April 3, 2012
Patriot League Women's Lacrosse Release - 4.3.12 
Center Valley, Pa. -- All four spots in the Patriot League Women's Lacrosse Tournament remain open, but that could begin to change on Saturday as Navy and American zero in on postseason berths.
The Mids continue to lead the Patriot League at 3-0 as they prepare to visit Colgate on Saturday, while the Eagles are right behind at 3-1 with a home matchup set against Lafayette. Both teams can clinch Patriot League Tournament berths with a victory, and if each squad wins on Saturday their matchup at Navy on April 13 will be for the right to host the postseason event.
There is a logjam in the middle of the standings after a weekend which saw three home teams win as Navy beat Holy Cross 18-11, American topped Lehigh 18-15 and Lafayette took down Bucknell 14-11.
Colgate was off from League action last weekend, and maintains sole possession of third place in the Patriot League at 2-1 heading into Saturday's showdown with the Mids. Lehigh follows at 2-2, with Holy Cross and Lafayette each at 1-2 in the Patriot League. The Crusaders host Bucknell on Saturday, while the Mountain Hawks have a non-League contest at home against New Hampshire.
With Colgate's victory over Yale on Saturday, Patriot League teams are a combined 32-29 against non-League competition this year. There are 12 non-League contests remaining in the regular season.
Patriot League Notebook
Mids, Eagles Inch Towards Patriot League Tournament Berths
The American at Navy matchup on April 13 will be showcased to a national audience on CBS Sports Network, and it turns out the televised contest could be the biggest in the Patriot League regular season. If either team wins on Saturday, they will earn a spot in the Patriot League Tournament. And if both teams pull off victories on Saturday, next week's matchup would be for home field advantage in the Patriot League Tournament.
Navy, American Shine in Statistical Leaderboard
Navy and American have each enjoyed plenty of goal-scoring success en route to their strong seasons. Navy ranks fifth and American 12th in the nation in scoring offense, while the Mids are second and the Eagles place fifth in points. The Mids place fifth in the nation by outscoring opponents by seven goals per game, as they also rate sixth in the country in scoring defense.
Leopards Enjoying Best Season in a Decade
The most recent of Lafayette's 10 Patriot League titles came in 2002, and the Leopards are currently putting together their best season since that year. Lafayette improved to 8-5 overall with a win over Bucknell on Saturday, its highest win total since going 13-7 in 2002. The eight wins equal Lafayette's combined total from 2009-11. The Leopards have been led by a pair of statistical standouts, as junior Addie Godfrey leads the Patriot League and is eighth in the country with 3.46 goals per game and sophomore Ana White tops the nation with 6.38 draw controls per contest.
Home Cooking
All three home teams won in Patriot League action on Saturday, and Colgate added another non-League home win when it defeated Yale 16-12. That's nothing new, as Patriot League teams have enjoyed their home field advantage this season. Nine of the 12 Patriot League games have been won by the home team, as Navy, American and Colgate are each 2-0 at home in Patriot League action while Lehigh and Holy Cross have won their only home League games. Navy is a perfect 7-0 at home for the season, while American is 6-1 with Lehigh and Holy Cross each coming in at 4-1 at home. Patriot League teams are 31-13 on their home fields this season, with a 22-10 mark in non-League action.
Navy's DePompeo, Lafayette's White Climbing Patriot League Record Book
Navy's Jasmine DePompeo and Lafayette's Ana White are only in their junior and sophomore seasons, respectively, but already they are making a huge dent in the Patriot League record book. DePompeo is up to sixth in League history with 83 career assists, and her Patriot League-leading 34 assists this season are just 13 off the League record. White has 83 draw controls on the season, two behind Navy's Loren Generi (85) for the Patriot League lead and just 19 away from the Patriot League single-season record. White has 172 draw controls in less than two seasons at Lafayette, and is already within 50 of the Patriot League career record.
Timchal Continues to Earn Accolades
It was quite a month of March for Navy's Cindy Timchal. The vetern head coach became the first in either gender to reach 400 career wins on March 12, and added more acclaim later in the month as of 24 finalists on the 2012 National Lacrosse Hall of Fame men's and women's ballots. From these ballots, the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame men's and women's voting committees will select the 2012 induction class. US Lacrosse will announce the inductees prior to Memorial Day weekend.
Prelude to a Play-In Victory?
The Patriot League champion will visit the champion of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation in an NCAA Play-in game on Saturday, May 5. If the past week was any indication, the League squad could match up well in that play-in contest. Holy Cross, Lafayette and Navy all won at home against an opponent from the MPSF last week. The Crusaders topped UC Davis 12-9 on March 26, while the Leopards beat San Diego State 17-14 and the Mids knocked off California 15-5 on Wednesday. Colgate added a win over Yale on Saturday to bring the six Patriot League teams to 32-29 against non-League competition, including a cumulative 19-2 mark against the MPSF, Northeast and National Lacrosse Conferences.
Patriot League Women's Lacrosse Weekly Awards
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
JASMINE DePOMPEO, NAVY Jr., A, Sayville, N.Y.
DePompeo had 16 points in a pair of wins for the Mids last week, including a Patriot League season-high nine points with five goals and four assists in an 18-11 victory over Holy Cross on Saturday. The nine points also matched her career high. She had opened the week with two goals and five assists in a 15-5 triumph against Cal on Wednesday. DePompeo scored seven goals on 11 shots for the week, and moved into sixth place in Patriot League history with 83 career assists. DePompeo leads the Patriot League by a wide margin with 34 assists and 63 points for the season. DePompeo is named Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season and third in her career.
MIDFIELD PLAYER OF THE WEEK
ANA WHITE, LAFAYETTE So., M, Swarthmore, Pa.
White led Lafayette to a pair of victories with two great all-around performances as the Leopards held off San Diego State on Wednesday and Bucknell on Saturday. White had a career-high seven points with four goals and three assists in a 17-14 win against the Aztecs, while also totaling a ground ball and eight draw controls in the game. She came through with three goals and an assist with two ground balls and seven draw controls as the Leopards beat Bucknell 14-11 for a Patriot League win on Saturday. White scored the game-winning goal late in the second half of both contests, and her tally with 11:40 left against the Bison gave the Leopards a 12-11 lead on their way to the 14-11 win. White also scored with 17:22 left and Lafayette trailing Bucknell 10-8 to ignite a late surge by the Leopards. White is named Patriot League Midfield Player of the Week for the third time this season and fifth in her career.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
BEASLEY HAYS, COLGATE Jr., D, Rosemont, Pa.
Hays recorded four ground balls and a game-high five caused turnovers to help Colgate hold off Yale 16-12 on Saturday. Hays led a Raider defense that caused 13 turnovers in the game and did not give up more than two goals to any player on the Bulldogs. Hays receives her first Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week award.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
LOREN GENERI, NAVY Fr., A, Bayport, N.Y.
Generi had two outstanding efforts in a pair of wins for the Mids, combining for eight goals, two assists and 18 draw controls in home victories against California on Wednesday and Holy Cross on Saturday. She had three goals and an assist with nine draw controls in the 15-5 win over Cal, then matched a career high with six points (five goals, one assist) and again recorded nine draw controls in an 18-11 win against the Crusaders. The five goals also marked a career high, while the nine draw controls were just one shy of Generi's best mark this season. Generi leads the Patriot League with 85 draw controls this season, and is second with 6.07 draw controls per game. She is named Patriot League Rookie of the Week for the third time.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
ADDIE GODFREY, LAFAYETTE Jr., A, Princeton, N.J.
Godfrey totaled 10 goals and four assists in two wins for the Leopards, with five goals and two assists against both San Diego State and Bucknell.
EMILY BURTON, AMERICAN Jr., M, Catonsville, Md.
Burton had five goals, four ground balls and eight draw controls as American beat Lehigh 18-15 on Saturday.
CARLI SUKONIK, LEHIGH Fr., A, Penn Valley, Pa.
Sukonik had 10 goals and three assists in two games for the Mountain Hawks, including a seven-goal effort in an 18-15 loss to American on Saturday.
COURTNEY MILLER, COLGATE Sr., M, Chappaqua, N.Y.
Miller had five goals and an assist with four ground balls and four draw controls in Colgate's 16-12 win over Yale.
LAURA RYAN, HOLY CROSS Fr., M, Stirling, N.J.
Ryan notched eight goals and an assist in two games for the Crusaders last week.
