BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott College women’s lacrosse team will travel to Claremont, Calif. for a matchup with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday, May 12th. The Gulls (16-4) defeated Roger Williams University, 10-4, on Saturday to capture its fifth-straight The Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship and grab the conference’s at-large bid into the big dance.

Endicott will be making its fifth-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and will be looking for the program’s first win in the field. The Gulls had drawn three straight NESCAC teams after hosting Colorado College in its first trip to the dance in 2006. In 2007, the Blue and Green took on Trinity College and followed that up with an appearance against Amherst College in 2008. Last season, the Gulls fell to Williams College, 19-9, in Williamstown, Mass. in the first round.

Perhaps a change of scenery will do the Gulls some good.

Endicott travels to Claremont, Calif. to take on Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (15-2). The Athenas enter the NCAA Tournament having won the inaugural SCIAC Championship last weekend after defeating Pomona-Pitzer, 17-9, then outlasting the Redlands Bulldogs, 16-11, in the championship game. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps has been to the NCAA Tournament the past two seasons, advancing to the second round in 2008 with a 19-17 win over Ohio Wesleyan before falling to The College of New Jersey, 12-3. Last season, Cortland State took care of the Athenas, 23-8, in the first round.

The only common opponent between these teams comes in the form of #10 Babson College. Endicott defeated the then-No. 8 ranked Beavers, 17-16, in double overtime on March 11th. A week later, the Athenas matched up with Babson in Lake Lytal, Fla. and were handed their last loss of the season, 15-10. CMS then rattled off nine-straight wins entering this week’s matchup with EC.

Both teams match up offensively as the Gulls have scored 321 goals this season compared to 306 for the Athenas. Valerie Feldman (Albany, N.Y.) has led the charge for the Blue and Green, notching 100 points this season with 54 goals and 46 assists. Morgan DeShaw (Danville, N.H.) and Kristen Micho (Syracuse, N.Y.) have also shouldered the load as the duo has combined for 114 goals and 34 assists.

CMS is led by the scoring of local product Sarah Dick (Beverly, Mass.), who leads the Athenas with 77 points on 59 goals and 18 assists. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps also boasts a pair of 40-goal scorers in seniors Devon Scott (Portland, Ore.) and Colbi Brawner (Bainbridge Island, Wash.), while classmate Jennifer Cohen (Danville, Calif.) leads CMS with 35 assists this season.

Defensively, the Athenas have given up only 139 goals this season compared to 172 for the Gulls. Endicott’s Leah Neff (South Berwick, Maine) has been the only goaltender for Endicott this season, leading the Gulls to a 16-4 record while making 164 saves and boasting a .488 save percentage. Her counterpart, Katie Campbell-Morrison (Cleveland, Ohio), has gone 15-2 this season while turning away 123 shots with a .482 save percentage on 320 shots faced.

2010 NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Bracket

-Story Courtesy of Endicott Sports Information

-Photograph Courtesy of Spartan Sportshots