Elon’s Asher, Ramirez Added to Tewaaraton WLAX Trophy Watch List

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Elon University women’s lacrosse attacker Stephanie Asher and goalie Rachel Ramirez have been added to the Tewaaraton Trophy Watch List, the Tewaaraton Foundation announced Thursday afternoon.

With the two added to the list, Asher and Ramirez become the first two Elon players to make the Tewaaraton Watch List in program history. The Tewaaraton Trophy is presented annually to the top men’s and women’s player in the country across all three divisions. Tuesday’s announcement is the first additions to the initial 50-player lists that were announced last month.

“These players proved in the early part of this season that they deserve to be in the conversation for the game’s top award,” said Jeff Harvey, chairman of the Tewaaraton Foundation. “We congratulate this talented group on starting the season on a positive note and wish them the best of luck this spring.”

This season, Asher leads Elon with 26 goals in eight games to lead the CAA, scoring on 44 percent of her shots taken thus far. The junior from Glenelg, Md., also leads Elon in draw controls with 15 to go with five ground balls. On three occasions, Asher has scored five goals in a game to lead the Phoenix to victories. The three outings came against Campbell in the season opener, No. 13 Virginia and No. 19 Virginia Tech.

Ramirez, who has started every game in the cage in program history, has made 71 saves this season. That number is good for third in the CAA and averages out to 8.9 saves per game, which is tops in the conference. Earlier this year against High Point, Ramirez tied her career high and the program record with 15 saves against the Panthers. She also made 13 stops last week against Vanderbilt on March 8.

Asher and Ramirez represent two of the seven players on the women’s side added to the Watch List Tuesday. Athletes from Florida, Maryland, Virginia Tech and Harvard were also added to the list.

Players not named to the initial lists have several opportunities to play their way into a spot as the season progresses. The next round of watch list additions, if applicable, will be announced on April 6. On April 27, the field will be narrowed to 25 men’s and 25 women’s nominees. Nominees can be players on the watch lists or players not on the watch lists, effectively allowing for a third round of additions.

Five men’s and five women’s finalists will be announced on May 11 and invited to the ceremony. The 17th annual Tewaaraton Award Ceremony will be held in Washington, D.C., on June 1.

No. 14 Elon will return to action next Friday, March 24 at home against Coastal Carolina. Opening draw is set for 6 p.m.