Women's Lacrosse | 4/30/2015 10:14:00 AM
GLENSIDE, Pa. – The fourth-seeded Arcadia University women's lacrosse team will head to top-seeded and 16th-ranked Messiah College Thursday for a Commonwealth Conference Championship Tournament semifinal match. The game will get underway at 4 p.m. at Messiah's new lacrosse turf field at the Starry Athletic Complex.
TICKET PRICING: Ticket's for the game are $5 for Adults, $4 for seniors, $2 for students, and children under 6-years old are free. Any Arcadia University students, faculty and staff that present a valid Arcadia ID will be admitted free of charge, courtesy of the Athletic Department.
CHAMPIONSHIP SHIRTS: 2015 Commonwealth Conference Championship short-sleeve shirts will be available for purchase on-site for $12 each while supplies last.
ABOUT ARCADIA: The Knights have an overall record of 12-6 in 2015 after recording a 13-8 First Round win over fifth-seeded Albright College Monday night. Freshman
Nicole Hutson scored a game-high four goals in the game, while juniors
Adeline Bellesheim and
Jessica Santoli added three goals each. Bellesheim leads the team in scoring with career-high totals of 42 goals and 26 assists for 68 points, while classmate
Dawn Faranetta is second in scoring with 39 goals and 19 assists for 58 points. Sophomore
Erin Misner has totaled 30 goals and 11 assists for 41 points to go with 48 draw controls, 39 ground balls and 23 caused turnovers, while Hutson has totaled 33 goals and seven assists for 40 points while totaling a team-leading 53 ground balls, 38 draw controls and a team-best 25 caused turnovers. Junior
Jordyn Dunacusky is 11-5 in goal for Arcadia this season, posting a 9.50 goals against average and a .498 save percentage while totaling 140 save so far this year.
MOLLOY REACHES MILESTONE: Senior
Haylee Molloy recorded a pair of assists before capping the scoring in the win over Albright with her 34th goal of the season, and in doing so became the first 300-point scorer in program history. She now has program-record totals of 232 career goals and 300 career points, while her 68 career assists are the second-most in program history.
ARCADIA IN THE CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT: This marks the third straight conference tournament appearance for Arcadia, which is in its first season as a member of the Commonwealth Conference. The Knights won the 2014 Freedom Conference title, marking Arcadia's first team title since the Middle Atlantic Conferences in 2007-08, and was the programs first conference title since taking home the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference crown in 1996. The Knights are 6-2 all-time in conference tournament play with three conference titles to their credit (1995, 1996, 2014).
ABOUT MESSIAH: The Falcons enter the 2015 postseason with an overall record of 12-4 and secured the No. 1 seed in this week's conference tournament with a perfect 8-0 record in conference play. Claire Stikeleather leads the team in scoring with 37 goals and 15 assists for 52 points while totaling 27 ground balls and 27 draw controls, while Madi Brunk ranks second in scoring with 18 goals and a team-best 27 assists for 45 points. Stephanie Athens has 30 goals and 12 assists for 42 points on the year to go with 35 draw controls and 31 ground balls, while Carly Bajus (19 goals-14 assists-33 points) and Marybeth Bindel (20 goals-9 assists-29 points) round out the top-five in scoring for Messiah. Ellery Klineyoung is 12-4 in goal with a 7.68 goals against average and a .491 save percentage, totaling 112 saves this season.
ABOUT THE SERIES: Messiah has won all five meetings between the two teams, including a 17-2 win at Arcadia to close out the regular season. Senior
Sam Sidoriak scored both goals for the Knights in that game, which saw Arcadia's starters used sparingly in the contest after the Knights were locked into the No. 4 seed.
UP NEXT: The winner of today's game will face the winner of today's other semifinal between second-seeded Stevenson University and third-seeded Lebanon Valley College. The two semifinal winners will meet for the 2015 Commonwealth Conference Championship Game Saturday at the highest remaining seed.
