Wolverines Match Program Record with Four NFHCA All-America Selections
12/14/2021 2:19:00 PM | Field Hockey
BROCKPORT, N.Y. -- Four members of the University of Michigan field hockey team earned All-America recognition Tuesday (Dec. 14) from the National Field Hockey Coaches Association. The quartet ties the program's largest single-season All-America contingent. U-M was one of just three schools -- along with Iowa and Syracuse -- to receive four All-America nods.
Senior forward Sofia Southam was named to the 16-player first team, while fifth-year senior midfielder Halle O'Neill earned second-team honors and senior midfielder Kathryn Peterson and sophomore back Anouk Veen were selected to the third team. It is the second straight All-America honor for both O'Neill and Peterson.
Michigan has had an All-American on its roster in 24 of the last 25 years and boasted 31 different All-Americans -- combining for 49 total honors -- in its 49-year program history. It is the 14th time in program history that Michigan boasted multiple All-America selections. The Wolverines previously garnered four All-America citations in 2000 and 2002.
Southam is the 15th different U-M player to garner first-team honors in program history and the sixth in seven seasons. The 2021 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, Southam boasted 23 goals and three assists over 19 games played -- the second-best scoring average in the country this season. She has appeared in 71 games over the last four years as a forward and midfielder and owns 34 career goals and 10 assists. She also was named to the 2021 NFHCA All-West Region and All-Big Ten first teams and is a two-time Big Ten All-Tournament selection.
O'Neill wraps her collegiate career as a two-time NFHCA All-America, adding this fall's second-team nod to her first-team selection last spring. The Wolverines' field general was a key component of the defensive unit -- one that has allowed only 1.13 goals and 7.45 total shots per game over the last five seasons -- since arriving in Ann Arbor. She was a primary contributor on both the defensive and attack penalty-corner units and posted 14 career goals and 13 assists. She was a three-time All-Big Ten first team honoree and the 2020-21 Big Ten Tournament MVP.
Peterson, who repeats as an NFHCA third team All-American, posted five goals and seven assists this season -- with 18 career goals and 22 assists -- primarily as the go-to inserter on Michigan's attack corner. A major contributor to the Wolverines' midfield over the last four seasons, she also is a two-time NFHCA All-West Region first team honoree and a three-time All-Big Ten second team selection.
Veen is the first Wolverine sophomore to garner NFHCA All-America recognition since Meg Dowthwaite in 2017. Veen has been U-M's defensive anchor at the center back position since her arrival in Ann Arbor and contributed to a 0.97 goals-against average and 15 shutout victories over the last two years. A primary striker on the attack corner, Veen also has nine career goals -- five this season -- and four career assists. She has twice been named to the NFHCA All-West Region teams.
