Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 5/3/09
The Cabrini College women’s lacrosse team captured the Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) championship and punched its ticket to the NCAA Division III Tournament after a 20-9 win at Gwynedd-Mercy College Saturday.
Cavaliers coach Jackie Neary (Ridley), in her 13th season with the Cavaliers, wins her ninth career CSAC (formerly Pennsylvania Athletic Conference) championship.
Junior attack Erin Nollen (Henderson), one of four Cabrini players to receive CSAC First Team honors, powered the Cavaliers’ offense with a season-high 13 points on seven goals and six assists. Nollen scored five goals in the first half, including three of the game’s first five scores.
Junior attack Amanda Alexandrowicz (Ridley) totaled seven points, scoring six goals and dishing one assist. Sophomore attacks Jaime O’Hanlon (Springfield-Delco, 2G, 2A) and Kristen Vernon (West Chester East, 3G, 1A) each contributed four points.
Sophomore defender Courtney Davis, earned the game’s most valuable player honors, notching a team-best five groundballs and six draw controls. Alexandrowicz also tallied five draw controls.
Junior goalkeeper Kate Schmid (St. Hubert) played all 60 minutes in between the pipes for the Blue & Gray, recording nine saves en route to her 12th win of the season.
Cabrini raced to a 5-0 lead behind Nollen and led 10-4 at the intermission. Alexandrowicz deposited three goals in the first half. The Cavaliers stretched their lead to nine goals, 14-5, less than eight minutes into the second stanza. Alexandrowicz scored her second goal of the half, off a feed from Nollen, at the 22:20 mark.
After a goal from Gwynedd-Mercy’s Shannon Carabba (Springfield-Montco), Cabrini ripped off three straight scores, pushing its advantaged to 11 goals, 17-6, mid-way through the half.
Sophomore attack Colleen Dellostretto (Upper Moreland) led the Griffins’s efforts, notching four points on three goals and one assist. Carabba totaled three points on three goals. Kerri Boon (Interboro) had two assists.
Sophomore goalkeeper Trisha Timony posted 23 saves in the GMC cage, including 14 alone in the first half.
The Cavaliers will make their sixth appearance all-time in the NCAA Tournament. The Blue & White qualified for five consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 2001-2005.
Saturday’s championship game marked the 13th in 13 seasons for Neary at the helm of the Cavaliers.
Cabrini (12-4) will learn of its NCAA Tournament fate tonight. The championships brackets will be announced exclusively on CBS College Sports Network. The NCAA Lacrosse Selection Special will air from 10 p.m. – 11 p.m.
Stanford 8, Penn 6
In perhaps the biggest victory in the 15 years of Stanford women’s varsity lacrosse, the visiting Cardinal stunned the No. 3 Quakers at Franklin Field in a regular season finale crucial to its NCAA hopes
Lauren Schmidt scored three goals and Annie Read made 11 saves as Stanford (14-4) made its case for an at-large berth in the 17-team NCAA field. The selections will be announced tonight.
“I told the players after the game, we can’t say with 100 percent certainty that we’re in, but it was a quality win for us and I hope the committee recognizes that,” Stanford first-year coach Amy Bokker (Phoenixville) said. “I think we have a really good chance.”
Ali DeLuca led Penn (14-2) with two goals and an assist. The Ivy League champion Quakers will receive an automatic berth to the playoffs.
Georgetown 12, Yale 4
Mary Beth Brophy (Archbishop Carroll) scored three goals to lead the Hoyas (13-5). Logan McCraw (Conestoga) and Megan Bloomer (Conestoga) also scored for Georgetown.
Towson 8, Delaware 7, CAA title game
Northwestern 13, Penn State 3
Freshman Shannon Smith tied a career-best with four goals and senior goalkeeper Morgan Lathrop became the program’s all-time save leader as Northwestern claimed its sixth-straight American Lacrosse Conference title with a 13-3 victory over 17th-ranked Penn State. Mariel Bryan (Ridley) scored once for the Nittany Lions (9-8).
Louisville 17, US Davis 11
Sophomore attacker Bergan Foley (Gwynedd Mercy Academy) scored a game-high eight goals to lead the Cardinals (10-7) in a non-onference season finale. Foley finished the year with 61 goals and six assists and has an amazing 122 goals in her two seasons.
Division II
New Haven 16, Merrimack 15
Freshman Sarah Magnone (Villa Joseph Marie) scored two goals for the Chargers (15-3) in the NE 10 semifinals.
