Tyler Kraft/UMBC Athletics

Women's Lacrosse 2/24/2026 11:20:00 AM

Women's Lacrosse Welcomes Youngstown State for First-Ever Meeting on Wednesday Afternoon

The Retrievers look to make it two straight wins after cruising at La Salle, 21-3, last Wednesday in Philadelphia. It was their largest margin of victory since a 24-4 victory win against Howard last February.
UMBC and UAlbany are both off to 2-1 starts in the America East. Vermont is a league-best 3-1.
The Dawgs lead the circuit in goals per game (17.0, 6th in NCAA), points per game (23.7, 11th in NCAA), shots per game (39.33, 2nd in NCAA), and goals against average (7.67).
Emily Knapp ranks second in the America East in goals per game (4.67, 4th in NCAA) and is second in points per game (5.00, 26th in NCAA).
Knapp has recorded 61 goals and 22 assists (83 points) in just 19 career appearances (4.37)
Lizzie Bateman and Libby Staples slot fifth in the league with 1.67 assists per game and 4.00 draws per game. Staples is also sixth in points per game (3.67),
Mya Stewart-Parsons is third in the league with 2.67 ground balls per game while Tess Curtis is fourth with 2.50 ground balls per game
Ella Killian ranks ninth on the circuit with 1.67 caused turnovers per game.
Olivia Worden is fourth in the league with 5.00 draw controls per game.
Goalie Emine Luznar leads the AE with a 4.74 goals against average and is third in saves percentage (.474).
UMBC's 47 shots against Delaware State is a league-high this season. The Dawgs also scooped a league-high 24 ground balls against La Salle.
The Dawgs are 6th in the country in scoring margin (9.33).

Last Time Out: Knapp Produces Career-High Six Goals In Rout of La Salle

Sophomore sensation Emily Knapp scored a career-high six goals to help lead the UMBC women's lacrosse team to a dominant, 21-3, non-conference victory over the La Salle Explorers at McCarthy Stadium on Wednesday afternoon.
Knapp, who already has 14 goals in just three games, scored three goals in each half to lead six Retrievers who recorded multiple goals.
Senior attacker Libby Staples (three ground balls, four draw controls) scored three goals and handed out a pair of assists, and sophomore linemate Mya Stewart-Parsons (team-high four ground balls) also produced her first career hat trick. Sophomore attacker Reese Macintosh (two assists), freshman midfielder Claire Moffitt, and sophomore attackman Sam Hewitt each hit the target twice. Sophomore goalie Emine Luznar made a season-high seven saves.
The Retrievers (2-1) needed just eleven seconds to grab the lead for good when Knapp beat the Explorers' goalie Mary Babbage (11 saves) after freshman Olivia Worden won the opening draw control. Worden was also credited with the assist on the game-winner.
Knapp made it 2-0 just 2:02 into the match as she tallied on an unassisted play. La Salle (2-2) got one back when attacker Bri McClain took a feed from attacker Emi Waldron at the 11:43 mark, but the Retrievers exploded for 11 consecutive goals to put the game out of reach.
Knapp scored a woman down goal with 10:29 left in the opening frame to ignite the decisive run. UMBC added four more markers to grab a 7-1 advantage after the opening quarter. Staples tickled the twine a pair of times, and Macintosh and Moffitt each beat Babbage.
Stewart Parsons scored the lone goal in the second quarter on a free position opportunity to spot the visitors an 8-1 lead at intermission.
UMBC continued to widen the gap in the third quarter as it scored six of the seven goals in the frame. Knapp and Stewart-Parsons each produced a pair of goals, and Staples added a goal and an assist.
The Retrievers added seven additional goals in the fourth quarter to put a stamp on their fifth consecutive triumph against the Explorers. Knapp took a feed from senior Lizzie Bateman to notch her final goal of the afternoon with 13:14 remaining. Sophomore attacker Sam Hewitt scored the first two goals of her UMBC career in the frame.
UMBC held a 41-20 advantage in total shots and scooped 24-of-32 ground balls.

About Youngstown State

The Penguins dropped their first road contest of the season on Sunday morning, 17-7, to Monmouth.
Ally Garrett and Maya Griffin led YSU with two goals each, while also getting goals from Claire Baenziger, Lilly Mattucci, and Molly Brooks, each added one goal for the 'Guins.
Defensively, Skylar Pigrom led YSU with team-highs in both ground balls with four and caused turnovers with two. Baenziger and Mackenzie Flannigan each corralled three ground balls on the day.
Brooke Harper subbed in at the beginning of the second quarter and finished the game with a team-high seven saves over her 45 minutes of action in the cage.
Claire Baenziger has a team-high nine goals through three games, followed by Maya Griffin, who has six. Baenziger also has a team-high 18 draw controls.
Out of the 31 goals scored by the Penguins this season, only eight of the goals have come off assists. Gwen Bogash and Ava Kreutzer are the lone Penguins with more than one assist thus far, as they each have two.
The Penguins have shot just 43% (9-for-21) on free-position attempts.
Mackenzie Flannigan has played a crucial role defensively during the early stages of her junior campaign, leading YSU in ground balls (11) and caused turnovers (seven). Her three CT in the season-opening game vs. Bucknell on Feb. 6 tied her second-highest total as a Penguin in a single game. Her five ground balls on Feb. 15 vs. George Mason were the second-most she has had in a single game.
Brooke Harper has led the team with 20 saves through three appearances. She also has a team-high 32% save percentage. Alyssa Edwards started the last two games for the Penguins, saving 11 shots during her 75 minutes in the cage.

Series History

First ever meeting

Head Coach Amy Slade

2021 National Lacrosse Hall of Fame inductee Amy (Appelt) Slade is in her 14th season at the helm of the Retrievers and 17th overall with the program. Slade served as a co-head coach for her first two seasons at the head of the program after being hired as an assistant coach in August of 2009.
Slade had a career record of 106-95 (.527).
She enjoyed 11-win seasons in 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2024-25.
Slade, who won the prestigious Tewaaraton Trophy and led the University of Virginia to a national championship in 2004, joined the UMBC women's lacrosse staff in August 2009. She was inducted into the 2020 class of the US Lacrosse Hall of Fame after an illustrious career with the Cavaliers where she was a four-time All-American at Virginia, where she set school records for career goals (258) and points (373) and ranks second in career assists (115). Her goals and points totals are in the top-10, respectively, in the NCAA Division I record books, and she set an NCAA record by scoring a goal in 66 straight games.

Preseason Honors

The America East Conference announced its Preseason All-Conference Team and Preseason Coaches' Poll in January. Sophomore attacker Emily Knapp, senior defender Ella Killian, and sophomore midfielder Tess Curtis were all recognized by the league's coaches.
Knapp burst upon the season in 2025 after earning a redshirt in 2024 and was named the America East Rookie of the Year. Knapp was second in the league with 4.25 points per game (68 points) and finished fifth with 2.94 goals per game (47 goals). She has also added 21 assists, 24 ground balls, and 11 caused turnovers. Knapp was the third Retriever to be named Rookie of the Year and the first since 2022.
The speedy and fearless Killian is a significant reason why UMBC ranked 15th in the country in clearing percentage. Killian, who finished sixth on the circuit with 4.44 draw controls per game, also compiled 24 ground balls and caused 12 turnovers.
Curtis ranked seventh on the squad with 20 points (18 goals, two assists). She recorded hat tricks against La Salle and New Hampshire in her first season as a Retriever.

2025 Rewind

UMBC finished the 2025 season with an 11-5 record and has been picked to finish fifth out of seven teams this year. Last season, the Dawgs placed fourth with a 3-3 conference record
The Dawgs return six players who started at least half of the squad's contests last season (attacker Emily Knapp, attacker Libby Staples, attacker Lizzie Bateman, defender Lauren Flynn, defender Ella Killian, and defender Emily Renehan)

UMBC will look to replace All-Conference performers Grace Bruce (48 goals, 11 assists), Katana Nelson (55 goals), and goalie Isabella Fontana (10.44).

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Players Mentioned

#11 Lizzie Bateman: Attack; 5' 7"; Junior

#28 Isabella Fontana: Goalie; 5' 1"; Graduate Student

#2 Ella Killian: Defense; 5' 2"; Junior

#7 Katana Nelson: Midfield; 5' 7"; Senior

#3 Emily Renehan: Defense; 5' 5"; Junior

#24 Grace Bruce: Attack; 5' 3"; Senior

#6 Libby Staples: Attack; 5' 6"; Junior

#14 Lauren Flynn: Defense; 5' 3"; Sophomore

#23 Emily Knapp: Attack; 5' 5"; Freshman

#13 Mya Stewart-Parsons: Attack; 5' 2"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#11 Lizzie Bateman
: 5' 7"; Junior
: Attack

#28 Isabella Fontana
: 5' 1"; Graduate Student
: Goalie

#2 Ella Killian
: 5' 2"; Junior
: Defense

#7 Katana Nelson
: 5' 7"; Senior
: Midfield

#3 Emily Renehan
: 5' 5"; Junior
: Defense

#24 Grace Bruce
: 5' 3"; Senior
: Attack

#6 Libby Staples
: 5' 6"; Junior
: Attack

#14 Lauren Flynn
: 5' 3"; Sophomore
: Defense

#23 Emily Knapp
: 5' 5"; Freshman
: Attack

#13 Mya Stewart-Parsons
: 5' 2"; Freshman
: Attack