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ST. CHARLES, Mo. – The No. 13 Grand Valley State Lakers take a break from Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) action for a key Midwest Region matchup with the No. 2 Lindenwood Lions Monday afternoon at 4:00 PM. With less than a month remaining in the regular season, this is the Lakers final non-conference test within the region and a win would go a long way towards a berth in the NCAA Tournament. The Lakers, winners of eight straight matches, are 9-2 on the year and 8-0 in the GLIAC while Lindenwood sits at 12-0 on the year, including six wins in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC).
The Lions have defeated a pair of teams ranked in the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) top-25 this season; edging then-No. 24 Indianapolis (GLIAC) and former No. 7 Queens (South Atlantic Conference) to open the season. The Lions have faced four other GLIAC squads as well, giving the Lakers and Lions similar schedules to this point. Lindenwood is yet to face RMAC foe Regis, who edged the Lakers, 16-15, in overtime at the US Lacrosse Complex earlier this year. That was the last loss for GVSU, rattling off eight straight wins since.
The varied Laker attack features five different players with more than 20 goals scored this season:
Meghan Datema (33),
Erika Neumen (32),
Ashley Bailey (28),
Carly Shisler (24) and
Abbi O'Neal (22). Bailey, who has also added 15 assists, leads the team with 43 points. The Lakers lead the GLIAC with 18.36 goals per match, but don't have an individual player in the top five of goals or points on the season.
Kelley Fitzgerald does rank second in the league with 28 assists. The selfless team play has made the Lakers extremely hard to defend and prepare for, seeming to have a new star emerge every day.
Lindenwood poses a stifling defense, holding their opponents to just 70 goals this season, an average of 5.8 per contest. The Lions have racked up 214 goals of their own, scoring more goals than opponent shot attempts (202) on the season. The Lions have also dominated draw controls this year, controlling 203 of 303 opportunities. The Lion defense has also caused 147 turnovers and seen opponents make 265 turnovers overall.
Like the Lakers, Lindenwood's offense is a team approach. Five Lions have scored over 25 goals this season and three have over 50 points this year. Allison Hurley leads the team with 57 points on 26 goals and a team-high 31 assists. Sophie Buelow and Cassie Stucklen each have 34 goals to pace the Lions while Hannah Doughty has 32 goals and 23 assists while Carly Federowski has caged 26 goals.
Maria Johnson will pose the main threat on draw controls, entering the match with 50 this season while Shannon Modl has 44. Rachel Ortell has been the main stay between the pipes for the Lions, starting all 12 matches and posting a .458 save percentage and 6.18 goals against average. Laker senior goalie
Brianna DeMilia has been stout this season as well, notching two GLIAC and one National defensive player of the week honors earlier this season.
With two of the top teams in the nation squaring off for regional positioning, the NCAA Tournament picture will be a little clearer after Monday's showdown. The Lakers hope to return home controlling their own destiny in hopes of a national tournament appearance in 2018.
