West Chester at East Stroudsburg
Game Details: April 2 I 3 P.M.
Location: Whitenight Field (East Stroudsburg, Pa.)
Coverage Links: Live Stats I Watch
Series: 80-10
WCU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
ESU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
Last Time Out
Led by eight goals from Keri Barnett and six from Sydney Wasdick, the Golden Rams erased an early one-goal deficit with a 7-3 first-quarter scoring effort and outscored Shepherd 9-0 in the third to coast to a 24-9 victory over the upset-minded Rams. Nine different Golden Rams scored in the victory as West Chester tied its season-high scoring effort of 24, matching the team’s output vs American International College earlier this season. West Chester ended the game with an impressive 19-of-21 success rate on its clearing attempts and posted a 27-15 lead in turnovers, as well as a 30-21 lead in ground balls, to win its first road game of the 2025 season.
Flock Talk
Barnett remains the team's leading scorer with 53 goals and 11 assists for 64 points this season. Barnett is first in the PSAC in goals this year and first in the league in goals per game, averaging 5.89, while also accumulating 36 draw controls, 15 ground balls, and 21 caused turnovers. Wasdick is second on the team in scoring with 33 goals and four assists for 37 points, while Kendall Fortune is third on the team in scoring with 25 goals and 10 assists for 35 points. Wasdick also leads the team in draw controls with 44, while Kendall DiCamillo leads in ground balls with 31.
West Chester is 32-for-66 (48.5%) on free throws this year, while its opponents are 14-for-26 (53.8%) through nine games. The Golden Rams also hold a 224-157 lead in ground balls, a 188-128 lead in turnovers (120-62 in caused turnovers), and a 154-128 lead in draw controls. West Chester is also 158-for-173 (91.3 %) on its clear attempts, while the Golden Rams ride holds opponents to a 69.7 % (115-for-165) success rate.
Filling The Shoes
Koons and Cornelius have done an admirable job filling the void left by the graduation of multiple-time All-American Jessica Gorr. Cornelius is 5-0 with an 8.64 goals-against average after earning the start in the first five games of the season. Koons earned her first win in relief of Cornelius against ESU earlier in the month and secured her first start and complete-game win against Shippensburg a few Sundays ago before logging two more complete-game wins over Kutztown and Shepherd last week. With this, Koons is now 4-0 on the year with an 8.88 goals-against average in 318 minutes of action.
We Are Honored
Keri Barnett was named PSAC East Athlete of the Week for the third time this season this afternoon, while also earning USA Lacrosse Division II Player of the Week honors after scoring 13 goals in two games last week.
To the Top
West Chester is currently the top-ranked team in the land in both the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) and USA Lacrosse Magazine Polls. This is the first time West Chester has been ranked No. 1 in the nation since March of the 2023 season.
Flexing the Muscle
Despite needing a late goal to escape with a 14-13 victory over Kutztown last Wednesday, West Chester’s offense made a habit of dominating opponents this season as the Golden Rams enter play outscoring teams 175-79 through the first nine games of the season. West Chester has scored over 20 goals five times in nine games, including a season-high 24 twice (vs AIC and at Shepherd).
This is Different
Wednesday will be the Golden Rams’ second road game of the season after starting the campaign with eight straight on Vonnie Gros Field. West Chester improved to 10-0 in games away from home over the last two years on Saturday with a 24-9 thrashing of Shepherd.
Series History
West Chester retains an 80-10 lead in the all-time series vs East Stroudsburg, although under the leadership of Xeni Barakos-Yoder, the Warriors have chipped away in recent years. Barakos-Yoder can be credited with eight ESU’s 10 wins against WCU since taking over the program in 2016, including a comeback win in the Atlantic Regional Final last May and a stretch in which the Warriors won four of five games from May 2021 through May 2022. West Chester head coach Ginny Martino is 38-10 head-to-head with the Warriors in her 27-year career.
Scouting ESU
East Stroudsburg enters play on a four-game winning streak, including a 13-7 victory at Shippensburg on Saturday afternoon. On Saturday, East Stroudsburg jumped out to a 10-3 lead at halftime and rode this early advantage to a 13-7 victory, despite being outscored 4-3 in the second half of play. Sadie Kauffman scored a game-high four goals, while Lauren Hallman chipped in three goals of her own. Abby Simonetti made 18 saves as she earned her seventh win of the season between the pipes.
Sadie Kauffman and Ariana Tucci remain first and second on the team in scoring with 49 goals and 12 assists and 25 goals and 12 assists, respectively. Lauren Hallman is third in scoring with 19 goals and seven assists for 26 points. Kaufmann also leads the Warriors in draw controls with 50 and caused turnovers with 12 while ranking first among field players in ground balls with 20. Abby Simonetti leads the team in ground balls with 22 and is 7-3 in goal with a 9.32 goals-against average and 118 saves (.565 %) in 586 minutes of action.
