BALTIMORE - The UMBC women's lacrosse team (4-11, 2-3 AEC) hosts its third consecutive ranked opponent Saturday at 4 p.m. when No. 11 Boston University (12-2, 5-0 AEC) comes to Baltimore for the Retrievers' regular-season finale. The America East showdown will be the second half of a UMBC lacrosse doubleheader at UMBC Stadium, as the Retriever men host conference rival Hartford at 1 p.m.
Fond Farewell: Prior to the game, the Retrievers will honor senior midfielder Maggie Chizmar (Bel Air, Md./Bel Air) and senior attacks Meghan Keelan (Randallstown, Md./Mount de Sales) and Ali Levendusky (Baldwin, Md./John Carroll) in a Senior Day ceremony, as the trio will play their final game at UMBC Stadium.
Last Time Out: UMBC pushed 13th-ranked Yale to the limit Sunday afternoon, but the Retrievers' upset bid fell short, as the visiting Bulldogs came away with a 12-9 victory at UMBC Stadium. The teams were tied, 9-9, with 10:46 remaining before Yale ended the game with three unanswered goals. UMBC senior attack Ali Levendusky tallied four goals in the game, while sophomore midfielder Kelly Burgoyne (Sykesville, Md./Century) posted her second consecutive hat trick.
On the Terriers: Boston University is currently ranked 11th in the nation with a 12-2 record and has locked up the top seed in the America East Tournament with a perfect 5-0 conference mark. The Terriers' impressive 2008 resume includes wins over ranked opponents Vanderbilt, Yale, Stanford and New Hampshire, with their only losses on the season coming to No. 1 Northwestern and No. 17 George Mason. Three-time defending America East champion Boston U. enters Saturday riding a nine-game winning streak after defeating America East rival New Hampshire, 7-6, last Saturday to clinch a share of its fourth straight regular-season conference title and secure home-field advantage for the league tournament. Midfielder Sarah Dalton, a Tewaaraton Trophy nominee, is tied for eighth in the nation with 3.67 goals per game and 29th with 4.17 points per game. Attack Erica Baumgartner was named America East Player of the Week on Monday and ranks sixth in the NCAA with 2.36 assists per game. Goalie Rachel Klein is the reigning America East Defender of the Week, and she leads the conference with a .494 save percentage and ranks second with a 9.11 goals-against average.
UMBC vs. Boston University All-Time: The Retrievers are 1-6 all-time against the Terriers. UMBC's only win over Boston University came on April 1, 2006, a 16-13 win over the 11th-ranked Terriers at UMBC Stadium. Senior attack Ali Levendusky has scored 11 points (8g, 3a) in four career games against the Terriers.
Last Time vs. the Terriers: UMBC fell to Boston University, 15-7, last season. Kara Dorr (Bel Air, Md./C. Milton Wright) posted a hat trick in the game, while Heather Licht scored twice. Goalie Susie Sweeney (Madison, N.J./Madison) recorded 12 saves for the Retrievers.
Milestone Watch: Senior attack Ali Levendusky tallied four goals against Yale on Sunday, the third her 50th of the season. She became just the fourth player in UMBC history to reach the half-century mark and the first since Debbie Krastel in 1999, and her 51 goals are tied with Laura Robinson (1984) for the third-highest single-season total ever by a Retriever. Levendusky could break Heather Kormanik's school record of 54 goals (1998) on Saturday.
UMBC Single-Season 40-Goal Club
1. Heather Kormanik, 1998 54
2. Debbie Krastel, 1999 53
3. Ali Levendusky, 2008 51
Laura Robinson, 1984 51
5. Wendy Heald, 1983 49
6. Alison Zaetz, 1994 48
7. Renee Tirocchi, 2001 47
Alison Zaetz, 1993 47
Robi Tamargo, 1983 47
10. Ashley Staines, 2000 43
11. Ali Levendusky, 2006 41
12. Jamie Gerhart, 2002 40
Climbing the Charts: Senior attack Ali Levendusky scored her 100th career goal at Binghamton on Feb. 29, making her just the 15th Retriever to reach that milestone, and she currently ranks fourth all-time at UMBC with 137 career goals. In addition, she became the 11th Retriever ever to reach the 150-point plateau against Cal-Berkeley on March 30, and she currently ranks eighth all-time with 172 career points.
UMBC Career Goals
1. Lauren Robinson 192 1984-87
2. Alison Zaetz 158 1993-96
3. Kelly Fiorani 140 2003-06
4. Ali Levendusky 137 2005-Pres.
5. Jackie Abendschoen 132 1985-88
6. Laurie Linnell 129 1984-87
7. Debbie Krastel 127 1996-99
8. Jen Dragoni 123 2001-04
9. Jamie Gerhart 120 1999-2002
10. Jackie Seboda 115 1987-90
UMBC Career Points
1. Laura Robinson 248 1984-87
2. Alison Zaetz 191 1993-96
3. Kelly Fiorani 189 2003-06
4. Laurie Linnell 187 1984-87
5. Jen Dragoni 186 2001-04
6. Jackie Abendschoen 182 1985-89
7. Jamie Gerhart 173 1999-2002
8. Ali Levendusky 172 2005-Pres.
9. Jackie Seboda 158 1987-90
10. Jenny Held 153 1990-93
Active Leaders: Senior attack Ali Levendusky ranks 16th among all active Division-I players with 137 career goals, and she is second to Boston University's Laura Morton among active America East players. In addition, Levendusky ranks 24th among all active Division-I players with 172 career points, the most among current America East players.
Helping Hand: Senior attack Meghan Keelan tallied five assists on five consecutive goals in UMBC's victory over Howard on April 5, one shy of a school record for most helpers in a game, as Gina Tirocchi recorded six against Vanderbilt in 1996. Keelan's previous career high of four also came against Howard on Feb. 18, 2006. She now has 20 assists on the season and she is tied with Shawne Heckler (1984) and Jamie Gerhart (2002) for the fifth-best single-season total in school history. In addition, with two assists against Yale, Keelan took sole possession of 10th place all-time at UMBC with 45 career helpers.
UMBC Career Assists
1. Jen Dragoni 63 2001-04
2. Laurie Linnell 58 1984-87
3. Laura Robinson 57 1984-87
4. Jen Kasper 56 2003-07
5. Jenny Held 53 1990-93
Jamie Gerhart 53 1999-2002
7. Kelly Fahey 52 2004-07
8. Jackie Abendschoen 50 1985-88
9. Kelly Fiorani 49 2003-06
10. Meghan Keelan 45 2005-Pres.
UMBC Single-Season Assists
1. Heather Kormanik, 1998 28
2. Emily Petrlik, 1994 24
Jen Dragoni, 2003 24
4. Kori Kindbom, 1984 22
5. Meghan Keelan, 2008 20
Shawne Heckler, 1984 20
Jamie Gerhart, 2002 20
8. Jenny Held, 1993 19
9. Megan Keelan, 2006 18
Jen Kasper, 2007 18
Streaking: Senior attack Ali Levendusky has scored a goal in 10 consecutive games, dating to March 8 at Old Dominion, with at least three in each of the last five contests. In addition, sophomore defender Sarah Willis (Bel Air, Md./C. Milton Wright) has scored a point in five straight games, while senior attack Meghan Keelan has tallied a point in four in a row. Finally, sophomore midfielder Kelly Burgoyne has posted a hat trick in each of the last two games and three of the last four.
What a Pair: Senior attack Ali Levendusky and junior midfielder Abbey Swift (Baltimore, Md./Towson) have combined to score nearly half of UMBC's 149 goals on the season. Levendusky leads the Retrievers with 51 goals, while Swift has tallied 22.
Fabulous Freshmen: Nine UMBC freshmen have combined to score 26 goals and 44 points this season, led by midfielders Amanda Pappas (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake), Megan Linkous (Jarrettsville, Md./North Harford) and Erika Braerman (Fallston, Md./Fallston). Pappas' 10 goals and 14 points are tops among the Retrievers' first-year players, while Braerman has posted 10 points on five goals and five assists, and Linkous boasts seven goals and nine points. Linkous is also tied for the team lead with 23 ground balls. She and midfielder Kristen Milligan (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) have started every game which they have played, while Pappas and defender C.J. Durham (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) have also earned starting roles as the season has progressed.
Top Dawgs: Senior attack Ali Levendusky leads the America East in goals (51), points (56), shots (127) and shots per game (8.47), and she ranks second in goals per game (3.4) and fourth in points per game (3.73). She is also tied for second with three game-winning goals. Senior attack Meghan Keelan ranks third in the conference in assists (20) and fifth in assists per game (1.55). Levendusky also ranks 17th in the nation in goals per game, 25th in points and 40th in points per game, while Keelan is 33rd in assists and 45th in assists per game.
Taking on the Best: UMBC will face six teams in 2008 that were ranked in the top 20 in the most recent IWLCA/Under Armour National Poll, including No. 11 Boston University (April 19), No. 13 Vanderbilt (Feb. 22), No. 14 Yale (April 13), No. 15 Towson (March 15), No. 16 New Hampshire (March 22) and No. 17 Johns Hopkins (April 9). In addition, Delaware (March 10) received votes. In the current Inside Lacrosse Media Poll, Boston U. was ranked ninth, Yale 13th, Vanderbilt 14th, New Hampshire 15th, Towson 16th and Johns Hopkins 17th, while Delaware (March 10) and California (March 30) received votes. Vanderbilt, Yale, Boston U., Johns Hopkins and Hofstra (Feb. 17) all advanced to the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
UMBC Picked Fourth: The UMBC women's lacrosse team was predicted to finish in a tie for fourth place in the America East standings, according to a vote of the league's head coaches. Both the Retrievers and Albany received 19 points apiece in the America East Preseason Coaches' Poll. Three-time defending champion Boston University was the preseason favorite to win its fourth straight league title, followed by New Hampshire and Stony Brook. Vermont and Binghamton rounded out the seven-team poll.
Howard Notes: UMBC scored a season-high 21 goals against Howard on April 5, the most since tallying 23 against the Bison on Feb. 17, 2007… UMBC opened the game against Howard with nine straight goals, its best start to a game since scoring 11 straight against Binghamton on April 4, 2007… Sixteen of the Retrievers' 21 goals in the game were assisted, more than doubling the previous season high of seven… The 16 assists were the most in a game since the Retrievers recorded 18 against Howard on Feb. 18, 2006… Eleven different Retrievers recorded at least one assist against the Bison… Twelve different players scored a goal and 17 recorded at least one point against Howard, with eight posting multiple points.
Dawg Bites: Senior attack Ali Levendusky has been named America East Player of the Week twice this season… Levendusky has scored three or more goals in 13 of UMBC's 15 games this season, including a career-high six on two occasions - at Binghamton on Feb. 29 and at Stony Brook on April 2… On the season, 20 players have scored a goal and 22 have tallied a point, with seven in double-digit points… Levendusky has posted a team-best 23 draw controls, while senior midfielder Maggie Chizmar is tops with 14 caused turnovers… Levendusky, Chizmar and freshman midfielder Megan Linkous are tied for the team lead in ground balls with 23 apiece… UMBC's 17-11 win over Stony Brook on April 2 snapped a seven-game losing streak which spanned the entire month of March… The Retrievers have never lost to the Seawolves in five contests… UMBC won back-to-back games for just the second time this season with the win over Howard, and the 38 combined goals scored in the two victories marked the best two-game stretch since April 27-May 1, 2003, when they also scored a combined 38 goals against Long Island and Wagner… UMBC defeated Loyola on Feb. 26 for the first time in 34 years dating to 1974, during which time the Retrievers had lost 22 straight games to the Greyhounds, including each of the last nine years.
