MEC Women's Lacrosse Semifinal Preview: #1 Frostburg State vs #4 West Virginia Wesleyan
FROSTBURG, Md. – The Frostburg State Women's Lacrosse team is set to host West Virginia Wesleyan in the Semifinals of the MEC Tournament on Wednesday evening, with both teams fighting for a bid in the conference championship.
How They Got Here
Frostburg claims the No. 1 seed in the tournament, showing an 11-5 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 23-1 and 29-0 during their contests in the regular season, as Frostburg wrapped up their regular season on an eight-game win streak, with all wins in conference, capturing their second-straight regular season MEC title.
Wesleyan comes into the contest as the No. 4 seed with an overall record of 4-12 and a 1-7 record in MEC competition. WVWC knotted non-conference wins over Emory & Henry, UDC, Ursuline College, and Westminster. Wesleyan is in search of their first win since Saturday, March 23, along with their first-ever conference championship appearance.
The Matchup
FSU holds the all-time advantage in the matchup history between the two teams, spotting a 9-0-1 record. Frostburg holds an eight-game win streak over WVWC, as the two teams tied back in 2018 with the game ending at 12-12 due to darkness. In the last eight contests between the two, Frostburg has outscored Wesleyan by 15 or more goals.
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 49, for fourth best in the conference, also putting up 22 assists for 71 points, tying for third most points in the league. Backing Haney up on offense, is All-MEC First Team honoree junior Kerri Hayes (28 goals) and All-MEC Second Team honoree senior Camden DeMaio (31 goals, 23 assists, 54 points), while junior Megan Keller, who earned All-MEC Honorable Mention, sits at midfield with 23 ground balls and 20 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 a team-high 35 caused turnovers, 30 ground balls, 14 goals, and 17 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 26 turnovers and scooping up 31 ground balls and 21 draw controls, while the latter racked up 27 caused turnovers and 23 ground balls. To round out the Bobcats, junior Nicole Gray stands in goal as an All-MEC Second Team selection, earning 108 saves during the regular season for third best in the MEC, with a .480 save percentage and a 9.87 goals against average.
Wesleyan is led by All-MEC Second Team honoree and All-MEC Freshman Team Selection Talia Berardo, who leads WVWC in goals with 50 for third in the MEC, also dishing out 12 assists for a team-high 62 points, and scooping up 30 ground balls and 20 draw controls. All-MEC Freshman Team honoree Erin Mobley provided 38 goals and 7 assists during the regular season for a total of 45 points, while causing 10 turnovers and picking up 12 ground balls. Makenzi Lewellyn earned a spot on the All-MEC Second Team as well, going for 17 goals and 16 points, with 20 caused turnovers and 37 ground balls in the midfielder position, while on the defensive side, Raveena Navalgund led the team in caused turnovers with 44 and ground balls with 50, as an All-MEC Second Team selection as well.
The Rest of the Field
Second-seeded Charleston hosts third-seeded Davis & Elkins in the other semifinal matchup, with the winners of each contest set to compete at the highest seed's home field.
2024 MEC Women's Lacrosse Tournament
Wednesday, May 1 – Semifinals
#3 Davis & Elkins vs #2 Charleston – 3 p.m.
#4 West Virginia Wesleyan vs #1 Frostburg State – 7 p.m.
Sunday, May 5 – Championship
Winners at highest remaining seed
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- Strong Second Half Effort Gives Women's Lacrosse Second Straight MEC ChampionshipThe Frostburg State Women's Lacrosse team used a second half comeback effort to defeat Charleston (WV) in the 2024 MEC Championship Game for their second consecutive title.
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- Women's Lacrosse Lands Six on MEC All-Conference TeamsThe Frostburg State Women's Lacrosse team had six players named to the All-MEC First and Second Teams, as announced by the league office on Tuesday.
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