PHILADELPHIA – Coming in off of a 10-8 road win over Davidson that snapped a seven-game losing streak this past Sunday, the Saint Joseph's women's lacrosse team (2-8, 1-1 A-10) returns to action with a pair of Atlantic 10 Conference games this weekend, beginning at home against Richmond (5-4, 1-1 A-10) on Friday, April 8. Opening draw is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. on Sweeney Field.
The Hawks will then face La Salle (3-6, 1-1 A-10) on the road this Sunday, April 10. Opening draw is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. at McCarthy Stadium. La Salle will host St. Bonaventure on Friday afternoon prior to taking on SJU. *Note: This game had originally been scheduled for noon.
Live streaming ($) of both league games will be available via a subscription to the Atlantic 10 Digital Network. Live stats will also be provided at SJUHawks.com for Friday's game and GoExplorers.com for Sunday's game.
The Hawks were picked to finish eighth in the A-10 preseason poll. Richmond was picked to finish second, while La Salle was selected fifth.
HIGH-FLYING HAWKS
Through ten games, junior attacker Nora McCallion (team-best 22g, 7a) and junior midfielder Maggie Egan (8g, team-best 17a) lead the squad on the offensive end of the field while freshman midfielder Rebecca Lane (16g, 3a), senior midfielder Mallory Grey (11g, 8a), and junior attacker Sarah Smith (11g, 3a) have also registered double-digit points for the Crimson and Gray. Egan also leads the team in draw controls (27) while junior Megan Tracy, who matches team-best numbers in ground balls (21) and caused turnovers (13), and senior defender Caroline Hagan (14gb, 13ct) have anchored SJU's defense. Senior goalkeeper Genevieve Giblin (2-8, 1-1 A-10) owns a 13.09 GAA and .357 save percentage to go with 21 ground balls in 536:12, all but 63:48 on the season.
SERIES HISTORY VS. RICHMOND
Friday's game will mark the 17th all-time meeting between the Hawks and the Spiders; Richmond leads the series, 15-1, and has won the last six consecutive meetings, including the most recent by a score of 13-6 on March 29 of last season. SJU's only program win against Richmond came in the Atlantic 10 Tournament semifinals on April 24, 2009 by a final score of 11-10.
SCOUTING THE SPIDERS
The national leader in draw controls/game (15.33) and league leader in fewest turnovers/game (12.67), Richmond enters Friday's game at 5-4 overall and 1-1 in league action. After winning four of their first five with wins over Mercer (16-2) and Liberty (16-11), a loss to then-#7 Virginia (18-12), and wins over Old Dominion (13-7) and American (12-11 2OT), the Spiders have dropped three of their last four with losses to James Madison (13-10) and William and Mary (10-9), a league win over VCU (16-9), and, most recently, a 9-8 league loss to George Mason this past Sunday. Led by A-10 leading goal scorer/game Mia Castagnero (30g, 6a), who averages 3.33 scores per contest, four Spiders own double-digit points and goals for Richmond. Michaela Aymong (3-2, 0-1 A-10) owns a 9.35 GAA and .378 save percentage in 179:44 while Danni Leserve (1-2, 1-0 A-10) sports a league-best 10.11 GAA to go with a .421 save percentage in 367:57. Richmond went 10-9 overall and 6-2 in the A-10 to finish second in the league last season.
SERIES HISTORY VS. LA SALLE
Sunday's game will mark the 19th all-time meeting between the Hawks and the Explorers; Saint Joseph's leads the series, 11-7. The Explorers have won the last two, including the most recent by a score of 17-6 on April 24 of last season. Saint Joseph's last defeated La Salle on April 12, 2013 by a final score of 13-10.
SCOUTING THE EXPLORERS
La Salle enters their next game against St. Bonaventure, scheduled for this Friday, at 3-6 overall and 1-1 in the A-10. After dropping their first five games of the season to Temple (13-2), Delaware (12-7), Robert Morris (12-11), UMBC (19-4), and Sacred Heart (11-10), the Explorers have won three of their last four with victories over Central Connecticut State (8-6) and LIU Brooklyn (15-8), an A-10 loss at Davidson (9-8), and, most recently, a 7-5 league win at VCU this past Sunday. Katelyn Fay (23g, 3a) and Ailee Ilgenfritz (18g, 7a) are La Salle's 20+ point scorers on the season, while Lucy Loughlin (2-6, 0-1 A-10) sports a 11.36 GAA and .367 save percentage in 464:56, all but 75:03 on the season. Sarah Gallagher (1-0, 1-0 A-10) played all 60:00 in the win over VCU and has played 75:03 total on the season. La Salle went 8-8 overall and 4-4 in the A-10 the tie for fifth in the league last season.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hawks snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 10-8 A-10 win at Davidson this past Sunday. The win also snapped a 10-game conference losing streak dating back to April 27, 2014. Freshman midfielder Rebecca Lane recorded a game-high five points on a game-high four goals and one assist while co-captains Mallory Grey and Nora McCallion added two goals and one assist each. Junior midfielder Megan Tracy and junior goalkeeper Genevieve Giblin recorded four ground balls and three caused turnovers each; Giblin added eight saves in the win.
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.
RECORD WATCH
Entering the weekend, Saint Joseph's senior defender Caroline Hagan owns 67 caused turnovers for her career, which ties SJU's school record. Senior goalkeeper Genevieve Giblin ranks sixth in career saves (281). Junior midfielder Maggie Egan's 17 assists thus far this year tie her for 10th all-time in the single-season category.
