Game Notes I Live Video I Live Stats
GAME INFORMATION
Game #3: Hofstra at No. --/20 Cornell
Date/Time: Saturday, March 6 at 12 p.m.
Site: Schoellkopf Field, Ithaca, N.Y.
2010 Records: Hofstra (2-1, 0-0 CAA); Cornell (1-1, 0-0 Ivy)
Series Record: Series tied 3-3
Last Meeting: Cornell won 13-10, March 7, 2009 in Hempstead, N.Y.
Live Stats: Available at www.CornellBigRed.com
Live Video: Available at www.CornellBigRed.com
HEAD COACH JENNY GRAAP '86
Cornell head coach Jenny Graap is in her 13th season at Cornell (119-71, .626) and 17th overall (140-115, .549) as a head coach ... directed the Big Red to the 2002 Final Four, earning IWLCA National Coach of the Year and Inside Lacrosse magazine's North Coach of the Year ... Inside Lacrosse ad IWLCA Northeast regional coach of the Year in 2006 after leading Cornell to share of first Ivy League title ... Graap is the fifth head women's lacrosse coach at Cornell and has posted the second-highest win total and has a school-record winning percentage.
THE STORY LINE VS. HOFSRA: The Cornell women's lacrosse team will have its first opportunity to play in front of the home fans when it plays host to Hofstra on Saturday, March 6 at 12 p.m. at Schoellkopf Field. The game is the first of a doubleheader that will also feature the men's lacrosse team against Army at 3 p.m.
The Big Red brings a 1-1 record into the game after knocking off Colgate 10-9 on the road on March 3 in Hamilton, N.Y. Cornell has outshot its two opponents 53-38, but opposing goalkeepers are stopping 58 percent of the Big Red shots in two contests. Sophomore
Shannon McHugh leads the team in points (4), ground balls (5) and caused turnovers (4), while
Katie Kirk has six draw control wins to pace the squad. Senior
Kristen Reese has started both games in goal for the Big Red and has posted a 9.04 goals against average while going 1-1.
SCOUTING HOFSTRA: Hofstra improved to 2-1 after dumping Albany 17-14 at home on Monday. The Pride opened the year with a dominant 21-3 triumph over St. Mary's (CA) before dropping a tight 13-12 contest against No. 8 Notre Dame. Hofstra is averaging 16.7 goals and have scored on 49 percent of its shots through three games. Corrine Gandolfi leads the way with nine goals and four assists, while Stephanie Rice has nine goals and Courtney O'Connor has six. Gandolfi has also posted eight ground balls, 17 draw controls and five caused turnovers, all team highs. Katie Hertsch has played a huge role on defense, causing four turnovers, winning eight ground balls and eight draws. In goal, Jackie Pandolf and Mary Cuddihy have split time in goal and have combined for a 10.00 goals against average and a .483 save percentage. Head coach Abby Morgan is in her fourth season on the Hofstra sidelines and has posted a 31-23 record.
THE SERIES: The all-time series is tied 3-3, with the Big Red winning last year's meeting 13-10 in Hempstead, N.Y. Cornell is 2-1 at home all-time against the Pride, including winning each of the last two contests. Two of Cornell's three victories have come by eight goals or more.
BIG RED VS. THE COLONIAL: Cornell has posted an 11-4 all-time record against members of the Colonial Athletic Conference, including a 3-3 mark against Hofstra. Cornell has faced Delaware (3-1), Drexel (4-0) and Towson (1-0), but has never met George Mason, James Madison, Old Dominion or William & Mary. This is the only scheduled regular season meeting with a CAA team in 2010.
LAST TIME OUT: Cornell used a 4-0 run midway through the second half to take the lead and held on for a 10-9 win over Colgate on March 3 at Tyler's Field.
Shannon McHugh scored three goals, while
Katie Kirk had two scores and
Libby Johnson added a goal and an assist for the Big Red, which got goals from seven different players in the win.
Kristen Reese and
Kyla Dambach combined for time between the pipes, making four saves.
NEW YORK STATE OF MIND: The Big Red women's lacrosse has had great success against lacrosse programs from New York State under the tutelage of head coach
Jenny Graap. Cornell is 31-12 against teams from the Empire State, including 1-0 this season and 13-0 vs. Columbia.
GETTING TO THE LINE: Cornell's offensive pressure has led to 12 free-position attempts in the first two games, converting on three. Opponents have taken advantage of five of their six opportunities.
MAKING HER MOVE: Cornell head coach
Jenny Graap '86 ranks second on the school's career wins list with her 119 victories and continues the chase for the top spot. Cheryl Wolf won 133 games from 1977-97.
O'CONNOR, HALE, JOHNSON NAMED TEAM CAPTAINS: Seniors
Tissy O'Connor and
Morgan Hale and junior
Libby Johnson have been elected captains of the women's lacrosse team for the 2010 season. The trio will provide leadership to a young team that features 19 freshmen and sophomores on a 26-player roster.
O'CONNOR A RETURNING ALL-AMERICAN: Senior
Tissy O'Connor became Cornell's 16th All-American, earning second-team IWLCA honors when the team was announced in May of 2009. O'Connor was a unanimous first-team All-Ivy honoree and a first-team all-region pick after pacing the team in draw controls (43) and ranking second in ground balls (30) and caused turnovers (19). The 43 draws was good for third in the Ivy League and ranks second all-time in a season at Cornell.
JOHNSON AN IWLCA ALL-REGION PICK: Junior
Libby Johnson was named to the IWLCA second-team all-region squad. A second-team All-Ivy selection as a sophomore, Johnson finished 2009 as the team's leader in points (38) and goals (29). She added 19 ground balls and 12 draw controls to the cause, scoring on 45 percent of her shots overall and 60 percent of her free-position attempts (9-of-15).
HELMER MAKES CUT AT U.S. WOMEN'S TEAM TRYOUTS: Sophomore Caroline Helmer and former captain
Deirdre Lafferty '09 were among 64 players who survived the first cut for inclusion on the 2009-10 U.S. women's developmental team. Both Lafferty, a midfielder, and Helmer, a defender, were among more than 150 players in the Stars & Stripes Division vying for spots at the U.S. team tryouts over Memorial Day Weekend at Cedar Lane Sports Park in Bel Air, Md. The developmental team practices against the national team, developing talent and preparing the senior team for international play. Helmer showed great potential as a freshman, starting in 10 of the team's 16 contests and recording 14 ground balls, 11 caused turnovers and a pair of draw controls.
BIG RED, DEFENDING NCAA CHAMP NORTHWESTERN PLAY IN RUSTY RED CLASSIC: Cornell and defending national champion Northwestern met in the Rusty Red Fall Lax Classic on Oct. 18 at Poly Prep Country Day School in Brooklyn, N.Y. The event provided underprivileged youth with the opportunity to see women's lacrosse played at the highest level, learn from some of the nation's best players and get excited about the opportunities the sport has to offer with a free clinic and an autograph session after the game. The Rusty Red Foundation, a charitable organization founded by Cornell lacrosse former tri-captain Joe Lizzio, helps youth programs across the United States. Lizzio, a former managing director at Citigroup, went from Wall Street to Italy where he now owns the Stefano Berti Vineyards and Winery. Rusty Red Wine was developed by Lizzio, who donates all profits from the sales of this wine to help to endow scholarships for underprivileged children and to fund community athletic projects in needy neighborhoods. Lizzio's daughter, Veronica, is a freshman midfielder on the Big Red women's lacrosse team.
WOMEN'S LAX SUMMERS IN EUROPE: The Big Red women's lacrosse team went on a 10-day tour of Europe from June 2-11, 2009 that featured trips to Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic. Cornell played a semi-professional team and the Austrian and Czech national teams in preparation for their competition at the 2009 FIL Women's World Cup. The Big Red won all three matches, improving its record to 12-3 all-time on foreign tours.
IVY LEAGUE ADDS POSTSEASON TOURNAMENT IN 2010: Former Ivy League Executive Director Jeff Orleans announced last January that the Ivy League will begin four-team tournaments in spring 2010 to determine the Ivy League's automatic qualifying institutions to the NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Lacrosse Championships. The winners of the Ivy League championship will continue to be determined by results of the League's round-robin competitions. Each tournament will include the top four teams in Ivy League regular season round-robin competition and will be hosted by the round-robin winner. The men's tournament will be the season's last weekend (Friday-Sunday, May 7-9, 2010) and the women's tournament will be the preceding weekend (April 30-May 2).
UP NEXT: Cornell continues its three-game homestand by opening Ivy League play on Wednesday, March 10 at 4 p.m., then meets Loyola on Saturday, March 13 at 3 p.m., with both games being played at Schoellkopf Field.
