STANDISH, Maine – #1 Saint Joseph's College (18-0, 13-0 GNAC) will host #3 Emmanuel College (10-7, 9-4 GNAC) in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Lacrosse Tournament Semifinal matchup this evening at 7:00 PM.
BRACKETOLOGY:
Quarterfinals - Saturday, April 30
#1 Saint Joseph's Maine def. #8 Elms, 20-4 (BOX)
#5 Emmanuel def. #4 Norwich, 11-7 (BOX)
#3 Johnson & Wales def. #6 Colby-Sawyer, 15-4 (BOX)
#2 Simmons def. #7 Lasell, 18-11 (BOX)
Semifinals- Tuesday, May 3
#5 Emmanuel at #1 Saint Joseph's, 7:00 PM
#3 Johnson & Wales at #2 Simmons, 7:00 PM
Championship - Saturday, May 7
final at highest remaining seed
HOW THEY GOT HERE:
Saint Joseph's toppled #8 Elms College, 20-4, in GNAC quarterfinal action at the SJC Athletics Complex on Saturday afternoon. Five Monks netted at least three goals in the triumph, as Lydia Dexter (Oakland, Maine) scored three goals with four assists, Bridget Collins (Milford, Conn.) potted five markers, and Carson Battaglia (Gorham, Maine) added four tallies in the one-sided tourney tilt.
Emmanuel advanced to the semifinal round after pulling off an 11-7 upset victory at #4 Norwich University on Saturday evening. Chandra Franca (Woburn, Mass.) paced the Saints' offense with five goals and an assist while Megan Steele (Auburn, Maine) notched two goals and three helpers and goalkeeper Emma Crowley (Peterborough, Maine) turned away 10 shots in the victory.
FACTS & FIGURES:
Saint Joseph's:
- One of just five NCAA DIII Women's Lacrosse teams with an unblemished record (through 5/2), Saint Joseph's leads the conference in goals (322), assists (156), goals per game (17.89), draw controls (299), fewest goals allowed (98), and goals against average (5.48)
- Out of 283 NCAA DIII teams, St. Joe's is ranked fourth in scoring defense (5.48), sixth in average winning margin (12.44) and ninth in scoring offense and shots per game (36.94)
- Including the truncated 2021 campaign, the Monks have won 13-consecutive home games
Emmanuel:
- The Saints are ranked fourth in the GNAC in fewest goals allowed (167) and goals against average (9.92) and fifth in goals (215), assists (89) and shots on goal (396)
- Emmanuel is 7-4 overall with a 6-1 mark versus GNAC foes on the road this spring; the Saints' lone conference setback on the road this season came at the hands of the Monks in Standish on March 26th
- The Saints have a better record on the road (7-4) than at home (3-3) this spring
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
Saint Joseph's:
- Graduate student Lydia Dexter (Oakland, Maine) is enjoying the finest season ever recorded by an SJC women's lacrosse player; as of May 2nd, she leads the entire NCAA – all three divisions – with 148 points and ranks third in DIII with 73 assists
- Sophomore Carson Battaglia (Gorham, Maine) leads the conference in draw controls (133) and draw controls per game with 7.82 – an average that ranks 17th in NCAA DIII – with 44 points (37G, 7A) on the season
- Sophomore Bridget Collins (Milford, Conn.) has scored 47 goals with 59 total points while second-year Cailyn Wesley (Peabody, Mass.) has tallied 47 points (37G, 10A) and freshman Shauna Clark (Oakland, Maine) has contributed 42 points (28G, 14A)
Emmanuel:
- Senior Chandra Franca (Woburn, Mass.) continues her strong campaign, bringing 61 goals into Tuesday's play; Her 75-point season ranks fourth for a single season in program history
- Fellow senior Jessica Borduas (Woodbury, Conn.) ranks second on the Saints with 43 points (26G, 17A)
- Junior Megan Steele (Auburn, Maine) continues to grow on her career-best year, now at 30 goals, 10 assists, and 40 points
KEEPER COMPARISON:
Saint Joseph's freshman Morgan Wright (Chelmsford, Mass.), who has started 14-consecutive games for the Monks, currently leads NCAA DIII Women's Lacrosse in goals against average (5.09) and ranks second in the GNAC in wins (14) and fewest goals allowed (56).
Senior Emma Crowley (Peterborough, Maine) will guard the goal for EC in the GNAC Semifinals. If Crowley surpasses 15 minutes played in Tuesday's semifinal, she will become just the second Saints goalie to ever play 1,000 minutes in a season for Emmanuel. Crowley enters play with a 10-7 record and 9.93 GAA this season.
ATTITUDE REFLECTS LEADERSHIP:
Saint Joseph's third-year Head Coach David Keenan is 28-3 (.903) overall with a 15-1 (.938) record in conference play as the Monks' skipper. Keenan led the Monks to an undefeated regular season and will be playing in the GNAC tournament for the first time under his leadership.
Emmanuel skipper Liz Maloney (19-8, .704) has led the Saints to three straight winning seasons since taking over in 2020. A former Saints assistant turned head coach Maloney has the highest winning percentage for any head coach in program history while holding an impressive 13-4 record (.765) against GNAC opponents in regular season games.
THE LAST TIME WE MET (BOX):
In a mid-season conference game at Saint Joseph's, the Monks overcame an early deficit to take home a 17-7 victory over Emmanuel on March 26. SJC improved to 9-0 in that victory while the Saints fell to 3-5.
The Saints held a 4-2 lead after the first quarter in the March 26 meeting, but the Monks used a 5-0 second quarter, scoring all five of their goals in over 6:13, to hold a 7-4 halftime lead. SJC upped their lead in the third to 12-7, and used another 5-0 quarter, this time in the fourth, on the way to a 17-7 win.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
In 13 all-time meetings, Saint Joseph's owns an 11-2 all-time record versus Emmanuel College and has defeated the Saints in seven-consecutive meetings.
POSTSEASON HISTORY:
The Saints and Monks have met three times in postseason history, all over a three-year span from 2013 to 2015. In those three games, Emmanuel has a 1-2 record vs. Saint Joseph's, with the lone Saints win coming in the 2014 GNAC Championship Game.
In GNAC Playoff history, both teams sit at a .500 winning percentage as the Saints come into play with a 7-7 all-time playoff record while the Monks start Tuesday's semifinal with a 9-9 all-time mark in postseason play.
