PHILADELPHIA - The Hawks will take a three-game winning streak into the weekend as the Saint Joseph's women's lacrosse team (4-8, 3-1 A-10) hosts a pair of Atlantic 10 Conference games, beginning with Duquesne (5-6, 3-1 A-10) on Friday, April 15. Opening draw is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. The Hawks and Dukes are currently in a three-way tie with George Mason for second in league standings.
The Hawks will then host St. Bonaventure (3-9, 1-3 A-10) this Sunday, April 17. Opening draw is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. The Bonnies will first face UMass on Friday afternoon prior to taking on SJU.
Live streaming ($) of both league games will be available via a subscription to the Atlantic 10 Digital Network, while live stats will be provided at SJUHawks.com.
The Hawks were picked to finish eighth in the A-10 preseason poll. Duquesne was picked to finish third, while St. Bonaventure was selected ninth.
LACROSSE ALUMNI WEEKEND ON HAWK HILL
The Saint Joseph's women's lacrosse program in conjunction with the Saint Joseph's University Alumni Association would like to welcome back all alumni for Alumni Weekend this Friday and Sunday!
FREE YOUTH CLINIC
Following Friday's game against Duquesne, the Saint Joseph's women's lacrosse program will host a free youth clinic for players in 1st through 6th grade. All skill levels are welcome to join the one-hour clinic, which will be coached by current SJU players. Anyone interested in participating in the clinic should come with their sticks, goggles, and mouth guards.
HIGH-FLYING HAWKS
Through 12 games, junior attacker Nora McCallion (team-best 28g, 8a) and junior midfielder Maggie Egan (13g, team-best 21a, team-best 29 draw controls) lead the squad on the offensive end of the field while freshman midfielder Rebecca Lane (20g, 5a), senior midfielder Mallory Grey (14g, 9a), junior attacker Sarah Smith (12g, 4a), and sophomore midfielder Aly Gormley (10g, 1a) have also scored 10+ goals for the Crimson and Gray. Saint Joseph's all-time leader in caused turnovers, senior Caroline Hagan leads a defensive unit of junior Megan Tracy (25gb, team-best 15ct) and sophomores Kate Payne and Catie Vivian while senior goalkeeper Genevieve Giblin (4-8, 3-1 A-10) owns an 11.29 GAA and .400 save percentage to go with a team-best 30 ground balls in 656:12, all but 63:48 on the season.
SERIES HISTORY VS. DUQUESNE
Friday's game will mark the 18th all-time meeting between the Hawks and the Dukes; Duquesne leads the series, 16-1, and has won the last six consecutive meetings. SJU's only program win against Duquesne came by a final of 15-10 on April 5, 2009.
SCOUTING THE DUKES (5-6, 3-1 A-10)
After dropping five of their first six games of the season with losses to Penn State (19-5), Ohio State (16-6), Canisius (17-6), Michigan (9-4), UMBC (11-6) and a win over Saint Francis PA (15-7), the Dukes have won three of their last four with an A-10 opening win over St. Bonaventure (25-8), loss to UMass (15-9), and back-to-back wins over VCU (12-10) and Richmond (7-6 OT). Jill Vacanti (30g, 4a), who leads the league in free position percentage (63.6%), Shaw Kaelin (21g, 3a), and Tess Drotar (13g, 3a) lead the Dukes in scoring while Jenna Bishop (5-5, 3-1 A-10), who leads the league in total saves (95) and saves per game (8.64), sports an 11.20 GAA and .461 save percentage in 594:54. Duquesne went 9-9 overall and 5-3 in the A-10 last season to tie for third in the final regular-season standings.
SERIES HISTORY VS. ST. BONAVENTURE
Sunday's game will mark the 17th all-time meeting between the Hawks and the Bonnies; the series is tied, 8-8. Prior to last season's 15-10 loss, Saint Joseph's had won three straight games between 2012-14.
SCOUTING THE BONNIES (3-9, 1-3 A-10)
St. Bonaventure enters their next game against Massachusetts, scheduled for this Friday, at 3-9 overall and 1-3 in the A-10. After starting the season 2-2 with wins over Delaware State (20-8) and Howard (17-5) and losses to Robert Morris (17-10) and Siena (18-7), the Bonnies have dropped seven of their last eight with losses to Mount St. Mary's (18-11), Niagara (14-6), St. Francis PA (16-14), Canisius (16-5), Duquesne (25-8), La Salle (14-4), and, most recently, VCU (18-11) on April 10; SBU picked up a league win over George Washington (12-9) on April 3. Taylor Fallon (25g, 11a) and Mikayla Place (17g, 17a) lead the Bonnies in scoring while Kerrigan Cummins (2-9, 1-3 A-10) owns a 15.71 GAA and .375 save percentage in 439:20. St. Bonaventure went 2-15 overall and 1-7 in the A-10 last season to place eighth in the final regular-season standings.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hawks swept Atlantic 10 Conference action this past weekend with an 11-7 win over Richmond and 11-6 win at La Salle. Junior midfielder Maggie Egan recorded a team-best nine points (5g, 4a) while junior goalkeeper Genevieve Giblin posted 17 saves and nine ground balls through the pair of contests. Additionally, senior defender Caroline Hagan broke SJU's all-time program record (previously 67) in career caused turnovers against Richmond and now has 71 for her career.
HAWKS PICKED EIGHTH IN A-10 PRESEASON POLL
The Saint Joseph's women's lacrosse team was picked to finish eighth in the Atlantic 10 this season, according to the conference's preseason poll. Under the direction of second-year head coach Alex Kahoe, Saint Joseph's returned 18 Hawks, including nine starters, and added eight newcomers to the field for the 2016 season.
ATLANTIC 10 CONFERENCE STANDINGS
1. Massachusetts (4-0) – Up next: St. Bonaventure
2. George Mason (3-1) – Up next: La Salle
2. Duquesne (3-1) – Up next: Saint Joseph's
2. Saint Joseph's (3-1) – Up next: Duquesne
3. Davidson (2-2) – Up next: VCU
3. La Salle (2-2) – Up next: George Mason
4. Richmond (1-3) – Up next: George Washington
4. St. Bonaventure (1-3) – Up next: UMass
4. VCU (1-3) – Up next: Davidson
5. George Washington (0-4) – Up next: Richmond
RECORD WATCH
Saint Joseph's senior defender Caroline Hagan now owns SJU's all-time record for career caused turnovers with 71, with at least five regular-season games remaining. Senior goalkeeper Genevieve Giblin ranks sixth in career saves (298). Junior midfielder Maggie Egan's 21 assists thus far this year tie her for fourth all-time in the single-season category; the record is 24. Egan also ties for 10th in career assists (29).
THREE'S COMPANY
The Hawks have won three Atlantic 10 games in the same season just one other time since joining the league in 1999, winning five in 2009. That 2009 squad went on to play in the Atlantic 10 Championship game. Additionally, the Hawks are on a three-game league winning streak for the first time since 2009.
