Saturday, March 11, 2017

Liberty Lacrosse to Face George Mason and Robert Morris, Saturday and Monday

The Liberty women's lacrosse team will begin a six-game road trip with games at George Mason and Robert Morris, Saturday afternoon and Monday evening.
The Lady Flames (1-5) will take on the Patriots (1-2), Saturday at 1 p.m. at George Mason Stadium in Fairfax, Va. Following their contest at George Mason, they will travel to the Pittsburgh area for a game at Robert Morris (3-3) on Monday evening at 7 p.m. at Joe Walton Stadium in Moon Township, Pa.
Liberty will begin a six-game road trip with games at George Mason and Robert Morris, Saturday afternoon and Monday night.
How to Follow the Lady FlamesLive video streams of both games will be available through George Mason Athletics and Robert Morris Athletics. Find the link for the live video feed on the Liberty lacrosse schedule/results panel on LibertyFlames.com.
Live stats for the contest are also available on the lacrosse schedule/results panel.
Road Trip Begins 
After their matchups at George Mason and Robert Morris, the Lady Flames will play four more contests on the road: William & Mary (March 22), VCU (March 25), Presbyterian (April 1) and Longwood (April 5).
Liberty's next home match will not be until April 8, when they take on Big South opponent Campbell at noon.
Lady Flames News and Notes
  • As a team, Liberty is No. 24 in the country in ground balls per game (21.00) and No. 23 in the country in caused turnovers per game (11.17).
  • Junior defender Lindsey McNamara is No. 35 in the nation in caused turnovers per game (2.17).
  • Sophomore attacker Foster is No. 58 in the country in assists (8) and leads the team in points with 14.
  • Liberty's freshmen have accounted for 14 of the 39 goals scored by the Lady Flames. Hannah Quast paces Liberty freshmen with seven goals.
  • Sophomore Brianna McCaffrey leads Liberty in both draw controls (20) and shots (26).
  • Sophomore goalkeeper Katherine Widrick has an 11.38 goals-against average, which ranks No. 47 in the nation.
  • Widrick is up to 116 career saves and needs nine saves to move into third place all-time in program history in the category.
  • Through four contests, Liberty owns a 126-123 advantage over its opponents in ground balls, led by 15 apiece from senior defenders Ashlyn Altieri and Victoria Tickle.
  • Liberty is outpacing its opponents in clear percentage (.708-.675).
  • Liberty's opponents have outshot the Lady Flames, 174-119.
  • The Lady Flames are losing the battle for draw controls, 82-55, so far this year.

Series History
Liberty is 1-4 all-time against George Mason. The two programs last faced each other on March 23, 2016, in Lynchburg. The Patriots topped the Lady Flames, 17-7, on that day.
The Lady Flames are 0-2 all-time against the Robert Morris Colonials. The Colonials prevailed, 10-9, in the last meeting on March 22, 2014, in Moon Township, Pa.
Scouting George Mason
The Patriots, who are led by third-year head coach Jessy Morgan, enter Saturday's bout with a 1-2 record. George Mason defeated William & Mary, 9-7, in its season opener on Feb. 18 before dropping games to Georgetown (11-6, last Saturday) and No. 14/20 Virginia Tech (11-10 in OT on Wednesday).
As a team, the Patriots are No. 4 in the country in caused turnovers per game (13.67), No. 10 in ground balls per game (22.67), No. 14 in save percentage (.517), and No. 33 in scoring defense (9.67).
George Mason's offensive attack is led by seniors Melissa Lobaccaro (6 g, 2 a, 8 pts) and Brooke Lorber (4 g, 3 a, 7 pts). Junior Hannah Warpinski leads the team in caused turnovers (14), ground balls (13) and draw controls (10). Warpinski's 4.67 caused turnovers per game is the best in the nation, while her 4.33 ground balls/game ranks No. 5 in NCAA Division I.
Goalkeeping duties will likely be done by sophomore Elizabeth Benedetto (1-2, 9.53 GAA). Benedetto has 31 saves to her credit in three contests and is 11th in the country in save percentage (.525).
Scouting Robert Morris 
The Colonials, who are coached by 13th-year head coach Katy Phillips, are currently 3-3 overall. They will play at George Washington on Saturday before returning to host the Lady Flames, Monday night. Robert Morris has early season wins over Central Michigan, St. Mary's and Detroit Mercy and setbacks to Bucknell, Louisville and Yale.
As a team, the Colonials are No. 1 in the nation in caused turnovers per game (17.50) and No. 4 in ground balls per game (24.17). Robert Morris is led offensively by a pair of freshmen, Annie Sachs (15 g, 8 a, 23 pts) and Macknezie Gandy (10 g, 7 a, 17 pts). Senior Megan Wolfgang spearheads the defensive unit, as she is seventh in the country in caused turnovers per game (2.83).
Freshman Katelyn Miller (3-3, 9.50 GAA) figures to get the start for the Colonials between the pipes. Miller's 9.50 GAA is 29th-best in NCAA DI, while her 49 total saves is also good for 29th in the nation. 

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