Big South Co-Leaders Liberty, High Point to Meet on Saturday
4/6/2018 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
The Liberty Lady Flames lacrosse team is set for a Big South showdown with No. 25 High Point on Saturday afternoon. First draw from Vert Stadium in High Point, N.C., will take place at 2 p.m.
Liberty (9-3) and High Point (8-2) are tied for first place in the Big South standings at 2-0, along with Winthrop (9-3).
The Lady Flames got to 2-0 by virtue of a 19-8 home win over Gardner-Webb, Wednesday at the Liberty Lacrosse Field. Liberty also defeated Presbyterian, 21-5, at home, last Saturday in its Big South opener.
Meanwhile, High Point is the 25th-ranked team in the country in this week's Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll. The Panthers are the first Big South women's lacrosse team to ever garner a national ranking. They are coming off an 18-9 road victory at Campbell on Wednesday.
Series History
Liberty is 1-7 all-time against High Point, with its lone win in the series coming on April 17, 2015 in Lynchburg. On that day, the Lady Flames defeated the Panthers, 16-15, in overtime. Last year, High Point won both meetings, including a 20-9 victory over Liberty in the 2017 Big South Women's Lacrosse Championship semifinals.
How to Follow the Lady Flames
Live statistics, courtesy of High Point Communications, will be available for the game. Find the link for live stats on the Liberty women's lacrosse schedule page on LibertyFlames.com. For live social media updates before, during and after the game from Vert Stadium, follow @libertywlax on Twitter and "libertywlax" on Instagram.
Lady Flames News and Notes
- After an 18-caused turnover effort on Wednesday, Liberty upped its average to 14.42 caused turnovers per game and continues to lead the nation in the category. Junior midfielder Brianna McCaffrey recorded five caused turnovers on Wednesday vs. Gardner-Webb and is third in the country in caused turnovers per game (3.08).
- Liberty is also in the top 15 in the nation in shots per game (No. 2, 36.67), ground balls per game (No. 4, 24.42), scoring defense (No. 12, 9.25) shots on goal per game (No. 12, 25.67) and winning percentage (No. 14, .750). The Lady Flames are first in the Big South in caused turnovers per game, ground balls per game, save percentage, scoring defense and shots per game.
- The Lady Flames feature five players with 24 or more points, led by McCaffrey (30 g, 6 a), Michaela Rich (24 g, 12 a) and Kayla Foster (17 g, 19 a) with 36 apiece. Sophomores Carly White (20 g, 12 a, 32 pts) and Jenna Joyal (17 g, 7 a, 24 pts) are also enjoying strong seasons so far.
- McCaffrey is No. 25 in the country in ground balls per game (3.33), while Foster is No. 36 in assists (19). Hannah Quast checks in at 46th in the nation in free-position percentage (.571).
- McCaffrey has 79 caused turnovers for her career, including 37 this season, and is one away from tying the program's all-time mark of 80, set by current assistant coach Nina Dunay (2011-15).
- Liberty (9-3) has equaled its most wins in a season in program history. The 2015 Lady Flames also won nine games, advancing to the Big South Women's Lacrosse Championship title game in the process.
Scouting High Point
Head coach Lyndsey Boswell's squad is in the top 10 in the country in several statistical categories, including: caused turnovers per game (No. 2, 12.70), points per game (No. 4, 23.30), scoring margin (No. 4, 6.50), free-position percentage (No. 4, .549), scoring offense (No. 7, 16.00), assists per game (No. 8, 7.30), shots on goal per game (No. 8, 26.10) and shots per game (No. 9, 34.50). Brooke Stevens paces the team with 46 points (17 g, 29 a), while Erica Perrotta is second on the squad with 41 points (26 g, 15 a).
Jill Rall (7-2, 10.11 GAA, 50 SV in 439:01) and Sarah Zeto (1-0, 7.78 GAA, 12 SV in 161:55) will handle the goalkeeping for the Panthers.
