Posted: 03/13/2012
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Coming off of a tough Patriot League loss to Colgate, the women’s lacrosse team will return home Wednesday to take on Binghamton. Opening draw is set for 3:30 p.m. from the Ulrich Sports Complex. The teams haven’t met since the 2005 season opener, when Lehigh took a 16-5 victory over the Bearcats.
The Mountain Hawks (2-4, 0-1 Patriot League) have dropped their last two contests, falling to #2 UNC in Chapel Hill before opening their Patriot League schedule at Colgate. The team will look to build on many bright spots from both games.
Freshman Carli Sukonik continued to impress, especially against Colgate, posting nine draw controls to pull within three of the top five in NCAA history for draw controls in a game. It also marked the most by a Lehigh player over the last six seasons. Sukonik added four goals, two in each half, as the Mountain Hawks cut the deficit to 9-8 before the Raiders scored four of the last five goals.
Co-captains Leigh Ann Torcivia and Julie McBrien have led the offense thus far. Torcivia owns a team-leading 15 points (nine goals, six assists) while McBrien has contributed 11 (six goals, five assists). Sukonik is third with 10 points (eight goals, two assists) in her rookie campaign.
Torcivia also leads the club in ground balls (17), is second in draw controls (12) and has caused six turnovers, good for third on the team. McBrien has a team-high nine caused turnovers, and her 11 draw controls and nine groundballs also place in the top three for the Mountain Hawks.
Sukonik and fellow freshman Kelsey Yenco continue to improve their balanced play, as Sukonik has added a team-high 20 draw controls to her 10 points, while Yenco has five points (four goals, one assist), 12 ground balls, 13 draw controls, and five caused turnovers on the year.
Freshman goalie Allison Fayans has started two of the last three games between the pipes, while junior Mary Leah DiNisco got the nod against UNC following the loss of sophomore Alex Fitzpatrick against Temple.
The Bearcats (2-2, 0-0 American East Conference) have won back-to-back games over Marist and Canisius to climb back to .500. Binghamton downed Marist in an overtime thriller last week before beating Canisius on Friday night. Junior Kimberly McGeever leads the team in scoring with 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) while junior Kristen Stone paces the Bearcats with 12 goals on the season. Stone carries one assist for 13 total points, while six Binghamton players have already racked up double-digit points through the first four contests.
Wednesday will mark the third contest between the two teams with Lehigh owning a perfect 2-0 record. The Mountain Hawks have defeated the Bearcats in 2002 (23-4) and 2005 (16-5).
Lehigh will hit the road on Saturday to face Bucknell in a Patriot League clash. Opening draw is set for 12 p.m.