March 11, 2008

Six of the seven Patriot League teams have started League play in the 2008 season, with Navy set to open their Patriot League history this weekend. After going 3-0 last week, Navy's Erin Rawlick and Caitlin Mandrin Hill earned offensive and defensive players of the week, respectively. American's Kristine Vida was the top goalkeeper, while Lehigh's Lauren Dykstra was top rookie for the third-straight week.

Patriot League Women's Lacrosse Release - 3.11.08

Offensive Player of the Week
Erin Rawlick, Navy So., M, Bel Air, Md.
Rawlick turned in the most impressive week of the season so far by an offensive player with 11 goals and seven assists in three games. She scored four goals and dished out two assists in Navy's win against Saint Francis (Pa.), recorded five goals and two assists in the win over Cincinnati and tallied two goals and three assists in the win over Saint Mary's (Calif.). Rawlick leads the Mids and the League with 29 points and 4.00 goals per game.

Defensive Player of the Week
Caitlin Mandrin Hill, Navy Fr., M, Annapolis, Md.
Mandrin Hill had a solid week on both ends of the field last week for the Mids as they moved to 5-0 on the season. The freshman scored a goal and an assists in the win over Cincinnati and also recorded a career high two assists against Saint Francis (Pa.). She helped lead a defensive unit that surrendered just 12 goals and 40 shots in three games last week.

Goalkeeper of the Week
Kristine Vida, American Sr., Syosset, N.Y.
Vida earns her second-consecutive goalkeeper of the week award after recording a win over Bucknell this past weekend. The senior made eight saves in the win over Bucknell, and also recorded a Save % of 0.471. In a loss to Towson earlier in the week, Vida made 17 saves on 34 shots, for a weekly percentage of 0.490.

Rookie of the Week
Lauren Dykstra, Lehigh Fr., A, Mendham, N.J.
Dykstra has been named rookie of the week for the third-consecutive week after scoring eight goals in Lehigh's League victory over arch-rival Lafayette on Sunday. She scored four of Lehigh's first six goals, and leads the team and League with 23 goals this season.

Honorable Mention

Brie Moran, Colgate
So., A/M, Little Silver, N.J.
Moran scored four goals during an 8-0 Colgate run that gave the Raiders the lead for good after starting the game down 5-1 to Holy Cross.

Meg Decker, Navy
Fr., M, Catonsville, Md.
Decker scored a total of 12 points in three games last week, recording totals of seven goals and five assists. She recorded hat tricks in Navy's wins over Cincinnati and Saint Mary's (Calif.).

Sara MacIntyre, Lehigh
Jr., A, Holmes, Pa.
MacIntyre notched four goals and one assist in Lehigh's victory over arch-rival Lafayette. The junior attacker scored her 100th career goal during the contest as well.

Patriot League Notebook

League Season Kicks Off
Six of the seven League teams have already played at least one Patriot League contest during the early part of the season, and the trend will continue this weekend with three more League games on tap. Navy is the only team yet to play a League game, both in program history and during the 2008 season.

Newcomers
The Patriot League welcomes two new head coaches this year. Caline McHenry takes over at Bucknell, while Cindy Timchal will be starting her inaugural year as head coach at Navy. McHenry was a standout student-athlete at Duke University, where in 2005 she was a First-Team All-American and a semifinalist for the Tewaaraton Trophy, which is awarded annually to the top player in the nation. Timchal enters her 26th season of coaching, after splitting the first 25 between Northwestern University and the University of Maryland. At Maryland, Timchal led her teams to seven-consecutive and eight overall national championships, and is currently the all-time wins leader in Division I history with 341.

All-Time Leader
Lafayette senior Madalyn Booth continued her assault on the record books after scoring five goals and recording three assists in two games last week. The senior now has 102 assists, which extends her lead on the Patriot League career list. Booth's totals of 195 points and 103 goals sit just outside the top 10 in both categories. Joining Booth in the hunt for the career goals list is Lehigh junior Sara MacIntyre, who recorded her 100th career goal in a win over Lafayette.

Quotable
"I thought the first half was well played. Lauren Dykstra just had a bang-up game. Jen Ingalls played a tremendous game on defense and overall there was a great team effort. We lost some of our intensity in the second half but overall I thought we played well together and any win over Lafayette is a nice win, particularly when it's by such a large margin."
Lehigh Head Coach Liz Brode Ota following the win over Lafayette.

"I thought we played well for the most part against an aggressive team. It's tough playing on back-to-back days and it showed in the second half. We got a little bit sloppy, but for the most part we played through it. We are obviously excited to get the Patriot League season underway. It will be interesting to see how we match up and I know the girls are ready to get into League action."
Navy Head Coach Cindy Timchal following the win over Saint Mary's (Calif.).

2008 Patriot League Tournament
The 2008 Patriot League Women's Lacrosse Championship will once again use the two-day format that gives a day of rest in between the semifinals and the championship game for the top four teams in the Patriot League. The tournament will be held at the highest seed on Friday, April 25 and Sunday, April 27.

Team Notebooks

American
The Eagles posted a 1-1 record during games last week, dropping a home contest to Towson and winning the League opener at Bucknell. The Lane sisters had an impressive week for AU, as Lauren scored four goals and had one assist in the win over Bucknell, while Caitlin notched an assist and five groundballs for the week. The Eagles will return to action Tuesday at Longwood, before returning home to face League-leading Lehigh on Sunday.

Bucknell
The Bison were finally able to open their `08 season last week with a win over Long Island and a loss to American. A pair of underclassmen led the offensive attack for Bucknell, as sophomore Carol Donohue tallied five goals and four assists in the two games, while freshman Julia Braun recorded five goals in the LIU game and five draw controls for the week. Bucknell travels to Lafayette on Saturday for an afternoon affair.

Colgate
The Raiders earned their first League win of the season over two-time defending League champion Holy Cross on a rain-soaked Saturday afternoon in Hamilton. The Raiders began the game facing a 5-1 deficit, but stormed back with eight-straight goals, four of which were scored by sophomore Brie Moran, to take the lead for good. Freshman midfielder Colleen Bubnack scored a goal in the game, and also had five groundballs and four draw controls. The Raiders take a break from League action for trips to Albany and No. 19 Denver this week.

Holy Cross
The Crusaders dropped their first League game since 2005 on Saturday with an 11-8 loss at Colgate, and also dropped a game at UC Davis earlier in the week. Sophomore Katie Gardner scored four goals in the two games, while freshman Meg Milley scored three. The Crusaders resume League play at Navy on Saturday.

Lafayette
The Leopards moved to 0-4 on the season with losses to Manhattan and Lehigh last week. Senior Madalyn Booth scored five goals and tallied three assists in the two games, while sophomore Maria Drehwing scored a hat trick in the Lehigh game. The `Pards host Louisville and Bucknell this week.

Lehigh
The Mountain Hawks moved to 5-1 on the season with their win against Lafayette, giving them the best start for a Lehigh team since 2003. Freshman Lauren Dykstra continued the hot start to her collegiate career with an eight-goal performance, while Allison Thomas, Christy Smith and Sara MacIntyre each scored at least three goals in the contest. The Mountain Hawks will host Drexel and travel to American this week.

Navy
The Mids remained as the lone unbeaten team in the Patriot League after wins last week in games against Saint Francis (Pa.), Cincinnati and Saint Mary's (Calif.). Erin Rawlick totaled 18 points in the three-game stretch, while freshman Meg Decker tallied 12 points in the three games. Senior goalkeeper Natalie Blandon allowed just 12 goals in the three games as well. Navy is currently only one of three teams (Georgetown and Northwestern are the others) to have at least five wins and be undefeated so far this season.