Heck Named South Region Player Of The Year

North Carolina's Ryleigh Heck has been named the South Region Player of the Year, recognizing her outstanding sophomore season as the Tar Heels claimed the 2023 NCAA Championship. The award was announced on Thursday by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA), which honored players from each of five regions.

"Ryleigh deserves this recognition, and she knows every award would not have been possible without her teammates beside her," UNC coach Erin Matson said. "Her incredible skill, competitiveness on the field, and execution in the big moments was key in our team's success. We are so grateful Ryleigh is a Tar Heel, and I am excited for her to continue excelling on and off the field here at Carolina."

Heck built upon an outstanding freshman year to put together an equally impressive 2023 season at Carolina. For the second year in a row, she was named to the All-Atlantic Coast Conference first team and the All-South Region first team. She was the 2023 ACC Tournament MVP after scoring the gamewinner and then assisting on UNC's second goal in the title game, and she was also named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team. In the NCAA final, she scored the deciding goal in a sudden-death penalty shootout, giving the Tar Heels a 2-1 double OT win.

For the season, she led UNC in scoring with 34 points on 13 goals and eight assists.

The Tar Heels finished the season 18-3, winning the program's 11^th NCAA Championship and 26^th ACC Championship.

Honorees from the other regions were:
Mid-Atlantic: Iris Langejans, Senior, Rutgers
Mideast: Caroline Ramsey, Senior, Cornell
Northeast: Bronte-May Brough, Sophomore, Harvard
West: Lauren Wadas, Senior, Northwestern

All five players are now in the running for NFHCA National Player of the Year honors, which will be announced on Dec. 15.

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Ryleigh Heck

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