March 5, 2012
Patriot League Women's Lacrosse Release - 3.5.12 
Center Valley, Pa. -- The women's lacrosse season is not even a month old for most squads, but already the chase for the 2012 Patriot League title is on with the League openers on Saturday.
Three Patriot League contests are set for Saturday afternoon, including a matchup of two teams that made last year's League Tournament when Lehigh visits Colgate at 1 p.m. Navy begins its quest for a third straight League title by welcoming Bucknell at 12 p.m., while American visits Holy Cross in a 4 p.m. start. Lafayette will begin its League slate next week.
Each team still has one more game to play before the League openers on Saturday, as all seven teams have a contest scheduled prior to the weekend. Bucknell hosts Presbyterian while Holy Cross visits High Point on Monday. On Tuesday, Lehigh travels to No. 2 North Carolina while Lafayette heads to La Salle. Navy hosts Robert Morris, Colgate welcomes Cornell and American is at Virginia Tech on Wednesday in the final action before the League slate.
Navy heads towards the League slate with momentum, as an 8-7 win at Bryant on Saturday was the fifth in a row for the Mids. It also gave Head Coach Cindy Timchal 399 career wins, and on Wednesday she will try to become the first coach on either the men's or women's side to reach 400 victories.
American and Lafayette also hold winning records early in the season, with the Eagles improving to 3-1 with a 16-10 victory over Old Dominion on Saturday. The Leopards are at 3-2, which included an 8-6 win in overtime at Marist on Thursday.
Lehigh also got in the win column last week, pulling out an 11-9 triumph over Robert Morris on Saturday to snap a two-game slide.
Patriot League Women's Lacrosse Weekly Awards (Feb. 27-March 4)
Offensive Player of the Week
JASMINE DePOMPEO, NAVY Jr., A, Sayville, N.Y.
DePompeo had an outstanding all-around effort to lead Navy to an 8-7 win at Bryant on Saturday. She tallied two goals and an assist, including the game-winner with 6:57 to play as Navy rallied for the win. DePompeo also recorded three ground balls, two caused turnovers and a draw control in the contest. She has scored a point in 17 straight contests, and the Tewaaraton Award candidate has 80 career goals. DePompeo leads the Patriot League with 23 points for the season, scoring 12 goals and a League-high 11 assists. She is named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week for the second time in her career.
Midfield Player of the Week
EMILY BURTON, AMERICAN Jr., M, Catonsville, Md.
Burton played two strong games as the Eagles split contests against Richmond and Old Dominion last week. She tallied a career-high five goals against the Spiders on Wednesday, including four unassisted, as the Eagles came up just short in a 12-11 defeat. Burton again led the Eagle offense on Saturday by notching two goals and two assists in a 16-10 win over Old Dominion. She also totaled three draw controls and a caused turnover in the game. Burton has 13 goals and three assists for the season, and leads the Patriot League in both goals and points per game. She receives her first Midfield Player of the Week award.
Defensive Player of the Week
JULIE McBRIEN, LEHIGH Jr., M, Pearl River, N.Y.
McBrien helped Lehigh to an 11-9 win over Robert Morris on Saturday by contributing in all phases of the game. She totaled three caused turnovers and two draw controls to go with a goal and two assists as Lehigh came away with the victory. McBrien had two caused turnovers, two ground balls, a draw control and an assist in a 14-5 loss to Temple on Thursday. The junior earns her first weekly award from the Patriot League.
Rookie of the Week
CARLI SUKONIK, LEHIGH Fr., A, Penn Valley, Pa.
Sukonik had a big day in Lehigh's 11-9 win over Robert Morris on Saturday, scoring a pair of goals and adding two ground balls and six draw controls to help the Mountain Hawks to the victory. The six draw controls tied the top mark for a Lehigh player in the last six seasons. The goals came consecutively after Robert Morris had trimmed Lehigh's lead to 5-4. Sukonik also had an assist in a 14-5 loss to Temple on Thursday. She earns her first Rookie of the Week honor.
Honorable Mentions
KATHY YOUNG, NAVY Jr., M, Berwyn, Pa.
Young tallied three goals, three ground balls, five draw controls and three caused turnovers in Navy's 8-7 win at Bryant on Saturday.
KELLY DRAPER, LEHIGH Sr., A, Ocean Port, N.J.
Draper finished with five goals and an assist in two games for the Mountain Hawks.
KATELYNN MILLER, BUCKNELL So., M, Reisterstown, Md.
Miller tied a school record with six caused turnovers and also added three ground balls and two draw controls in a 15-7 loss to George Washington on Saturday.
KIMBERLY COLLINS, AMERICAN Jr., A, Princeton Junction, N.J.
Collins had three goals and three assists as American split home games with Richmond and Old Dominion.
Patriot League Notebook
Patriot League Schedule Starts Saturday
The chase for the 2012 Patriot League title begins in earnest on Saturday with Bucknell at Navy, Lehigh at Colgate and American at Holy Cross in League openers. Lafayette will begin its League slate the next week, with Patriot League games continuing for seven consecutive weekends before the end of the regular season on April 21. The 2012 Patriot League Tournament will be played at the site of the highest seed with the semifinals on April 27 and the championship matchup on April 29.
Navy's Timchal Closing in on History
Navy Head Coach Cindy Timchal is up to 399 career wins with the Mids now on a five-game winning streak. That puts Timchal just one win shy of becoming the first lacrosse coach to win 400 games at any level for either gender. She has a good chance to do it at home, too, with the Mids opening a four-game homestand on Wednesday against Robert Morris.
Defending Champion Navy Picked First in Preseason Poll
Winners of the past two Patriot League Women's Lacrosse titles, Navy has been picked to take home its third in a row in 2012 as the Mids were the unanimous choice of opposing coaches and sports information directors in the sport's preseason poll. Navy claimed 72 points and all 12 first-place votes from the other six schools, as coaches and sports information directors were not allowed to vote for their own team. Colgate, who won last year's regular-season title, followed with 61 points and two first-place votes. Lehigh placed third with 53 points, and was followed in order by American (41), Holy Cross (28), Lafayette (27) and Bucknell (12). Navy junior attack Jasmine DePompeo was voted as the Patriot League Women's Lacrosse Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, earning a unanimous selection from opposing coaches and sports information directors. Lehigh senior midfielder Leigh Ann Torcivia claimed the Patriot League Preseason Defensive Player of the Year honor.
DePompeo Adds National Recognition on Tewaaraton Award Watch List
Navy women's lacrosse junior attack Jasmine DePompeo has been named to the 2012 Tewaaraton Award Watch List. DePompeo is one of 53 women's lacrosse players on the initial list and the only Patriot League women's lacrosse player. The Tewaaraton Award is given annually to the best men's and women's college lacrosse player in the nation. DePompeo has lived up to the billing early in the season, as she has 12 goals and leads the Patriot League with 11 assists.
Patriot League Head Coaches Discuss 2012 Season
All seven Patriot League head coaches conducted brief audio interviews heading into the 2012 season. The audio clips are available at www.patriotleague.org at the women's lacrosse home page, and also through Patriot League All-Access and the League's Youtube page.
American/Navy to be Broadcast on CBS Sports Network
The Patriot League will have a national appearance on CBS Sports Network when American visits Navy on April 13 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. It will be one year to the day of an outstanding matchup from last season when the Mids held on for an 11-10 win over the Eagles at American.
Nationally-Ranked Opponents
Lehigh will play the fifth game for a Patriot League team against a nationally-ranked opponent on Tuesday when it visits No. 2 North Carolina. It will be the highest-ranked foe for a Patriot League squad to date. Four defeats early in the season have come against opponents in the top 20 of the IWLCA Coaches Poll. Lafayette fell at home against No. 17 Penn State on Feb. 25, despite a strong effort in a 14-10 final. Bucknell fell to both No. 5 Duke and No. 17 Penn State, while Holy Cross dropped its home opener against No. 13 Boston College previously.
