University of North Carolina Athletics
Sankey Grabs Honor As MLL Rookie of the Year
July 29, 2015 | Men's Lacrosse
BOSTON, MASS. (July 29, 2015) — Major League Lacrosse today announced that Charlotte Hounds attackman Joey Sankey has been named 2015 Cascade Rookie of the Year. The award is voted on by head coaches and general managers of each of the league's eight teams.
Sankey is a native of Warminster, Pa., and a 2015 alumnus of the University of North Carolina where he finished as the University's all-time leading scorer. Earlier this month, he won the Patterson Medal as Carolina's outstanding senio athlete. Fellow Tar Heel Jimmy Bitter, who plays for the Ohio Machine, finished third in the voting. Bitter graduated this past spring as Carolina's #3 all-time scorer.
The 2015 rookie class featured some standout players, including reigning Tewaaraton Trophy winner Lyle Thompson (Florida Launch), but Sankey earned the honor with seven first-place votes and nine second-place votes for a total of 62 points to Thompson's 54 points. Rounding out third place is Ohio Machine attackman Jimmy Bitter, who finished the voting process with 21 points.
Sankey led the Hounds with 34 points (22 goals, one 2-point goal, 11 assists), despite only playing in nine games of the season. The attackman also posted a shooting percentage of 33.8%, the best of any Hounds player with 20 shots or more.
“It's a huge honor, there's a lot of great rookies so I'm really appreciative that I got it,” said Sankey. “This is the highest level of lacrosse so it's really humbling. I thought I had a decent season and felt fortunate enough just to play. We didn't have a great year as a team, but offensively we started to build chemistry (toward the end). The coaches and my teammates reallyallowed me to be aggressive and take a lot of chances, so I was really fortunate to be in the situation I was.”
The Hounds drafted Sankey with the ninth overall pick in the 2015 MLL Collegiate Draft. Prior to the start of the Draft's second round, Charlotte executed a trade with the Chesapeake Bayhawks in order to assure the Hounds were able to select Sankey.
A three-time U.S. Intercollegiate Lacosse All-America and three-time All-ACC selection from UNC, Sankey finished his collegiate career as the Tar Heels' all-time leading scorer with 229 points. He burst onto the MLL scene on May 23, recording five goals and three assists against the Boston Cannons. His eight points tied the Hounds' single-game record. It took some time for the rookie to adjust though, as seven of his points didn't come until the second half.
Sankey said he was warned by older players about the speed of MLL games, and added that what most surprised him was the wealth of talent across the field. “Whether it's a defenseman or a middie, everyone just has such good stick skills, everyone is so fast, the shots are so much faster, everything is just ramped up so much,” he said. “It's slightly overwhelming the first game to realize just how fast-paced it is.”
The rookie refused to slow down from his debut, though, tallying at least one point in each of his nine appearances. He was twice named MLL Cascade Rookie of the Week and was added to the 2015 MLL All-Star Game roster. Sankey's second Rookie of the Week nod came following the Hounds' 13-12 upset of the previously undefeated New York Lizards on May 30. That game is what Sankey considers his most-memorable moment of 2015.
“We were really down (as a team), we weren't winning very many games and went into Long Island having to play the best team in the league,” Sankey said. “It was a really hard-fought game and we ended up pulling it out. It was a scrappy game. That was also the second game my parents were able to make, so it was nice having them there because they were at every one of my college games. It was an adjustment not having them at all the games to watch.”
In that game, Sankey scored two goals and assisted on two others. His second goal of the night tied the game at 12 with just under five minutes remaining in regulation. The Hounds went on to win 13-12, handing the Lizards their first loss of 2015.
Despite all the success, Sankey still has several areas in which he'd like to improve before the 2016 season. “I want to keep working on my outside shot, I don't have a ton of range on my shot so that's something I definitely want to improve and I think that would make me a better player going forward,” he said. “And then going into the second year, building chemistry with my teammates. I'd like to have a few more assists in the upcoming season. Then the most important thing is hopefully getting some more wins and making the playoffs next year.”
