WINTHROP, Mass. (February 24, 2026) – First-year forward Payton Palsa of the Stonehill College women's hockey team has been named the NEWHA Rookie of the Week, as announced by the New England Women's Hockey Alliance Tuesday afternoon.

This accolade marks Palsa's second Rookie of the Week honor of the season after previously earning the distinction on January 27 following a weekend series against Long Island University, where she netted a game-winning goal and posted an impressive .760 faceoff winning percentage (19-for-25) against the Sharks.

Palsa delivered a career performance during the Skyhawks' 6-4 victory over Saint Michael's College on Friday, recording three points on a goal and two assists. Over the course of the weekend, she added a +2 on-ice rating, two shots on goal, and went 16-for-26 at the faceoff dot for a 61.5% success rate. Her efforts also etched her name in the record book, as Palsa set a new rookie program record with 272 faceoff wins during her first-year campaign.

Stonehill (16–16–2, 16–10–2 NEWHA) will open conference postseason play this weekend with a best-of-three quarterfinal series against rival LIU beginning Friday at 5 p.m. inside Bridgewater Ice Arena.

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