Hoeg, Ortega Named ILWomen National Players Of The Year
April 8, 2020 | Women's Lacrosse
CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina attackers Katie Hoeg and Jamie Ortega have been named Inside Lacrosse's National Players of the Year, as announced by the magazine on Wednesday.
The duo joins Kara Cannizzaro, the winner of the 2013 Honda Sports Award, as the only players in UNC's 25-season history to win a national player of the year award. Hoeg and Ortega also become the first pair of players, let alone teammates, to share the honor from Inside Lacrosse, which started awarding postseason honors in 2014.
"What an honor, and very appropriate," said head coach Jenny Levy. "Katie and Jamie both are hardworking and humble, and this is a great way to demonstrate the power of being a great teammate and investing in not just your own success, but in your teammates' success.
"It's a unique situation. I have two really talented players who together have increased their abilities and their opportunities to be successful on the field, like, times 10. It just shows you that alone you can be great, but with a teammate – and with teammates – you can be even better. And I think that's such a great lesson for all of us."
A senior from Mattituck, New York, Hoeg facilitated an offense that ranked second nationally in scoring (19.57 goals per game) before the season was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The two-time first-team All-American tied for first nationally in points (52) and points per game (7.43), tallying eight in five of seven games. She also ranked second nationally in assists (30) and assists per game (4.29), dishing out six on three occasions.
Already the Tar Heels' career assist leader entering the season, Hoeg became the school's all-time leading scorer in what proved to be the team's last game of the season on March 9 at Northwestern. With four goals and four assists against the Wildcats, she boosted her career point total to 261, breaking Corey Donohoe's record of 256, set from 2008-11.
Hoeg also owns the school record for single-season assists (73), set in 2019.
"I'm extremely excited to be recognized alongside Jamie for this honor," said Hoeg of her latest achievement. "Besides being a gifted lacrosse player, she's an amazing teammate, and a great friend. I don't think I'd be in this position without the entirety of our 2020 team and coaches."
Ortega, a junior from Centereach, New York, proved once again to be one of the country's top offensive threats. Also a two-time first-team All-American, she tied for sixth in the nation with 32 goals, ranked third with 4.57 goals per game, tied for sixth with 45 points and tied for fourth with 6.43 points per game. She also ranked first in the country in shot percentage (.762), scoring her 32 goals on just 42 shots.
Over the course of the season, Ortega moved up from eighth to tied for fourth with Marie McCool (2015-18) on UNC's career goals list with 183. Ortega also jumped up from 12th to fifth on the school's career points list with 243.
"This honor is a great accomplishment, and I couldn't be happier to be sharing it with my teammate, Katie Hoeg," said Ortega, whose 81 goals in 2019 set a school record. "She's an inspiration and an amazing player, and to be honored with her makes this even more special."
Combining for 216 of the Tar Heels' 490 points in 2019, Hoeg (104) and Ortega (112) became the first two 100-point scorers in school history. Yet, both were on the verge of even more impressive numbers this season. In seven games, they totaled 97 of Carolina's 206 points, putting each of them on pace to eclipse 100 points before top-ranked UNC even began postseason play.
Over the last two seasons, Hoeg and Ortega have combined for 313 points across 28 games. No active duo in NCAA Division I has totaled more than 246 points in that span.
"Katie came into our program obviously really talented and as someone who had had a lot of success previously, but it was also really clear that she's somebody who's worked really hard for her success," Levy said. "Although she had played every minute of every game in high school, starting in seventh grade as an impact player, coming into a Division I lacrosse program like ours is a different level. And yet, it didn't take her long to adjust to get herself on the field.
"It also speaks volumes to her work ethic because if you watch her trajectory as a player over the past four years, she's continued to grow her game and get better and work on the little nuances that separate her. And then with Jamie by her side, it's really helped her find her strengths and expose her strengths.
"With Jamie, she came in with even higher expectations than Katie did, if possible. She came out of high school as the second all-time leading scorer in her area, which is really hard to do. She came in as the No. 2 recruit in the country that year, so I feel like she's had a lot of pressure on her. And the best way Jamie's handled it is she's taken Katie's lead as far as just keep working.
"She had a great work ethic coming in, but she's also extremely humble and she does her job on the field, which is to score and assist goals. But it's not something that she's hunting all the time, and I think that's something we've wanted her to do more, actually. So, it's this very unique personality in both of them that's humble and hardworking.
"And just like Katie, Jamie has proven that her performance and her excellence comes from knowing that the people around her want to see her succeed, they want to see her do her best. And if there's a game that it's not her best, it's OK. But for the most part, I think our team has given Jamie permission to shine. And I think Katie has enabled that a lot."
The duo joins Kara Cannizzaro, the winner of the 2013 Honda Sports Award, as the only players in UNC's 25-season history to win a national player of the year award. Hoeg and Ortega also become the first pair of players, let alone teammates, to share the honor from Inside Lacrosse, which started awarding postseason honors in 2014.
"What an honor, and very appropriate," said head coach Jenny Levy. "Katie and Jamie both are hardworking and humble, and this is a great way to demonstrate the power of being a great teammate and investing in not just your own success, but in your teammates' success.
"It's a unique situation. I have two really talented players who together have increased their abilities and their opportunities to be successful on the field, like, times 10. It just shows you that alone you can be great, but with a teammate – and with teammates – you can be even better. And I think that's such a great lesson for all of us."
A senior from Mattituck, New York, Hoeg facilitated an offense that ranked second nationally in scoring (19.57 goals per game) before the season was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The two-time first-team All-American tied for first nationally in points (52) and points per game (7.43), tallying eight in five of seven games. She also ranked second nationally in assists (30) and assists per game (4.29), dishing out six on three occasions.
Already the Tar Heels' career assist leader entering the season, Hoeg became the school's all-time leading scorer in what proved to be the team's last game of the season on March 9 at Northwestern. With four goals and four assists against the Wildcats, she boosted her career point total to 261, breaking Corey Donohoe's record of 256, set from 2008-11.
Hoeg also owns the school record for single-season assists (73), set in 2019.
"I'm extremely excited to be recognized alongside Jamie for this honor," said Hoeg of her latest achievement. "Besides being a gifted lacrosse player, she's an amazing teammate, and a great friend. I don't think I'd be in this position without the entirety of our 2020 team and coaches."
Ortega, a junior from Centereach, New York, proved once again to be one of the country's top offensive threats. Also a two-time first-team All-American, she tied for sixth in the nation with 32 goals, ranked third with 4.57 goals per game, tied for sixth with 45 points and tied for fourth with 6.43 points per game. She also ranked first in the country in shot percentage (.762), scoring her 32 goals on just 42 shots.
Over the course of the season, Ortega moved up from eighth to tied for fourth with Marie McCool (2015-18) on UNC's career goals list with 183. Ortega also jumped up from 12th to fifth on the school's career points list with 243.
"This honor is a great accomplishment, and I couldn't be happier to be sharing it with my teammate, Katie Hoeg," said Ortega, whose 81 goals in 2019 set a school record. "She's an inspiration and an amazing player, and to be honored with her makes this even more special."
Combining for 216 of the Tar Heels' 490 points in 2019, Hoeg (104) and Ortega (112) became the first two 100-point scorers in school history. Yet, both were on the verge of even more impressive numbers this season. In seven games, they totaled 97 of Carolina's 206 points, putting each of them on pace to eclipse 100 points before top-ranked UNC even began postseason play.
Over the last two seasons, Hoeg and Ortega have combined for 313 points across 28 games. No active duo in NCAA Division I has totaled more than 246 points in that span.
"Katie came into our program obviously really talented and as someone who had had a lot of success previously, but it was also really clear that she's somebody who's worked really hard for her success," Levy said. "Although she had played every minute of every game in high school, starting in seventh grade as an impact player, coming into a Division I lacrosse program like ours is a different level. And yet, it didn't take her long to adjust to get herself on the field.
"It also speaks volumes to her work ethic because if you watch her trajectory as a player over the past four years, she's continued to grow her game and get better and work on the little nuances that separate her. And then with Jamie by her side, it's really helped her find her strengths and expose her strengths.
"With Jamie, she came in with even higher expectations than Katie did, if possible. She came out of high school as the second all-time leading scorer in her area, which is really hard to do. She came in as the No. 2 recruit in the country that year, so I feel like she's had a lot of pressure on her. And the best way Jamie's handled it is she's taken Katie's lead as far as just keep working.
"She had a great work ethic coming in, but she's also extremely humble and she does her job on the field, which is to score and assist goals. But it's not something that she's hunting all the time, and I think that's something we've wanted her to do more, actually. So, it's this very unique personality in both of them that's humble and hardworking.
"And just like Katie, Jamie has proven that her performance and her excellence comes from knowing that the people around her want to see her succeed, they want to see her do her best. And if there's a game that it's not her best, it's OK. But for the most part, I think our team has given Jamie permission to shine. And I think Katie has enabled that a lot."
Players Mentioned
Attacker
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Midfielder
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Attacker
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