Stonehill Earns Fifth Trip To NCAA Division II Women’s Lacrosse Championships

Stonehill College Sports Information

Easton, Mass.-- Success for the Stonehill College women’s lacrosse team at the national level in recent years has been a real oddity--as in odd numbered years, 2003 and 2005, when the Skyhawks captured the NCAA Division II national championship in impressive fashion.

Another odd numbered year is upon us, and sure enough, Head Coach Michael Daly’s squad will have the opportunity to claim another national crown this weekend, as Stonehill was one of four teams to earn a berth in the 2007 NCAA Division II Women’s Lacrosse Championships field announced earlier this evening.

The Skyhawks, 18-1 overall on the season and ranked second in this week’s IWLCA Division II national poll, are seeded second in the North Region and will take on top-seeded C.W. Post, the lone remaining undefeated Division II squad in the country at 15-0 overall, in the first national semi-final on Saturday, May 12th at Spartan Field in Salem, Va. beginning at 2:00 p.m. EDT. Saturday’s South Region national semi-final will pit top-seeded West Chester (18-1) against second-seeded Lock Haven (16-3), as that contest will kick off Saturday’s action at 11:30 a.m. EDT, and the two semi-final winners will meet for the 2007 NCAA national crown on Sunday, May 13th in Salem, Va. beginning at Noon EDT in a contest that will be televised live by College Sports Television (CSTV).

Stonehill, which ranks third all-time in Division II history in NCAA appearances, returns to the national championship field in perhaps Daly’s best coaching job ever, as the Skyhawks lost four All-America performers from last year’s roster, began the season 15-0 for the second time in three seasons and extended their Northeast-10 Conference regular season winning streak to 68 straight while claiming both the league regular season title for the ninth straight year and the conference tournament crown for the eighth straight season with a 9-7 triumph over Bentley in the 2007 title match played earlier today.

Daly, who has guided Stonehill to an incredible overall mark of 140-26 (.843) during his tenure that includes a 5-2 slate in NCAA tournament play and a 21-4 post-season record overall, sports just two seniors on this year’s roster, as sophomore Michelle Kelly (Mendham, N.J./West Morris Mendham), this year’s Northeast-10 Defensive Player of the Year and this weekend’s league tournament Most Valuable Player, leads the Skyhawk scoring parade with 58 goals and 29 assists for 87 points while adding 44 draw controls, 33 ground balls and 23 caused turnovers. Junior All-America Kristin Darrell (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip), named on Friday as the 2007 Northeast-10 Player of the Year, leads the squad with 61 goals and ranks second to Kelly in total points with 84, as she has netted 12 hat tricks on the spring as part of a balanced Stonehill attack that ranks second nationally in both team offense (16.68 gpm) and team defense (6.42 gpm).

Senior Tracey Hoffman (Nashua, N.H./Nashua), a first team all-league selection this season, is next with 33 goals and a team-best 38 assists for 71 points, while freshman Liza Gross (Loudonville, N.Y./Shaker) has a been a solid contributor as a rookie for Stonehill with 41 goals and 19 assists for 60 points as part of a balanced Skyhawk attack that boasts of eight players with 25 or more points. Junior Amanda McGeachey (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy) is a solid last line of defense as well for Daly’s crew, as she is 18-1 in the Stonehill cage with a 6.37 goals against average and 125 saves to date.

C.W. Post is making its sixth appearance in the NCAA Division II championship field, as the Pioneers of Head Coach Karen MacCrate Henning captured the inaugural national championship in 2001. Senior Shannon Fabian paces the Pioneer attack with 36 goals and 45 assists for 81 points and recently became the all-time assists leader in Division II history, while junior Lauren Scipione has posted a perfect 15-0 mark in goal for C.W. Post with a 5.06 goals against average and a .583 saves percentage, both tops in the nation heading into the championships.

Saturday’s North Region semi-final will mark the fourth time that Stonehill and C.W. Post will meet in NCAA championship play, as each previous match has been a one-goal affair. The Pioneers won a triple overtime 12-11 decision in the 2001 North Region semi-final in Easton, while the Skyhawks have won the last two post-season affairs by identical 14-13 scores in 2002 at West Chester and in 2003 once again at Stonehill. Saturday’s contest will mark the 12th series meeting between the two squads and their second in just over two weeks, as C.W. Post notched a 7-5 triumph back on April 27th at W.B. Mason Stadium in another classic match-up of the then two lone remaining unbeaten squads in Division II nationally. That win gave the Pioneers a 6-5 lead in the series, with the Skyhawks holding the 2-1 edge in post-season play.

Like the North Region contest, the South Region national semi-final will pit a pair of familiar foes when Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference brethren West Chester and Lock Haven meet for the second time in a week and for the fourth time this season. West Chester’s Golden Rams, who have appeared in all but one NCAA national championship field, have won the three previous meetings this season with the Bald Eagles and are looking to advance to the national title match for the fourth straight year and for the sixth time overall, as Head Coach Ginny Martino’s squad took the 2002 crown on its home field with a win over Stonehill. Junior Stephanie Kienle leads West Chester in scoring with 69 goals and 61 assists for a national-leading 130 points to date, while sophomore Jackie Baker follows with 75 goals and 23 assists for 98 points for the Golden Rams. Like Stonehill, West Chester’s lone blemish this season also came at the hands to C.W. Post by a 20-12 margin on April 10th in West Chester Pa.

Lock Haven is making its second NCAA appearance in three years under Head Coach Kristen Selvage, as all three of the Bald Eagles’ setbacks have come at the hands of West Chester as did its only previous NCAA match two years ago during the 2005 South Region national semi-final. Sophomore Jessica Blickenstaff paces Lock Haven in the scoring column with 66 goals and 42 assists for 108 points, while senior Jenna Richter follows with 57 goals and 34 assists for 91 points to date.

For more information on the 2007 NCAA Division II Women’s Lacrosse Championships, log-on to www.ncaasports.com.