Women’s soccer closes regular season at Lafayette Saturday
10/29/2010 6:44:00 PM | Women's Soccer
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh women's soccer team wraps up the regular season when it travels to rival Lafayette for a Saturday night showdown against the Leopards. The Mountain Hawks are one of three teams who have already clinched a Patriot League Tournament berth and head into the weekend with a chance to host the league tournament next weekend.
For Lehigh to host the tournament for the first time since 2005, it will need Army to lose or tie at Holy Cross on Friday night while also needing Bucknell to lose or tie Colgate on Saturday. If that were to happen, it would open the door for the Mountain Hawks to win the regular season championship and the right to host the four-team tournament, should they win on Saturday.
The Mountain Hawks stepped out of league play on Wednesday where they lost to one of the Ivy League's top teams, Penn, by a 2-0 final. After a strong first half, they allowed two Quaker goals in the second-stanza while failing to score for only the third time all season.
Wednesday's game served as an opportunity for numerous players to see increased time, including in goal, where freshman Ali Griffin started her second-career game and stopped four of six shots sent her way.
Penn marked the third Ivy League team Lehigh faced this season. It also tied Columbia before falling to Princeton. Prior to Wednesday, the Mountain Hawks earned two road ties last weekend to clinch their first Patriot League Tournament berth since 2006. Friday's draw at Navy snapped a seven-game losing streak in Annapolis while Sunday at American was the first-ever positive result on the road against the Eagles.
Lehigh continues to enjoy a balanced all-around attack, including four Mountain Hawks with double-digit points led by seniors Liz Carlos and Glynn Fitzer with 14 apiece. An incredible nine different Lehigh players have also won Patriot League weekly awards this season, including senior Lauren Mains winning Goalkeeper of the Week twice.
Lafayette has enjoyed a resurgent season, going 6-7-4 heading into its finale on Saturday. The squad hasn't won in conference play, but has played to four draws, against Holy Cross, Army, American and Navy.
Jill Dozier leads the Leopards' offensive attack with six goals and 12 points. Olivia Hawes and Catherine Galgano each have five via two goals and an assist. Lauren Smedley has played every minute in goal, posting a strong 0.82 GAA and .879 save percentage.
The Mountain Hawks lead the all-time series, 13-4-2, including 5-3-1 in Easton. They've won eight straight games against the Leopards, last falling by a 1-0 final in 2001. The games have been closer, however, with five of the eight games finishing by a single goal and two by only two scores.
Fans can follow Saturday's action via live stats and video, courtesy of Lafayette Athletics.
Lehigh can still finish first, second, third or fourth in the final Patriot League standings. Regardless, the Mountain Hawks will play in their first league tournament game since 2006. The league semifinals are set for Nov. 5 with the championship game on the seventh. Check back to Lehighsports.com following Saturday's match for complete postseason matchups and tournament details.
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