GAME NOTES
KENNESAW, Ga. - The Kennesaw State lacrosse team will conclude its inaugural regular season schedule when it travels to Detroit, Mich. on Sunday (April 21) to play Atlantic Sun Conference rival Detroit beginning at 1 p.m. (ET).
The Owls (1-8, 1-2) have already secured the No. 4 seed in the first-ever A-Sun Conference Championship tournament that begins April 26 in Jacksonville, Fla. They will face No. 1 seed Jacksonville (10-5, 3-0) who established its position in the tournament earlier this week.
LIVE COVERAGE: Live audio and video will be available at www.detroittitans.com. Live stats will also be provided at www.detroittitans.com.
SERIES VERSUS DETROIT: Sunday’s game marks the first-ever meeting between Kennesaw State and Detroit.
A LOOK AT DETROIT: Detroit enters Sunday’s contest with a 3-13 record following a 15-9 loss against St. Bonaventure on Wednesday Apr. 17. Now in her second season at the helm, Head Coach Laura Maness was named the 2012 National Lacrosse Conference Coach of the Year after she led the Titans to a program-high eight wins during her debut season. Co-captain and senior midfielder Zaynib Hamze leads the team in goals (34), assists (10), and overall points (44).
LAST TIME OUT: Looking to clinch a playoff berth, the Kennesaw State lacrosse team built an early 3-2 lead over Atlantic Sun Conference rival Stetson but two lengthy rain delays deflated the Owls momentum, as they ultimately fell 19-7 on Sunday (Apr. 14) at Athletic Training Center in DeLand Fla.After the Hatters opened up the contest with a quick score, freshman Senneca Ward (Peachtree City, Ga. / McIntosh HS) and junior Emily Collins (Snellville, Ga. / Decatur HS) scored back-to-back goals to put the Owls up 2-1. A successful free position score by Stetson knotted the score 2-2, but Collins added her second goal of the game to put the Owls back on top, 3-2. With rain moving in, the Hatters re-gained the lead following consecutive goals by Paige Levesque that gave Stetson a 4-3 lead with just over 10 minutes remaining in the first half. However, Ward quickly answered with a free position score to tie the game 4-4. The Owls, controlling the pace of the game looked poised to score again, but lightning in the area forced the officials to delay the game, sending both teams off the field. After a three hour and 15 minute delay, the Hatters came out and scored three unanswered goals to take a 7-4 lead before Ward countered with a goal to make it 7-5 with just under two remaining before the half. It was all Stetson from there, as the Hatters built upon a 9-5 halftime lead and extended their lead to 16-5 before a second weather delay halted play. After play resumed, the Owls scored twice more on goals from Ward and freshman Arielle Schmidt (Marietta, Ga. / Sprayberry HS) before time expired.
EMILY COLLINS GARNERS TEAMS SECOND A-SUN PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS: The Atlantic Sun Conference named junior midfielder Emily Collins Player of the Week after she led the Owls to its first victory in program history when she tallied a program-high seven goals, including the game winner, against A-Sun rival Howard (Apr. 12). Collins joins teammate Senneca Ward as the second player during the inaugural season to be honored by the conference.
TEAM CAPTAINS GIVING THEIR ALL: Team captains Taylor Southerland, Kyra Ferguson, and Arielle Schmidt have proven to be team leaders on and off the field. While contributing invaluable leadership for a young Owls team, the trio also is in the top five in several statistical categories.
BETH COCHRAN CONTINUES TO PROVIDE SOLID DEFENSE IN THE GOAL: Playing all 510 minutes of action this season, Cochran has proved to be a reliable goalie for the Owls this season. The freshman is currently ranked 13th in the nation in saves per game (8.67), and recently recorded a career high 14 saves against Howard (Apr. 12).
SENNECA WARD NAMED A-SUN CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Freshman midfielder Senneca Ward became the first Kennesaw State player in program history to be named Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Week when she received the honor on Mar. 4. The Owls’ freshman earned the award after totaling a team single-game record six goals versus Coastal Carolina on Mar. 2.
SOUTHERN PIONEERS: Kennesaw State made additional history when it played its inaugural game at Vanderbilt on Feb. 10. The Owls became the first Division I women’s lacrosse program in the state of Georgia.
EIGHT NEW PROGRAMS DEBUT IN 2013: Kennesaw State is one eight Division I institutions that is beginning its first season of women’s lacrosse in 2013. The seven other programs include Campbell, Coastal Carolina, Delaware State, Marquette, USC, Stetson and Winthrop. Four of those teams (Campbell, Coastal Carolina, Stetson and Winthrop) are on the Owls’ schedule this year.
A-SUN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT: Kennesaw State will be competing in the Atlantic Sun Conference, which is sponsoring women’s lacrosse for the first year. The league is comprised of Detroit, Howard, Jacksonville, Kennesaw State and Stetson. The A-Sun Conference will host a four-team championship tournament with the winner advancing to the NCAA Tournament. The A-Sun Tournament is scheduled for April 26-28 in Jacksonville, Fla.
NCAA TOURNAMENT: Accommodating the impressive growth of the sport on a national level, the NCAA has expanded the lacrosse tournament field from 16 to 26 teams in 2013. All 13 conference champions will receive automatic bids while 13 additional teams will earn at-large selections. The top eight teams will be seeded in the bracket and host first- and second-round games. The top six seeded teams receive byes into the second round and serve as hosts for a neutral-site first-round game. The first-round winners then play at the top six seeded teams. Seventh and eighth-seeded teams also will host, but will play a first-round game. The national quarterfinals are scheduled for May 18 or 19, with the four winners advancing to the finals May 24-26 in Villanova, Pa.
LLANES SIGNS 12 DURING EARLY SIGNING PERIOD: While preparing for the inaugural 2013 season, Llanes also has been out on the recruiting trail in an effort to lay the foundation for the future. The time on the road proved to be successful as she signed 12 players during November’s early signing period. The group will help comprise the 2014 Owls team includes: Madison Christian (Attack/Midfielder; Serverna Park, Md.; Serverna Park HS), Samantha Farwick (Attack; Columbus, Ohio; Upper Arlington HS), Sydney Farwick (Midfielder, Attack; Columbus, Ohio; Upper Arlington HS), Olivia Hokanson (Attack; Crofton, Md.; South River HS), Taylor McGhee (Midfield; Marietta, Ga.; Sprayberry HS), Maci Murdock (Goalie; Powder Springs, Ga.; Hillgrove HS), Megan Nicholetti (Attack; Cumming, Ga.; North Forsyth HS), Katherine Ocheda (Defense; Perry Hall, Md.; Institute of Notre Dame), Haley O’Donoghue (Attack; North Tustin, Calif.; Foothill HS), Lyndsay Parris (Midfield; Grayson, Ga.; Grayson HS), Adrianna Smith (Midfield/Attack; Lebanon, Ohio; Lebanon HS) and Megan Tobias (Defense; Abingdon, Md.; Mercy HS).
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Kennesaw State is celebrating 30 years of intercollegiate athletics during the 2012-13 academic year.
