Three days after powering Virginia to the program's fourth NCAA championship, junior attackman Steele Stanwick was recognized for his effort by taking home the Tewaaraton Award, given to the nation's top college player.
On the women's side, Northwestern attacker Shannon Smith won after leading the Wildcats to an upset 8-7 victory over No. 1 Maryland for their sixth championship in seven years.
Stanwick, a Baltimore native and Loyola graduate, outlasted Cornell junior attackman Rob Pannell, Army senior attackman Jeremy Boltus and Syracuse senior goalkeeper John Galloway and senior long-stick midfielder Joel White for the award.
Stanwick registered 21 points in leading the Cavaliers to their first national championship since 2006. He finished the season ranked third in Division I in assists (38) and fourth in points per game (4.1).
Stanwick's numbers weren't quite as good as those of Pannell's (first in the country in points with 89, assists with 47 and points per game with 5.2), but the Big Red fell to Virginia in the NCAA tournament quarterfinals.
Hofstra midfielder Doug Shanahan is the only player in the award's 11-year history to claim the honor after his team failed to reach the national final.
Stanwick has a chance to join Syracuse attackman Michael Powell as the only two-time Tewaaraton winner. Powell won the award in 2002 and 2004.
Smith, a junior from Long Island, was named Most Valuable Player of the NCAA tournament after scoring four goals, including the game-winner, in the title game, and her 18 goals in the four tournament games rank as the second-most all-time for a single tournament.
Smith, who finished the season as the nation's leading scorer with 86 goals and 42 assists, gives Northwestern its fifth Tewaaraton in six years. She is the third Wildcat to win the trophy after Kristen Kjellman in 2006 and 2007, and Hannah Nielsen in 2008 and 2009. Maryland's Caitlyn McFadden won last year after the Terrapins beat Northwestern in the title game.
Maryland had two Tewaaraton finalists this year in Sarah Mollison and Century graduate Katie Schwarzmann along with Loyola's Grace Gavin, a St. Paul's graduate, and Duke's Emma Hamm.