BU Hosts UNH to Open NCAA Tournament Sunday
May 8, 2008 | Women's Lacrosse
BOSTON - Making its fourth consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament and sixth overall, the No. 6/7 Boston University lacrosse team (17-2) hosts a familiar opponent in No. 13 New Hampshire (13-5) in the opening round of the national tournament on Sunday (May 11) at noon. The Terriers and Wildcats have already battled twice this year, with BU emerging victorious in both outings, including the America East title game two weeks ago.
Tickets to Sunday's game are $8 for adults and $4 for youths and students with a BU ID. Streaming video of the competition will be available live through the America East website, with an audio broadcast from WTBU running simultaneously.
Boston University is currently the hottest team in the country, racking up a nation-best 14-game win streak and is tied for most wins amongst Division I squads. The Terriers qualified for the tournament by winning a play-in game against Sacred Heart last Saturday, 15-3.
New Hampshire earned an at-large bid and will make its seventh NCAA appearance all-time and first since 2004. UNH's schedule this year includes key wins over Yale, Vanderbilt and Cornell. The Wildcats won the tournament in 1985 and have appeared in the final four twice, taking third place in both 1987 and 1991.
BU is 1-5 all-time in tournament play, bowing out after the first round last year in an 11-5 loss against Penn. The Terriers advanced to NCAAs each of the last three seasons and in four of the last five. BU found its greatest tournament success in 2005, advancing to the quarterfinals.
Last weekend, the Terriers posted a 15-3 victory over Sacred Heart, never trailing during the contest and shutting the Pioneers out for the game's first 38:06. Junior Sarah Dalton tied her personal high with seven points, scoring five goals.
The Wildcats head into Sunday's game after a two-week break, playing their previous game against the Terriers in the America East Championship. BU took a 9-8 overtime decision to earn its fourth straight conference title.
Junior Michaela Hardy leads UNH with 58 points on the strength of 51 goals. She also leads the team in turnovers with 26. Junior Sarah Von Bargen and sophomore Shaunna Kaplan have 47 and 45 points, respectively, while Kaplan leads the Wildcats with 15 assists.
Senior Ashley Milley has started all 18 games in goal for UNH, compiling a 13-5 record along with a .504 save percentage and a sparkling 7.48 goals against average. The Wildcats have held opponents to 10 goals or fewer 16 times this season, including all but one of the team's wins.
The Terriers are 16-11 all-time against New Hampshire, with BU emerging victorious in each of the past eight meetings.
The winner of Sunday's match-up will advance to face whichever team wins the battle between second-seeded Penn and Colgate, with the quarterfinals being played at the higher-seeded team's home field on May 17.
