NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Yale women's lacrosse team honored three players with team awards at the annual postseason luncheon at Tsai Lacrosse Field House last Friday. Senior midfielder Fallon Vaughn (Concord, Mass.) received the Bowditch Award as the team's most valuable player, senior midfielder Taylor Lane (Norwalk, Conn.) received the Bulldog Award and senior defender Sophie Straka (Chatham, N.J.) won the Holgate Award. 

All three award winners were selected by a team vote. They helped Yale to a historic season that included a second straight NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals appearance and Ivy League Tournament Championship. The Bulldogs' 16 overall wins were second-most in school history. 

The Bulldogs were ranked as high as No. 4 in the national polls, and they were the No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament. 
 
Bowditch Award
Fallon Vaughn

The Barbara Bowditch Award, named after Yale's first women's lacrosse head coach, is the latest in a series of major honors for Vaughn. Earlier in the month she earned All-America recognition from ILWomen for the third year in a row. Vaughn was a first team ILWomen Midseason All-America selection earlier this year. She was also a first team preseason All-America selection by both ILWomen and USA Lacrosse. She was named a second team USA Lacrosse All-American earlier this month. On Tuesday night she was announced as one of the selections for the Women's Lacrosse League All-Star Game, which takes place in Kansas City on July 4.

Vaughn also earned first team All-Northeast Region recognition from the IWLCA this year. That was the third IWLCA All-Northeast Region honor of her career. 

Vaughn's list of honors this year also includes being one of three Tewaaraton Award nominees from the Ivy League. She was fourth in the league in points (50-30-80), was seventh in the league in goals (50) and was seventh in the league in assists (30). She was fourth on the team in draw controls (42). 

Vaughn has earned four first team All-Ivy League honors, making her the third Bulldog to accomplish that feat and the first since Lauren Taylor '08.

Vaughn started all 74 games of her career. She ranks second on Yale's career caused turnovers list (82), third on Yale's career assists list (80), sixth on Yale's career goals list (148) and sixth on Yale's career draw controls list (151). She  is a graduate of Concord-Carlisle High.
 
Bulldog Award
Taylor Lane

The Bulldog Award is presented to the player "who exemplifies consistent passion for the game, is fiercely competitive, and makes their teammates better." Lane earned the award for the second year in a row, once again finding all sorts of ways to contribute to the team's success. 

Lane was second on the team in assists (27) and was eighth in the league in draw controls (77). She led the team in shooting percentage (.494) and ground balls (35), was second on the team in draw controls and was third on the team in points (39-27-66).

Lane earned her first All-America recognition this season, with both ILWomen and USA Lacrosse honoring her. She also earned the first IWLCA All-Northeast Region honor of her career, making the first team. Lane earned All-Ivy honors four times in her career, including first-team recognition this year. 

Earlier this month Lane was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Ivy League Tournament, earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team. 

Lane, who started all 74 games of her Yale career, ranks fifth on Yale's career draw controls list (240). She is a graduate of Greenwich Academy.
 
Holgate Award
Sophie Straka

The Holgate Award is given to the player who most exemplifies leadership and a team-first mentality in advancing the Yale women's lacrosse program. It is named after James G. "Gib" Holgate, a member of the Yale athletic administration from 1954 to 1985. 

Straka, Yale's captain, led the Bulldogs on and off the field while earning Academic All-Ivy League. She missed all of the 2024 season due to injury but returned to her starting role this year. She started all 20 games, finishing with 45 starts for her career. A leader on Yale's defense, which is ranked No. 4 nationally (8.80), she was fifth on the team in ground balls (25). 

A cognitive science major, Straka was an IWLCA Academic Honor Roll selection in 2024. She is a graduate of Chatham High School.