BALTIMORE - Coming off its first loss of the season, the UMBC women's lacrosse team (2-1) faces off against its second of three straight nationally ranked opponents Saturday afternoon when it takes on No. 13 Vanderbilt (0-2) at 2 p.m. at UMBC Stadium.
Last Time Out: Sophomore attack Emily Coady (Westminster, Md./Westminster) scored three times, but the Retrievers fell to 11th-ranked Loyola, 7-4, as Greyhound goalie Kerry Stoothoff made a career-high 16 saves. Senior goalie Kate Quick (Phoenix, Md./Maryvale Prep) was also outstanding in the net, stopping a season-high nine shots.
On the Commodores: Vanderbilt is 0-2 after a pair of season-opening losses to top-5 teams. The Commodores are coming off a 12-6 loss to No. 4 North Carolina on Friday. Midfielder Sarah Downing led Vanderbilt with two goals, while goalie Natalie Wills was strong in the net with 15 saves. Downing leads the Commodores with five goals on the young season, and Wills leads the American Lacrosse Conference with 28 saves.
Inside the Series: Vanderbilt holds a 3-0 advantage in the all-time series, including last season's 15-6 decision in Nashville. Coady and midfielder Kara Dorr each scored a pair of goals for the Retrievers. Downing led all players with seven points on five goals and two assists. Quick recorded 11 saves, while Wills stopped nine shots.
Pappas, Allen Honored: Junior midfielder Amanda Pappas (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) was tabbed America East Player of the Week and freshman midfielder Kerianne Allen (Ellicott City, Md./Mount Hebron) earned Rookie of the Week honors on Monday for their performances against George Mason on Feb. 16. Pappas tallied a career-high seven goals, while Allen scored her first collegiate goal and added three ground balls, a draw control and a caused turnover. Pappas and Allen give the Retrievers both Player and Rookie of the Week for the second straight week to open the season, as junior attack Erika Braerman (Fallston, Md./Fallston) and freshman midfielder Lindsay Cox (High Bridge, N.J./Voorhees) earned the awards last week. Braerman was the first Retriever to garner Player of the Week since Ali Levendusky on April 7, 2008, and it is the first time that UMBC has received two Player of the Week nods in the same season since Levendusky earned the accolade twice that same year. It is the first time since 2004 that a pair of Retrievers has been named Rookie of the Week in the same season. Finally, when Braerman and Cox took home their awards last week, it was the first time that two Retrievers earned America East honors in the same week since Levendusky and Susie Sweeney were named Player and Defender of the Week, respectively, on March 2, 2006.
Receiving Votes: UMBC received a vote in this week's Inside Lacrosse media poll, giving the America East three teams to garner national recognition from the publication. Boston University (11) and New Hampshire (20) are both ranked in the top 20.
Taking on the Best: UMBC will face four teams that were ranked in the top 20 in the most recent IWLCA coaches' poll, including three straight from Feb. 23-March 3. The Retrievers will take on No. 10 Boston University (April 10), No. 11 Loyola (Feb. 23), No. 13 Vanderbilt (Feb. 27) and No. 18 Towson (March 3). In addition, New Hampshire (April 3) is also receiving votes in the poll.
Retrievers Picked Fifth: UMBC was predicted to finish fifth in the America East standings, according to a vote of the league's coaches. The Retrievers received 19 points in the America East preseason coaches' poll. Five-time defending champion Boston University is the unanimous preseason favorite to win the sixth straight league title. The Terriers received all six possible first-place votes and 36 points to distance themselves from second-place New Hampshire, which received 29 points. The final first-place vote went to Vermont, which finished third in the poll with 23 points, tied with Albany. UMBC (19), Stony Brook (10) and Binghamton (7) round out the seven-team poll. The top four teams in the conference will advance to the America East Championships May 6-8. The Retrievers look to return to the league tournament for the first time since 2006.
Back in the Mix: The Retrievers return nearly 70 percent of an offense that scored 199 goals in 2009, the most since 2006. Pappas is the Retrievers' top returning scorer with 28 goals and 37 points a year ago, while Coady earned America East All-Rookie honors after posting 35 points on 22 goals and 13 assists. Also back is Second-Team All-Conference midfielder Ashley Stodter (Silver Spring, Md./Good Counsel), whose breakout sophomore campaign resulted in 25 goals and 28 points. On the other end of the field, Quick was tabbed the conference's top goalie with a 10.35 goals-against average and a league-best .483 save percentage.
Dawg Bites: Pappas leads the Retrievers with 11 goals and 12 points, while Braerman has 11 points on seven goals and a team-high four assists… Quick has posted a 5.67 GAA and a .595 save percentage with 25 saves in the first three games this season… Pappas and sophomore midfielder Bria Phillips (Davidsonville, Md./Coronado (Calif.)) have each picked up a team-high seven ground balls… Junior defender C.J. Durham (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) leads the Retrievers with six caused turnovers, while senior midfielder Amanda Gable (Mount Airy, Md./Glenelg) has won a team-high 12 draw controls… Coady has scored a goal in seven straight games dating to April 8, 2009… Nine different players have found the back of the net for UMBC so far this season, and 11 have tallied at least one point… The Retrievers open the season 2-1 for the first time since 2007.
