Wheeling, W. Va. - Ahead of the 2026 Mountain East Conference (MEC) Women's Lacrosse Championship game between Dominican (CA.) and Frostburg State, the conference announced their annual Of The Year Award winners. After advancing to the MEC Semifinal round for the second year in a row, the Wheeling University Women's Lacrosse team was honored with two players making the list. Junior midfielder Trinity Rose earned the conference's Midfielder of the Year award, while sophomore goalie Giavonna Perkins was named the MEC's Goalie of the Year for their efforts.
Rose took home her first Midfielder of the Year Award of her career, continuing her success in the midfield from a season ago. She led the Cardinals on both sides of the ball, scoring a team-high 52 goals while scoring 72 points to lead the way. On the defensive side of the ball, Rose led the Cardinals with 49 groundballs and 36 caused turnovers, wrapping up a strong year as a two-way player. As the playoff run began, Rose would hit her peak, scoring 25 goals and picking up eight assists in her final six games, averaging 4.17 goals per game during the run. The run helped her finish third in the conference with 52 goals, averaging 3.06 goals per game, while moving her into the top 10 with 20 assists, finishing eighth in the conference. She would also find herself in the top 10 of the conference on the defensive end, sitting third with 36 caused turnovers and fourth with 49 ground balls.
Perkins took home her first Goalie of the Year award, battling back from injury to put together a breakout season in net. Despite dealing with an early-season concussion, Perkins appeared in all 17 games for the Cardinals, starting 15 of them, and made 173 saves while putting together a .474 save percentage. Her 173 saves led the MEC, with the next closest goalie having 149 saves, while her save percentage ranked fourth in the conference. She took home her first career First Team All-MEC honors this past season, continuing to grow as the season when on. In the MEC Semifinal round, she would finish with 17 saves on 28 shots faced, putting up a .607 save percentage, to keep the Cardinals in the game throughout the first half. She would put together 10 double-digit save efforts throughout the season, and continues to be a leader on the defensive side of the ball.
In total, five players and one coach were recognized for their work during the season, representing three different programs across the MEC. Frostburg State took home two awards, with Neila Haney earning the 2026 MEC Attacker of the Year, while Maya Mosslih won the Defensive Player of the Year. Point Park would also earn a pair of honors, with Andrea Kinger winning the MEC Newcomer of the Year, while Head Coach Erik Ingram won the MEC Coach of the Year.
The Wheeling University Women's Lacrosse team now heads into the off-season as they prepare to grow even more in 2027.
