ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College women's lacrosse team is in action twice this weekend, as the Soaring Eagles travel to face the Golden Flyers of Nazareth College on Saturday, April 22, before battling the Roos of SUNY Canton at EC's Campus Field on Sunday, April 23. The opening draw for Saturday's clash with Nazareth is set for 4:00 p.m. in Rochester, New York, while Sunday's game against SUNY Canton is slated for 1:00 p.m. Elmira will honor its three graduating members of the Class of 2017 prior to Sunday's game against the Roos.
LAST TIME OUT: Elmira had its hands full last time out, as the Soaring Eagles dropped a 20-2 decision to the Ducks of Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey. EC stood toe-to-toe with the Ducks for the first 12 minutes of the first half thanks to goals by
Rachel Grampp '18 and
Mae Dinh '18, which brought the score to 3-2. However, from that point on, the No. 5 regionally-ranked Ducks scored 17 unanswered goals to power past the Purple and Gold in Empire 8 Conference action. EC's starting netminder,
Lindsay Wargo '17, finished with five saves in 60 minutes of action between the posts.
HUGHSON CRACKS TOP 10: Sarah Hughson '18 has had a solid third season as a key member of EC's midfield corps. The East Haddam, Connecticut, native has racked up 23 caused turnovers during the 2017 campaign, a mark that is tied for the team lead with
Kelcey Crawford '18. The 23 caused turnovers are six shy of the career-high total (29) that she accumulated last season and brings her career total to 63, which is tied for seventh in program history.
SCOUTING NAZARETH: The Golden Flyers head into Saturday's bout against Elmira with a 7-6 overall record and hold down the third spot in the Empire 8 Conference standings with a 3-2 E8 record. Nazareth is only one game above .500, but that number could be much higher had the Golden Flyers been able to turn a pair of one-goal losses to Brockport and SUNY Cortland – both of which tout a top-eight regional ranking – into wins. Haley DeVona has paced the Nazareth offense with a team-high 35 goals and eight assists, second-most of any Golden Flyer this season. Jamie Martin and Kate Rothrock have also been solid contributors with 29 and 28 goals, respectively. Although, Rothrock may be the most versatile threat of the two with a team-leading 23 assists. Martin and Rothrock have also gotten it done of the defensive side of the ball as the duo sits 1-2 on the team leaderboard with 23 and 22 caused turnovers, respectively. Brianna Rizzari has gotten the starting nod in net for Nazareth in all 13 games this season. She owns a 7-6 record with 95 saves and a 10.52 goals-against average.
SERIES HISTORY VS. NAZARETH: The Golden Flyers have been nothing short of dominant in the all-time series against Elmira. Nazareth owns a spotless 19-0 record against the Soaring Eagles since their first meeting during the 2000 season.
SCOUTING CANTON: After opening the 2017 campaign with four straight losses, the Kangaroos seem to have hit their stride and head into Sunday's contest with six wins in their last eight games, bringing SUNY Canton's overall record to an even 6-6. The Roos have played in their fair share of away games this season with a 3-5 road record, which includes a 1-2 mark in their last three away games with setbacks against Clarkson University (20-3) and SUNY Potsdam (14-5). MaryClare Bowes has been a steady source of offense for Canton during her sophomore season with a team-leading 32 points on a team-high 27 goals and five assists. Bowes has had five games in which she has found the back of the cage three-or-more times, including her most recent contest that saw the Irondequoit, New York, native pepper Alfred University's netminder with four tallies. Molly Denny has set up the Canton attack with a team-leading 12 assists, the only Roo with double-digit helpers this season. Defensively, Becca Kieffer has been Canton's top choice in net and sports a 4-5 record with 80 saves and an 11.88 goals-against average.
SERIES HISTORY VS. CANTON: Elmira and Canton have met just five times in their respective histories. The Soaring Eagles hold a slight 3-2 edge in those contests, but Canton has the most recent win in the series, a 15-7 victory in 2016.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Elmira women are back in action next Wednesday, April 26, when the Soaring Eagles welcome St. John Fisher to Campus Field for a 4:00 p.m. Empire 8 Conference contest. Wednesday's game will serve as Elmira's home finale for the 2017 regular season.
