its inaugural Preseason Players to Watch list. The group of 21 student-athletes includes three Wildcats: junior Chelsea Armstrong, sophomore Nikki Parsley and redshirt freshman Kelsey Thompson.
Armstrong, the 2010 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, has been one of the most potent offensive players in the Big Ten since arriving at NU in 2009. Last year, she set career highs and led all Big Ten players with 24 goals and 12 assists en route to finishing the year ranked third nationally with 3.16 points per game. Her 60 points on the year raised her two-year total at NU to 116 -- good for fourth all-time at Northwestern -- while her 46 goals leave her fifth in school history.
The Australian native is a two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection.
Parsley, meanwhile, served as the perfect complement to Armstrong up top, starting all 20 games in her rookie year and scoring eight goals -- good for second on the team -- and adding five assists. Her season high of five points came against Saint Louis on Sept. 12 and Parsley capped off her first season in Evanston by scoring the lone goal in NU's Big Ten Tournament contest vs. Michigan State.
Parsley then made her mark on the international scene this spring, competing in Chile for the United States U-19 team and later earning selection to the 2011-12 U.S. U-21 national team.
Thompson, a native of Ann Arbor, Mich., redshirted last season and came on last spring when she was named to the Midwest Junior High Performance team that competed at the Junior National Championships in Virginia Beach.
The Wildcats begin their third season under the direction of head coach Tracey Fuchs this weekend, traveling to face Kent State at 11 a.m. CT Friday and Miami (Ohio) at 11 a.m. CT Sunday.
2011 Big Ten Field Hockey Preseason Players to Watch
Morgan Fleetwood, Jr., Indiana
Katie Griswold, Sr., Indiana
Brenna Moeljadi, Sr., Indiana
Jessica Barnett, Jr., Iowa
Sarah Drake, Jr., Iowa
Kathleen McGraw, Jr., Iowa
Jess Allen, Sr., Michigan
Bryn Bain, Sr., Michigan
Rachael Mack, So., Michigan
Molly Cassidy, So., Michigan State
Kristen Henn, Jr., Michigan State
Adelle Lever, Jr., Michigan State
Chelsea Armstrong, Jr., Northwestern
Nikki Parsley, So., Northwestern
Kelsey Thompson, R-Fr., Northwestern
Paula Pastor-Pitarque, So., Ohio State
Berta Queralt, Sr., Ohio State
Jenn Sciulli, Sr., Ohio State
Hannah Allison, Jr., Penn State
Lauren Alloway, Sr., Penn State
Laura Gebhart, Fr., Penn State
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