ITHACA, N.Y. —  With preseason officially in the books, Cornell opens the 2016 season with a home matchup at Schoellkopf Field against Villanova. After finishing 2015 with a 9-7 record and its fifth Ivy League Tournament appearance, the Big Red begins another quest for the Ancient Eight title.
 
GAME 1: Cornell Big Red vs. Villanova Wildcats
WHEN: Feb. 20, 2016 — Noon
WHERE: Schoellkopf Field — Ithaca, N.Y.
2016 RECORDS: Cornell 0-0, Villanova 0-1
LIVE STATS: CornellBigRed.com
LIVE VIDEO: Ivy League Digital Network

GAME NOTES (PDF)
Cornell
 
ABOUT THE BIG RED
Cornell lost just three players to graduation at the close of the 2015 season, but one was Lindsay Toppe, the program's all-time leading scorer. But the Big Red returns an experienced and determined group ready to take on the challenge of replacing Toppe's firepower and finding the team's 2016 identity.  The Big Red has made the Ivy League Tournament for four consecutive seasons and will be aiming to continue that streak, but will also be hoping to add a tournament semifinal win to its list of accomplishments.
 
A WIN WOULD...

• Give Cornell a 1-0 all-time record against Villanova
• Give Cornell its fifth consecutive season-opening win
• Bring the Big Red to 15-4 in season-openers since Jenny Graap took the helm in 1998

ABOUT VILLANOVA
After finishing last season with a 9-8 record and making the BIG EAST Tournament for the first time in program history, the Wildcats are off to a 0-1 start, dropping their season opener to Rutgers, 14-8. The Wildcats were predicted to finish fifth in the BIG EAST in the preseason poll. Graduate student Jackie Froccaro will continue to be one of Villanova's biggest threats making the BIG EAST All-Tournament Team and being named BIG EAST Attacker of the Year, finishing the season with 49 goals and 57 points. Froccaro, who was chosen as the BIG EAST Preseason Offensive Player of the Year and was named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST team, led the team in goals in the game against Rutgers with four.  The team is led by a large group of 10 seniors, including captain and attacker Meghan Breen, who will also be one of the Wildcats' offensive weapons after posting 23 goals and 10 assists in 2015. On defense, junior Sam Scarfogliero was also named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST team. Senior Jaclyn Fraum played the starting role between the pipes for Villanova last season, recording a 10.25 goals-against average and .444 save percentage on the season. She split time in the season opener with Julia Michaels, making five saves against Rutgers.
 
THE SERIES VS. VILLANOVA
This is the first meeting between the Big Red and the Wildcats.
 
ON THE BRINK OF HISTORY
Senior co-captain Emily Tripodi is two assists from tying the Cornell program record for career assists and three assists from breaking it. Tripodi currently sits in second with 89 career helpers behind Courtney Farrell '08 with 91.
 
PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN
Junior attacker/midfielder Amie Dickson has been named an honorable mention Preseason All-American by Inside Lacrosse. Dickson was named First-Team All-Ivy at the conclusion of the 2015 season after leading the Ivy League with 59 points and 31 assists.
 
BACK ON THE ATTACK
The Big Red returns the bulk of its attack from the 2015 season, despite the graduation of Lindsay Toppe. Senior co-captain Emily Tripodi will likely continue to serve the role of feeder after finishing the 2015 season with 30 assists.  Senior Catherine Ellis will once again have her eye on the net. Ellis finished second on the team last season with 38 goals, starting all 16 contests. Senior Olivia Mattyasovszky will use her imposing 6-foot frame to challenge defenders, while Jessica Schwab and Meredith Baker will also serve as returning options on the front line.
 
UP THE MIDDLE
In the midfield, where Cornell boasts the most depth, a returning corps of speedy sophomores will be the storyline. The likes of Joey Coffy, Ida Farinholt and Taylor Reed will bring athleticism to the midfield and be a differentiator for the Big Red. Coffy and Reed will be joined by upperclassmen leaders, junior Kristy Gilbert and senior Shelby McNeilly. Gilbert will add firepower to the midfield, while McNeilly plays a more defensive style. Juniors Kailey O'Hagan and Christie Powell will bolster the midfield's versatility, while sophomores Anna Baumeister and Paige Craig are likely to operate as swing players.
 
GETTING DEFENSIVE
Cornell lost just one defender to graduation in 2015, meaning the Big Red returns an incredibly experienced defensive corps. Senior co-captain Brittany Marriott will once again bring her leadership and direction to the defensive unit. She will be joined by classmate Maddie Kiep, who will add athleticism and physicality, and junior Catie Smith, who excels at applying pressure. Seniors Abby Hanson and Catherine Moubayed will bring an aggressiveness and knack for earning ground balls and interceptions while sophomores Hilary Lemonick and Cait Callahan will be impactful in marking schemes for the Big Red backline.
 
BETWEEN THE PIPES
The Big Red returns an experienced and capable goaltender in junior Renee Poullott, who finished the 2015 season with an 8.77 goals-against average and .437 save percentage. Freshman Samantha Nielsen will serve as the backup to Poullott. 
 
FRESH FACES
Cornell has added eight newcomers to the roster for the 2016 season. Tomasina Leska and Sarah Phillips join the Big Red attack, while Hannah O'Reilly, Shannon Bertscha and Christie Raymond will add to the team's depth at midfield. Natalie Paletta and Sarah Nicholson join the team's defense, and Samantha Nielsen will be an option in goal. The Class of 2019 features three high school All-Americans (Leska, Nielsen, Raymond) and two who were invited to try out for the U.S. Women's U19 National Team (Leska, Raymond).
 
FORMIDABLE FOES
This season, the Big Red will face off against six opponents currently ranked in the national polls: No. 1/1 Maryland, No. 3/3 Syracuse, No. 7/4 Penn State, RV/No. 20 Albany, and Ivy rivals No. 12/12 Princeton and No. 13/13 Penn. The Big Red visits Albany on Feb. 27, heads to reigning National Champion Maryland on April 2, travels to Penn State on April 13, plays at Princeton on April 16, hosts Syracuse on April 19 and closes the regular season with a home matchup against Penn on April 30.
 
FAMILY TIES
Freshmen Natalie Paletta and Sarah Phillips both have ties to the Cornell Athletics Department. Natalie's father, Steve Paletta, was a men's lacrosse Second-Team All-American, captained the Big Red to a national runner-up finish in 1987 and was named First-Team All-Ivy. Natalie's mother, Christine, was a member of the Cornell gymnastics team from 1986-88. Sarah's father, Andy Phillips, and uncle, J.D. Philltaips, were teammates of Steve Paletta's. Sarah's grandfather, John Phillips, also played lacrosse at Cornell.
 
EMPIRE STATE OF MIND
A team-high 11 players from the Big Red hail from right here in New York State. Cornell has commonly brought in most of its players from the Northeast with a particular focus on New York, which is both the home of Cornell and one of the country's biggest hotbeds of lacrosse.
 
MEET THE CAPTAINS
Seniors Emily Tripodi and Brittany Marriott have been chosen to be co-captains for the 2016 season. Marriott will be serving as a captain for the second consecutive season after she was chosen to lead the team as a junior with Lindsay Toppe.
 
RECORDS WATCH
*Senior co-captain Emily Tripodi is just two assists away from tying the Cornell record for career assists. With her three more assists, Tripodi will take over the top spot and break Courtney Farrell '08's record of 91.
*Junior Amie Dickson is just four assists away from cracking the all-time top 10. Dickson currently has 36 assists, behind Libby Johnson '11 in 10th with 40.
*Tripodi is also nine points away from breaking into the top 10 program list for career points. Tripodi currently has 125 career points. Tina Hennessey '93 is currently in the No. 10 spot with 134.
*Junior goaltender Renee Poullott is currently tied for eighth with 14 career wins. With one more win, Poullott will tie for sixth, while two more wins will tie her for fifth and five more will tie her for third.
 
UP NEXT
The Big Red will take its first road trip of the season, travelling to local rival RV/No. 20 Albany, which is the alma mater of first-year assistant coach Rachael Burek.