Newport News, Va. –The George Mason lacrosse program had a strong showing as four student-athletes and head coach Jessy Morgan earned all-conference recognition with the announcement of the Atlantic 10 Conference lacrosse awards on Wednesday.
 
Mason freshman Deanna Balsama was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year and earned A-10 All-Conference Second Team honors. Junior Melissa Semkiw and sophomore Erin Donoghue earned Atlantic 10 All-Conference First Team awards. Senior Chachi Kelehan was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Conference Second Team. Senior Rachel Woods, sophomore Abby Folker, and junior Hailey Johnson received All-Academic Team honors.
 
Fifth-year head coach Jessy Morgan was voted Co-Coach of the Year, along with UMass head coach Angela McMahon. Morgan becomes the first Mason coach in program history to earn the honor since Amy Umbach won the award in 1997 as a member of the Colonial Athletic Association.
 
The award is Morgan's first in her fifth year as head coach for the Patriots. Mason (11-6, 7-2) finished in a tie for second place in the Atlantic 10 and reached the conference tournament for the fifth straight year. Mason has won at least 11 games for the fourth straight season. The team won seven A-10 games tying the most conference wins in program history. Mason received the No. 2 seed and earned a first-round bye into the semifinals of the A-10 Tournament.
 
Morgan has a record 55-32 with the Patriots. The 45 wins in the past four years are the most ever in a four-year stretch in program history, breaking 44 wins the previous four years.
 
The attacker from Sewell, N.J., Balsama is the second A-10 Rookie of the Year in program history following Erin Donoghue, who won the award in 2018. She is just the third conference rookie of the year overall (Meg Dentler was named CAA Rookie of the Year in 2002). 

Balsama played and started all 17 games in her first collegiate season as she was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week seven times. She led the Patriots in points (69), goals (48), assists (21), shots (101), shots on goal (82) and scored four game-winning goals, three against conference opponents. Her 69 points are 3rd most in a season in Mason program history and currently fifth in the Atlantic 10 this season. She ranks third in the A-10 in goals.
 
She finished second on the team in draw controls (55) behind Erin Donoghue (81). Her 51 draw controls in conference games ranks third in the A-10. She had a season-high 10 draw controls against Saint Joseph's which is tied for third-best in Mason history for a single-game. 

The freshman has scored multiple goals in 13 games and in nine conference games scored three or more goals six times. She recorded a career-high five goals in three games, all in conference competition. 

Melissa Semkiw earned all-conference honors for the second time. She was named to the second team all-conference in 2017. The junior goalkeeper played in all 17 games, getting the start in 16. 
 
The Frederick, Md. native, boasts an 11-5 record this season. The 11 wins are second most for a season in program history. She is second in the A-10 with a 49.1 save percentage, slightly behind Saint Joseph's Corinne Buttner (49.2 percent). In conference games, Semkiw has the top save percentage (53.2 percent). She ranks fifth in the conference in ground balls (49).

Sophomore Erin Donoghue earned Atlantic 10 All-Conference First Team honors for the second straight year. She started all 17 games and leads the team in draw controls (81) which ranks fourth in the conference. The midfielder is second among field players in ground balls (26) and caused turnovers (16).
 
The Mount Laurel, N.J. native, scored a season-high six goals at American. In seven of the nine conference games, she had multiple-goal games, including four of the Patriots' nine goals in 9-8 win against defending A-10 Champion Richmond.

Chachi Kelehan earned all-conference honors for the second consecutive season. The 5-foot-7 attacker, who was named to the All-Rookie Team in 2016, is second on the team with 39 goals, 17 assists, and 56 points.    

The Patriots open the Atlantic 10 Lacrosse Championship at 4:00 p.m. on Friday at George Mason Stadium. Mason will play the winner of the No. 3 Richmond versus No. 6 Duquesne game that will be played Thursday at 4:00 p.m.

All five games of the 2019 A-10 Women's Lacrosse Championship, which will be played at George Mason Stadium in Fairfax, Va., will be streamed on ESPN+. For watch links, ticket info, and all other coverage of the championship, go to The Women's Lacrosse championship page at atlantic10.com or the Mason Tournament page on GoMason.com.