Elmira at Houghton
Game Details	Wednesday, Mar. 28 | Houghton, N.Y. | 7:00 p.m.
Game Coverage	Live Stats: Stats Link
Houghton Links	Roster | Schedule | Stats

ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College women's lacrosse team will head to Houghton, New York, today to play the Highlanders of Houghton College in Empire 8 Conference action at 7:00 p.m. The bout, which was originally scheduled to be a home contest, will now be played on the road at Burke Field.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Soaring Eagles picked up their first win of the 2018 campaign with a 19-6 triumph over Alfred University on Saturday, March 24. Elmira was clicking on all cylinders in the win, scoring 13 goals in the first half, more than it has scored in a full game all year. Hayley Baker '19 had one of the best performances of her career in the win, as she tallied career-bests in points (9) and goals (6). Rachael Goetz '20 found the back of the net five times, one shy of her single-game career high. The addition of Sarah Hughson '18 and Kelcey Crawford '18 of the NCAA Tournament runner-up EC women's ice hockey team paid immediate dividends, as the duo combined for 14 ground balls and eight caused turnovers. Freshman Kacie Pierce '21 played all 60 minutes in the start and made five saves to earn her first collegiate win.
 
WELCOME BACK
Due to a deep run in the 2018 NCAA Women's Ice Hockey Division III Tournament, Hughson and Crawford did not debut with the lacrosse team until Saturday's win against the Saxons. As previously mentioned, neither player missed a beat, as they helped guide the Soaring Eagles to their first win of the season. Hughson did a little bit of everything for Elmira, as she paced the team with eight caused turnovers and seven ground balls to go along with five points (2g-3a). Crawford was a terror on the defensive end with seven ground balls of her own and four caused turnovers.
 
SCOUTING HOUGHTON
The Highlanders, who started the season 0-3, have rebounded nicely by winning their last three games. Their overall record evened out at 3-3 following a tense 11-10 triumph in their conference-opener against The Sage Colleges on Saturday, March 24, their most recent bout. After combining to score just 13 goals in its first six games, Houghton has tallied 45 over the current three-game winning streak. Houghton's main strength this year has been picking up ground balls, as they lead the E8 and rank 38th nationally in ground balls per game (24.7). Senior midfielder Alyssa Strom leads the team with 32 recovered ground balls, sophomore Cori Beck is not far behind with 22. Strom has been vastly important to the Highlanders this year, as she also paces the team in draw controls (26) and caused turnovers (13). Second-year attacker Marissa Hews leads Houghton with 17 points and 15 goals. Fellow sophomore Sarah Olandt has played all 360 minutes for the Highlanders and has made 50 saves with a .382 save percentage.

SERIES HISTORY
The Soaring Eagles take a 3-2 lead in the all-time series into today's contest. The Highlanders picked up a 10-9 overtime victory last season on April 29, 2017, to draw the series margin back to just one game. The year prior saw the Soaring Eagles take an 11-8 triumph at home on March 29, 2016, at Campus Field.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Elmira will next play on Saturday, March 31, when it welcomes the Pioneers of Utica College to Ernie Davis Academy for an Empire 8 bout. The opening draw is scheduled to take place at 3:00 p.m. Saturday afternoon.