Bulldogs return to NEC play in weekend set

BULLDOGS RETURN TO NORTHEAST CONFERENCE ACTION IN WEEKEND HOME SET

SMITHFIELD, R.I. -- The Bryant University women's lacrosse team has a busy weekend in store on its home turf, as the Bulldogs host Northeast Conference foe Wagner College Friday night (7 p.m.) before welcoming LIU Brooklyn Sunday (1 p.m.) with the hope of adding a pair of league victories to their 2012 resume.

The Seahawks enter Friday's matchup with an even 5-5 record but are 0-2 in conference play so far this season. Wagner's two conference losses came last weekend as the team was swept at home by Quinnipiac, 19-8, and Sacred Heart, 12-10, despite a halftime lead.

Sparking the offense for the Seahawks is senior attacker Carolyn Clark, whose 29 goals in 10 games has her at the top of the stat sheet with a team-leading 32 points. Aiding her with some solid firepower of their own are classmates Lauren Petrik and Melanie Garces, who each chip in 16 goals while the former also paces the team in assists with 13. Sam Morin sits at 25 tallies and 30 points on the season, good for second on the team, while junior Erika Bulken boasts 18 points on the back of a 12-assist campaign. But Bulken's biggest contribution comes on the restart, where she has picked up an impressive 60 draw controls to jumpstart the Seahawk offense.

The Wagner defense is spearheaded by its goalie tandem of Shannon Sweeney and Morgan Roach, who have each seen significant playing time in 2012. Sweeney, a freshman, has earned seven starts and appeared in eight games on the year while seeing the most minutes between the pipes at 374. Sweeney boasts a goals against average of 11.06, making 64 saves on 164 shots faced for a save percentage of .481. Sophomore Morgan Roach has started three times in six games played and has faced 128 shots on the year with 61 goals allowed for a goals against average of 15.80 and a .390 save percentage. Also making a difference defensively are sophomores Katy Bender and Caitlin Daly, as the pair lead the team in caused turnovers with 17 and 12, respectively.

The Bulldogs won't have much turnaround time between games this weekend, either, as the Blackbirds of LIU Brooklyn come to Smithfield Sunday afternoon after a Friday matchup of their own at Central Connecticut. Heading into the weekend, the Blackbirds are 0-9 on the year, and they, too, are coming off weekend losses to Sacred Heart, 22-8, and Quinnipiac, 18-7, a week ago.

Leading LIU offensively is sophomore attacker Shakoya Smith, who has netted 24 tallies on just 33 shots on goal on the year. With two assists, she paces the team with 26 points, 10 ahead of the Blackbirds' second-leading scorer in classmate Ashley Delaney. Delaney has registered 15 scores in nine starts and boasts at team-best 17 draw controls while contributing 16 ground balls.

LIU sophomore goalie Gina Haber has scooped up 23 ground balls to lead the Blackbirds, and she has 91 saves with eight starts on the year. Haber has appeared in every contest of the season, with Jaqueline Simonian earning a start in four games played. The pair combine for a team .382 save percentage and 18.89 goals against average.

For Bryant (1-7, 0-1), the weekend matchups are the first NEC contests since Feb. 26, when the team fell, 11-5, to Central Connecticut on the road in the second game of the season. The Bulldogs look to end their three-game losing streak and rise above .500 in conference action for the first time in 2012.

The Bryant offense is led by a trio of double-digit goal scorers and has been highlighted as of late by the play of senior midfielder Mary Green (Merrick, N.Y.). The captain has exploded for nine goals over the last three games, scoring a hat trick in all three-consecutive outings, and currently sits third on the team in scoring with 14 points off 13 goals and one assist.

Classmate Lauren Sheridan (Bethpage, N.Y.) and sophomore Haley Bloom (Hauppauge, N.Y.) lead all Bulldog scorers with 14 goals apiece and boast 16 and 17 points, respectively, as the team's top scoring duo. Bryant also gets double-digit offensive numbers out of sophomore Lisa Vendel (Sandy Hook, Conn.), who has nine caused turnovers, 10 ground balls and eight draw control wins to compliment 11 points off nine goals and a pair of helpers as one of the most all-around consistent players on the Bryant side.

The Black and Gold defense is powered by senior netminder Lauren Filippone (West Babylon, N.Y.), who has started all eight games and has earned NEC Defensive Player of the Week twice this season. Filippone has played all but seven minutes between the pipes and boasts a 10.66 goals against average with a .536 save percentage that ranks near the top on the national scales. The captain also leads the nation in ground balls per game, picking up 4.5 each time out for 36 on the season.

Junior defender Nicole Rettinger (Dix Hills, N.Y.) is also a defensive stronghold, having forced a team-leading 16 caused turnovers to go along with 22 ground balls and a trio of draw controls.

As a team, the Bulldogs are averaging 8.25 goals per game entering the weekend set, and Filippone averages more than 12 rejections per outing with her 98 saves on the season. Of the team's 66 goals, 19 have come off free position shots.

Can't make it to the games? You can watch all the action LIVE at home on the Bulldog Sports Network at www.bryantbulldogs.tv or follow along with live stats at www.bryantbulldogs.com.