Tiffin vs. Findlay (4 pm):
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Grand Valley State vs. McKendree (7 pm):
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ALLENDALE, Mich. – After another GLIAC regular season title, Grand Valley State has earned the right to host the 2016 GLIAC Women's Lacrosse Tournament. The top-seeded Lakers will host fourth-seeded McKendree on Friday (May 6) at 7 pm at GVSU Lacrosse Stadium.
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Friday's game between the Lakers (13-4, 11-1 GLIAC) and the Bearcats (9-9, 6-6 GLIAC), the second of two Semifinal games hosted by Grand Valley State, is a rematch of the semifinal match from the 2015 GLIAC Tournament. In that game, GV jumped out to a big lead early and cruised to an 18-4 win and another appearance in the GLIAC Tournament Finals.
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Grand Valley State enters Friday's Semifinal bout with a 13-4 overall record and an 11-1 mark in the conference. The Lakers ranked 10
th in the latest IWLCA Division II coaches poll, 14
th in the latest Nike/
Lacrosse Magazine media poll, and fifth in the North Region in the NCAA Division II regional rankings.
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Erika Neumen leads the team in scoring with 60 goals and points with 64, while
Chelsey Bishop leads the way in assists with 33.
Ryan Skomial is another threat on the offense, tallying 57 point on 35 goals and 22 assists.
Meghan Datema, with 40 goals and six assists, leads the team with 63 draw controls, while
Kira Dosenberry leads the team with 38 ground balls to pair with her 30 goals and 12 assists.
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On the defensive end,
Caitlin Wojichowski leads all Lakers with 25 caused turnovers. Neumen and Dosenberry tie for second on the team with 22 each, while
Kelly Leibovitz has caused 14 turnovers this season. In goal,
Brianna DeMilia has played spectacular down the stretch, winning all five of her starts and playing in six more this season while putting up a 6.38 goals against average and a 52.1 save percentage.
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McKendree, in their second season as a member of the GLIAC for women's lacrosse, qualified for the 2016 GLIAC Tournament as a four-seed with an 8-9 overall record and a 6-6 mark in the conference. The Bearcats hosted fifth-seed Indianapolis in the GLIAC Tournament Quarterfinal on Tuesday (May 3) and won 18-11 over the Greyhounds.
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McKendree's offense is led by Paige Salthouse and Dana DiPasquale. Both have put up 80 points this season, with Salthouse scoring 64 goals and 16 assists and DiPasquale posting 32 goals and 48 assists. Mia Fiore leads the team in draw controls with 89, and Shirley Boland leads with 46 ground balls and 20 caused turnovers. In the net for the Bearcats will be Amy Porta. An 18-game starter, Porta has saved 45.6% of the shots on goal faced and has posted a 13.08 goals against average.
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The winner of Grand Valley State-McKendree will face the winner of Friday's first Semifinal between second-seeded Tiffin and third-seeded Findlay, which is scheduled for a 4 pm start-time. The championship will begin on Sunday (May 8) at noon at GVSU Lacrosse Stadium.