West Chester Heads Into National Championship Game Against Pace

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INDIANAPOLIS, IND – Stop me, if you've heard this before – West Chester University head coach Ginny Martino and her Golden Rams women's lacrosse team will play for a national championship Sunday at 2 p.m. at Key Stadium.
 
Martino and the Golden Rams take on Pace University on the campus of the University of Indianapolis for the right to be crowned the queens of Division II Women's Lacrosse.
 
It's the matchup everybody wanted. It's No. 1 vs. No. 2 in the last regular-season poll.
 
For Martino and West Chester University, it is the 11th time that they have ventured all the way to the last game of the postseason tournament. The Golden Rams came away victorious in 2002 and again in 2008. Martino is in search of her third "natty" in what has already been a hall of fame coaching career.
 
A Watch Party at Barnaby's in downtown West Chester is planned. If you can't make the watch party, and you can't be in Railroad City one week before "the world's largest single-day sporting event" (Indianapolis 500), then you can enjoy the web stream at this LINK.   
 
HERE IS WHAT WE KNOW …
West Chester and Pace are the top two ranked teams in the country. They rank among the Top 5 in four of the main statistical categories in the sport. They both play the game with a lot of speed and a lot of aggressiveness. This is as big of a heavyweight battle in Division II women's lacrosse as you will get.
 
West Chester's 22nd win of the season in Friday's semifinal tied the NCAA record for most wins in a single season in Division II. The Golden Rams are trying to become the first team since Adelphi in 2014 to complete a clean slate for an undefeated campaign. Pace is all that is left standing in the way of a perfect season and an NCAA record.
 
What will give? West Chester's 18 goals per game? Or, Pace's 16 shots allowed per game? West Chester's 19 shots allowed per game? Or, Pace's 18 goals per game? These teams are about as even as two opponents can be on paper. Maybe the only advantage is in the ground ball game. West Chester ranks fourth nationally with 23.27 ground balls per game while Pace ranks 26th nationally with 19 ground balls per game. It is the only statistical category that one team holds an advantage of more than 4.0 per game over the other – and even four more ground balls in a game is not that much.
 
With both teams averaging 18 goals per game and allowing 7 goals per game while taking 36 shots per game, fans can expect a high-paced, action-packed game – no pun intended.
 
SO WHAT DO WE FOCUS ON …
Obviously, the goalkeeping and defense. Which team gets the better play out of their goalkeeper, and which team's defense can force the other to take low-percentage shots from off angles may be the deciding factor. Keep the free positions at a minimum and keep the opposition out of the area in front of the cage.
 
OK, well … West Chester's goalkeeper, Jessica Gorr (Exton, Pa./Bishop Shanahan) owns the second-best goals-against average (7.06) in the nation while Pace's keeper, Sami Tanguay, owns the third-best goals-against average (7.25). The difference may lie in the save percentage. Gorr saves 53.8 percent of the shots she sees and ranks third in Division II. Tanguay saves 38.5 percent of shots taken which ranks 73rd nationally. Pace's defense does an excellent job of limiting the action that Tanguay gets. The Setters will have to do more of that Sunday to slow the Golden Rams' attack.
 
THE SKINNY …
Both teams are evenly matched. Both teams have five All-Americans on their roster, who like to get to the goal. Whoever can manage the other team's zone better and find the pockets, will be able to generate better scoring opportunities. Maybe the stat to watch Sunday will not be so much the shots, but rather the quality chances. Whoever gets better quality scoring opportunities and can finish around the cage will have the advantage.
 
Anyway you look at it … this matchup is a can't miss game for lacrosse enthusiasts. It's not going too far out on a limb to say that for both teams, Sunday's match will be the toughest of the season.