MEC Women's Lacrosse Championship Preview: #1 Frostburg State vs #2 Charleston (WV)

FROSTBURG, Md. – The Frostburg State Women's Lacrosse team welcomes in Charleston (WV) on Sunday afternoon for the MEC Championship, as the Bobcats look to capture the conference title for the second straight season. 
 
How They Got Here
Frostburg claims the No. 1 seed in the tournament, showing a 12-5 overall record, going undefeated in conference play for the first time in program history with an 8-0 record. The Bobcats took down all MEC opponents by 11 goals or more during the regular season, posting a shutout against Wesleyan.  FSU defeated WVWC at home on Wednesday in the semifinal with a final score of 24-7 to make it back to the conference championship game.  Frostburg wrapped up their regular season on an eight-game win streak, with the playoff win pushing their win-streak to nine games, as the Bobcats captured their second-straight regular season title. 
 
Charleston comes into the contest as the No. 2 seed, with an overall record of 10-7 and a 6-2 record in MEC competition.  The Golden Eagles' two losses in conference play have come against Frostburg in games with scores of 15-4 and 19-8 during the regular season.  UC held on for the 13-8 victory in their semifinal game against Davis & Elkins, sending them to their first-ever conference championship match.   
 
The Matchup
FSU holds the all-time advantage in the matchup history between the two teams, spotting a 7-2 record.  As mentioned, Frostburg took both contests between the two in the regular season, as Charleston's two victories came in 2021 and 2023.  The Golden Eagles took one regular season meeting last year by a score of 14-9, while defeating the Bobcats 17-15 in another regular season contest in the 2021 season.  This will be the second time in program history FSU faces off against Charleston in the playoffs, as the Bobcats hosted UC in 2022 for another chance to appear in the conference championship, as Frostburg won the semifinal contest 23-7. 
 
The Players
Frostburg boats the two-time MEC Offensive Player of the Year and All-MEC First Team Selection, sophomore Neila Haney, who leads the team in goals with 54, for second most in the conference, also putting up 24 assists for 78 points, sitting at second in the league in the points category.  Backing Haney up on offense, is All-MEC First Team honoree junior Kerri Hayes (29 goals) and All-MEC Second Team honoree senior Camden DeMaio (34 goals, 26 assists, 60 points), while junior Megan Keller, who earned All-MEC Honorable Mention, sits at midfield with 26 ground balls and 22 caused turnovers on the season.  On the other end of the field, FSU is led by MEC Defensive Player of the Year and All-MEC First Team Selection graduate Maura O'Neill, who has succeeded all over the field so far this season, racking up the stat sheet with 35 caused turnovers, 31 ground balls, 17 goals, and 18 assists.  Sophomores Jessie Bare (All-MEC First Team) and Isabelle Kelly (All-MEC Second Team) are the backbone on defense for Frostburg, with the former causing 27 turnovers and scooping up 32 ground balls and 23 draw controls, while the latter racked up a team-high 36 caused turnovers and 27 ground balls.  To round out the Bobcats, junior Nicole Gray stands in goal as an All-MEC Second Team selection, earning 111 saves for fourth most in the MEC, with a .481 save percentage and a 9.66 goals against average. 
 
Charleston sports weapons all over the field, starting at the attack position with All-MEC First Team honorees Madison Partridge (68 goals, six assists, 74 points, 47 ground balls, 39 caused turnovers) and Darby Stolz (29 goals, six assists, 29 ground balls, and 20 caused turnovers), as Partridge leads the MEC in goals  Also at attack, All-MEC Freshman Team selection Hayden Slinkard put up strong numbers in her first year, knocking down 13 goals and dishing out 20 assists, while also scooping up 30 ground balls and causing 14 turnovers.  Sitting at the midfield position for the Golden Eagles is the First Team All-MEC duo of Gianni Blundell and Nicolette Lospitalier, as the former scored 26 goals so far this season while leading the team and conference in assists (57) and points (83), as the latter put up 34 goals and 17 assists for a total of 51 points, picking up 47 ground balls and causing 38 caused turnovers as well.  All-MEC Honorable Mention and All-MEC Freshman Team honoree Ella Russano also supports the midfielder position, collecting 10 goals and two assists, as well as 18 ground balls and 11 caused turnovers.  Behind the trio of midfielders sits defenders Olivia Espositio, who received All-MEC First Team honors, and Alyssa Greaver, who received All-MEC Second Team honors.  Esposito handled 21 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers on the year, while Greaver found herself with nine ground balls and 12 caused turnovers, as they both protect All-MEC First Team Selection Megan Liston, who currently has 123 saves in goal for a .441 save percentage and a 10.97 goals against average.    
 
2024 MEC Women's Lacrosse Tournament
Wednesday, May 1 – Semifinals
#2 Charleston def. #3 Davis & Elkins 13-8
#1 Frostburg State def. #4 West Virginia Wesleyan 24-7
 
Sunday, May 5 – Championship
#1 Frostburg State vs #2 Charleston – 2 p.m. in Frostburg, MD