Allegheny Heads for Second Consecutive NCAC Lacrosse Tournament

May 5, 2005

Tournament Web Site

MEADVILLE, Pa. – For just the second time in the program’s 12-year history, the Allegheny College women’s lacrosse team will compete in the NCAC Tournament this weekend. Oberlin (Ohio) College will be the host for the four-team tourney that will conclude on Saturday with a 3 p.m. championship game.

The fourth-seeded Gators tied a school-record for single-season victories by going 8-5 during the regular season, including a 3-3 mark in the league. Allegheny will take on the top-seed Denison (Ohio) University (8-3, 6-0) in the first of two semifinals Friday afternoon beginning at 3 p.m. The other semifinal will pit the second seed College of Wooster (Ohio) and their 9-3 mark (5-1 NCAC) against third-seeded Ohio Wesleyan University (10-3, 4-2) at 5 p.m.

Allegheny will be trying to avenge an 8-7 overtime loss to the Big Red back on April 17. The Gators led for the entire game until Denison scored twice in the final 48 seconds to send the game into OT. Quinn Simmons scored the go-ahead goal with 25 seconds to play in the first extra period and AC could not score the equalizer in the second OT as Denison escaped with the triumph.

In the other semifinal, the Scots will try for their second win of the year against OWU, as Wooster came away with an 11-5 victory over the Bishops in their first meeting April 12.

Leading the Gator attack this season has been freshman Ashley Hughes (Wexford, Pa./ North Allegheny), who has a team-high 37 points after scoring 25 goals and assisting on an Allegheny-best 12 others. Junior Ashley Rogerson (Fairport, N.Y.) has also notched 25 goals on the year and is tied with senior Ashley Lemmon (Allison Park, Pa./ Winchester-Thurston) with 31 total points. Lemmon has recorded 20 goals and is second on the team with 11 assists.

Rounding out the AC offensive leaders is junior Emily Deering (Hollis, Maine/ Bonny Eagle), who has scored 24 goals this year and currently has 99 in her career. With three scores in a 14-2 victory over Oberlin April 27, Deering became the all-time leading goal scorer in school history and now stands just one away from 100 for her career.

Between the pipes for the Gators is freshman Lesley Stange (Murrysville, Pa./ Franklin Regional), who is third in the NCAC in save percentage after making 101 stops in her initial year.

Denison brings the second-highest scoring offense in conference games into the tournament, as the Big Red has collected 81 goals in six NCAC games (13.5). Simmons leads the attack with 28 goals and five assists this year, while Courtney Abrams has also hit 30 points with 22 goals and eight assists.

Defensively, Denison’s goalkeeper is Carolyn Hicks, who has a .559 save percentage and has not allowed more than seven goals in any of the last six games.

If Allegheny can slip past the top-seeded Big Red, they would have a chance at redemption against either Wooster or Ohio Wesleyan on Saturday. The Gators lost to both teams to close out the regular season, falling to OWU 10-6 on April 30 and dropping a 12-11 decision to Wooster May 3.

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