West Chester at Kutztown
Game Details: April 16 I 4 P.M.
Location: Keystone Field
Coverage Links: Live Stats I Video
Series: 58-1 (W50)
WCU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
KUTZ Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
Last Time Out
West Chester remained unbeaten on Saturday afternoon with a dominant 18-8 victory over Millersville at Chryst Field at Biemesderfer Stadium. West Chester got to a fast start with a 6-2 lead after the first quarter. The Marauders outscored the Golden Rams in the second 4-3, but a dominant second-half, which saw West Chester outscore its hosts 4-0 in the third and 5-2 in the fourth, lifted the guests to an 18-8 victory.
Keri Barnett finished with six goals and seven total points. Sydney Wasdick scored three times while Madeline Edinger, Avery Roberts, Kendall Fortune, and Lila McMahon Skates all scored two goals apiece. McMahon Skates tacked on two assists to finish with four points. Audrey Miller finished with three points, providing some great assists for the high-powered offense. Hannah Cornelius was victorious in goal once again, making six saves in 60 minutes of action.
West Chester ended the game with a 34-23 lead in shots, a 17-16 lead in turnovers, a 16-13 lead in draw controls, and an 18-13 lead in ground balls.
Dominant Effort
Barnett remains the team and PSAC’s leading scorer with 79 goals and 18 assists for 97 points this season. Barnett has also accumulated 56 draw controls and 23 ground balls while causing 34 turnovers. Wasdick is second on the team in scoring with 47 goals and four assists for 51 points, while Kendall Fortune is third on the team in scoring with 31 goals and 12 assists for 43 points. Wasdick also leads the team in draw controls with 74, while Kendall DiCamillo leads in ground balls with 37.
In goal, Cornelius had a great week, advancing to 9-0 on the season with an 8.20 goals-against average after earning the start in eight of ten games played this season. Koons earned her first win in relief of Cornelius against ESU earlier in the season on Vonnie Gros Field 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. With this, Koons is now 4-0 on the year with an 8.90 goals-against average in 378 minutes of action.
The Golden Rams hold a 298-215 lead in ground balls, a 186-268 lead in turnovers (168-96 in caused turnovers), and a 224-174 lead in draw controls. West Chester is also an impressive 218-for-240 (90.8 %) on its clear attempts, while holding opponents to a 181-for-240 (75.4 %) success rate on its clears.
Holding Firm
Ranked first in the USA Lacrosse Magazine Division II poll and second in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll, West Chester remains the lone unbeaten team in Division II women’s lacrosse as the season enters its final weeks.
Offensive Powerhouse
Outscoring opponents 245-111, West Chester is one of the top offensive units in Division II, averaging 18.8 goals per game with a +10.3 scoring margin on the year, both of which are the best in the PSAC and second and third best in Division II women’s lacrosse. Barnett is a big part of this high-powered attack as she has 79 goals this year, which is third best in the nation, averaging 6.08 per game, which is second best in DII, while her 7.46 points per game is also 4th best. Barnett averages 1.92 free-position goals per game, which is also the best in DII women’s lacrosse.
Series History
West Chester is 27-2 all-time against Kutztown and is currently riding a 26-game winning streak against the Golden Bears. West Chester defeated Kutztown in the first meeting between the two foes earlier this season, toppling the Golden Bears by a 14-13 final after a late free-position goal by Madeline Edinger.
Scouting Kutztown
Kutzown is coming off a road loss to East Stroudsburg last Saturday, falling to the Warriors by a 16-9 final. The Golden Bears were led by three Lailah Elbouzzaoui goals and two more from Sam Graf. Kutztown found itself in a hole early, being outscored 5-2, 5-3 in the first two quarters to trail 10-5 heading into the halftime break. Kutztown played a much closer second half but was unable to overcome the first half deficit in a seven-goal setback to the Warriors. Marisa Bragg was strong in goal, making 13 saves while allowing 13 goals in the loss. Emma Taylor played the final 17 minutes and made one save while allowing three goals down the stretch.
Graf is third in the league in goals this year, scoring 58 and 21 assists for 79 points on the season. Graf also leads the team in caused turnovers with 41 on the season. ElBouzzaoui is tenth in scoring with 41 goals and 15 assists for 56 points, while Olivia Eilbacher and Lauren Lamorte are third and fourth with 36 (19 G 17 A) and 34 (22 G 12 A), respectively. Summer Davis leads the team in ground balls with 47, while Graf is first in draw controls with 60 and 56 from ElBouzzaoui.
In goal, Bragg has been the starter throughout the year, going 7-4 between the pipes with a 10.01 goals-against average and 95 saves in just over 650 minutes of play.
As a team, Kutztown enters play, outscoring its opponents 192-141 on the year, with 32 (32-for-76) of those goals coming from free positions. The Golden Bears hold a slim 283-257 lead in ground balls, a 214-277 lead in turnovers (152-116 in caused turnovers), and a 193-188 lead in draw controls. Kutztown clears the ball at an 82.5 % (249-of-1302) clip, while its ride holds opponents to a 78.0 % (227-of-291) success rate.
