Women look for win at Yale Wednesday

SMITHFIELD, R.I. -- After its best effort of the season last Saturday against a tough Navy side, the Bryant University women's lacrosse team hits the road Wednesday in search of its first victory of the year, traveling to New Haven, Conn., for a 4 p.m. tilt against Yale University.

The Elis (1-1) host their second contest at Reese Stadium and are coming off a difficult loss to Ivy League foe and then-14th ranked Dartmouth, 9-8, last Saturday after taking down Holy Cross, 17-13, in the team's 2012 season debut back on Feb. 25.

Junior Devon Rhodes paces Yale with eight points off five goals and a trio of assists, all three marks team highs, while Ashley McCormick has come on strong in her sophomore season with five tallies of her own in a pair of contests. McCormick also leads her side with four of the team's 12 caused turnovers on the year and has added two draw control wins and a quartet of ground balls. Rookie Cathryn Avallone has made a big impact already on the Eli offense as well, netting four and adding an assist to sit at No. 3 in the team's scoring ranks.

As a unit, Yale has been accurate from the 8-meter mark, converting six of its nine free position shots for goals while limiting opponents to just three such scores in 11 chances. Much of that defensive success has been thanks to the strong play of senior netminder Whitney Quackenbush, who has posted 15 saves on the year for a .405 save percentage in two starts, playing every minute between the pipes for the Elis.

Adrienne Tarver has a team-high five ground balls on the young season while Sabine van der Linden's six draw controls mark a squad best on the year.

The Bulldogs (0-3) look to offset a heartbreaking 8-7 loss to the Midshipmen with a road win Wednesday afternoon and are positioned well for a strong push against its Ivy League hosts. Much of Bryant's momentum comes not from its offensive ranks, though, but rather from a stout defensive effort that has been consistent for the Black and Gold throughout the season's opening contests.

That push starts with reigning Northeast Conference Defensive Player of the Week Lauren Filippone (West Babylon, N.Y.) between the pipes. The senior netminder ranks third nationally in both saves per game (13.00) and save percentage (.542) while also leading the team with 11 ground balls and five caused turnovers. She has two double-digit save performances on the season and currently leads the NEC in save percentage.

Offensively, senior Lauren Sheridan (Bethpage, N.Y.) paces the Black and Gold with seven scores and has three free positions goals on the year. Behind her with three goals and one of Bryant's two helpers on the year is reigning NEC Rookie of the Year Haley Bloom (Hauppauge, N.Y.), who scored twice Saturday against Navy.

Fellow sophomore Katherine Keckeisen (Danbury, Conn.) has the team's other assist on the year, complimenting a pair of goals, while classmate Lisa Vendel (Sandy Hook, Conn.) has also chipped in two scores in 2012. Senior captain Mary Green (Merrick, N.Y.) got on the scoreboard for the first time this season against the Mids, adding a point to her team-leading seven draw control wins.

Fans can watch Wednesday's game at Yale LIVE at http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/yale.portal.