The 17th year of America East Women's Lacrosse competition gets underway this weekend with three conference games, including the rematch of the 2011 America East Championship title game.
The defending champion Albany Great Danes, ranked 13th nationally in the deBeer/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll and receiving votes in the IWLCA Coaches' Poll, enter the conference slate with a 6-2 record. Their only two losses this season have come to ranked opponents in #3 North Carolina as well as #17 UMass on Wednesday. Sophomore attacker Ariana Parker, a Tewaaraton Award Watch List nominee, leads the team and is seventh in the conference with 2.62 goals per game as the Great Danes look to get back on the winning track in the conference opener against UMBC Saturday in Baltimore at noon.
The Retrievers, who are 3-5 this year, get another crack at the Great Danes after falling to Albany in the 2011 finals. This time, UMBC will get the defending champs on its own field when the Retrievers look to avenge last year's 11-4 loss. Lindsay Cox has led the UMBC offensive charge with 22 goals and five assists this year, while freshman Anna Barnett has held steady in net, posting a .533 save percentage and a goals against average of 7.77.
Boston U. and Vermont will square off at Nickerson Field in Boston at 1 p.m. on Saturday. The Terriers defeated the Catamounts 16-8 in last year's regular season meeting behind co-Player of the Year Danielle Etrasco's nine goals. Etrasco, another Tewaaraton Award nominee, is among league scoring leaders again as a junior in 2012, having 27 goals and nine assists this year. Boston U. has played a challenging schedule with three top-20 opponents and enters the America East slate on a three-game win streak with a 4-4 record.
Vermont has won back-to-back games over Columbia and Quinnipiac headed into Saturday's game against the Terriers and is tied with Albany atop the standings with a 6-2 overall mark. The 2011 Rookie of the Year Sydney Mas, who set the conference's freshman scoring record a year ago, is up to the same old tricks, tied with Etrasco for second in America East with 27 goals and 3.38 goals per game. Senior Samantha Stern has also helped the Catamounts to the fast start with 37 points, tops in America East, on 14 goals and 23 helpers.
The third conference game of the day on Saturday pits Binghamton and New Hampshire in Durham, N.H. at 1 p.m. The Wildcats are 10-0 all-time against the Bearcats going into this contest, but have struggled to a 1-5 mark so far this season. UNH has one of the most well rounded midfielders in the league in Kate Keagins who ranks third in America East with 3.00 draw controls per game and leads the conference with 2.17 caused turnovers per game.
Binghamton is 3-4 on the year, including 2-1 on the road. Leading at halftime of last year's contest against UNH 7-4, the Bearcats eventually fell 12-10 and will now be looking to erase last year's disappointment. Lis Zuern scored three goals and added an assist in that game and has scored 20 goals already this season. Also notching 10 assists, Zuern is fourth in the conference with 4.29 points per game (30 points in seven games).
Stony Brook has the bye week and will be hosting Marist on Saturday and traveling to Iona on Tuesday before opening league play at Binghamton on Saturday, March 31. The Seawolves have arguably been the most improved team in the country this season after hiring new head coach Joe Spallina from Adelphi. Featuring a new look with transfers from two-time defending Division II Champion Adelphi as well as Division I powerhouse Florida, the Seawolves knocked off the program's first-ever ranked opponent in #20 Johns Hopkins this season and entered the national poll at #19 on March 12.
The top four teams after single round-robin conference play will advance to the 2012 America East Women's Lacrosse Championship with the top seed earning hosting rights. The semifinals will be held Thursday, May 3, while the finals will air live on ESPN3 on Saturday, May 5.