Ithaca, N.Y. – The 2024 season commences this weekend for the Cornell women's lacrosse team when it welcomes Cal-Berkeley to Schoellkopf Field.

GAME INFO:
SITE: Schoellkopf Field – Ithaca, N.Y.
DATE and TIME: Saturday, Feb 17 at noon
RECORDS: Cornell (0-0, 0-0 Ivy League), Cal-Berkeley (1-1, 0-0 Pac-12)
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads, 5-0
BROADCAST: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: cornellbigred.com

MATCHUP HISTORY
- Saturday's game will be the sixth meeting all time between the Big Red and the Golden Bears.
- Cornell has taken all five previous matchups, including a 13-9 victory in California last season. The Big Red burst out to a 3-0 lead and never looked back in that battle, as five athletes had multiple goals, including Maggie Pons (3) and Josie Vogel (2).
- Two of those five matchups have been at Schoellkopf Field, with Cornell outscoring the Golden Bears by a combined 26-5 margin. 
- Cornell's defense has also held Cal to ten goals or less in each matchup and has scored twelve or more on offense. 

A WIN OVER CAL WOULD
- Give Cornell a 1-0 start for the fourth consecutive season.
- Extending the Big Red's record in the series to 6-0.
- Move the red and white to 3-0 all-time against the Bears at Schoellkopf Field.
- Make Cornell 15-4 all-time against current members of the Pac-12 Conference.
- Be head coach Jenny Graap's 249th win as head coach and 228th as the Karin Bain Kukral '82 Head Coach of Women's Lacrosse. 
- Be the 370th win in program history (369-317-4 in 51 season, .538).

LAST TIME OUT: BIG RED'S 2023 SEASON ENDS IN LOSS TO BROWN
A 5-2 scoring blitz by the Brown Bears over the final 15 minutes ended the 2023 season for the Cornell women's lacrosse team as the Big Red fell 14-9 to its Ivy League foes on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at Schoellkopf Field.

The Cornell offense was paced by Amanda Cramer, as the senior picked up three goals in her final game in red and white. Katie Castiello and Caitlin Slaminko also earned multi-point afternoons with two goals apiece, while Maggie Pons and Josie Vogel closed out the scoring with a goal and an assist each. 

Cornell's offense provided a spark after falling behind 6-3 with 2:05 to go in the opening quarter, jumping on a 3-0 scoring run while holding the Bears scoreless for a span of 20:41. Katie Castiello's goal over a minute into the second half tied things at six. Brown weathered the ship, ending its scoring drought with consecutive goals to make it 8-6. 

The Big Red cut the deficit in half with Slaminko's goal with 1:22 to go in the third but could not get any closer, as a 7-2 run over the final 15:15 capped off the victory for the Bears. Cornell finished the season with multiple top 10 season marks, including goals (193, ninth), draw controls (220, second), and free position goals (50, fourth). Annie Thomas also finished her senior season at 177 career draw controls, standing alone as most all-time for the Big Red. 

SEASON PREVIEW: NEW STAFF AND LEADERSHIP READY TO GUIDE WOMEN'S LACROSSE TO A FRESH START IN 2024 
In 2023, the Cornell women's lacrosse team missed a spot in the Ivy League Tournament for only the third time in the last twelve years. But with a new staff and key player leadership returning, the Big Red is gearing up to return to that standard for its upcoming 2024 season. Despite losing All-Ivy first team selections Amanda Cramer and Shannon Brazier, Cornell returns some firepower, including two of its top six goal scorers in Maggie Pons (23g-14a-39p) and Josie Vogel (28-9-37) and a strong midline anchored by senior captains Caitlin Slaminko (17-2-9) and Bridget Babcock.

Cornell's defensive core also returns, headlined by 2023 All-Ivy second team selection Grace Faircloth (25 ground balls, twelve caused turnovers) and Annie Thomas (12 ground balls, seven caused turnovers). Thomas also will look to become the first Big Red athlete to have 200 or more draw controls in a career for Cornell, as the New Jersey native has 177 going into her final season on East Hill. Senior captain Hilary Hoover also returns to the backfield after missing last season due to injury and will look to return to her 2022 form that included an All-Ivy second team nod. 

The cage will also be the same for the Big Red, as junior Ellie Horner returns after collecting 113 saves in fourteen games started last season.

Jenny Graap, the Karin Bain Kukral '82 Head Coach of Women's Lacrosse, has added three fresh faces to her coaching staff this year. Sarah McGoey Burlingame '01 returns to East Hill after playing under Graap from 1998-01 and helping the Big Red reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history as a captain in 2001. Former Boston College captain Hollie Schleicher joins the staff after helping the Eagles to three straight NCAA DI Championship final appearances, including a 16-10 win over Syracuse in the 2021 national title game. Ashley O'Brien is the last addition to Graap's staff, coming to Ithaca after coaching two first team all-conference players and three all-rookie team members as an assistant last season at Canisius University.

INSIDER: CAL-BERKELEY
- Cal comes into Saturday's matchup at 1-1 after a 9-6 loss to Le Moyne on Thursday from Ted Grant Field in Syracuse.
- Kennedy Mason and Courtney Wong led the Golden Bears with two goals apiece in the loss, followed by a goal each from Addie Fischer and Kate Rothman. Three players also registered an assist for Cal (Josie Lillquist, Isabel King, and Alyssa Studdert).
- The Golden Bears were aggressive early, forcing Dolphins GK Paige Crandall to make five saves. Cal found itself down 3-1 after the first 15 minutes and could not get any closer. California would register more shots (25-24), shots on goal (18-13), ground balls (21-6), and draw controls (21-16) on the final stat sheet. 
- Junior Mya Wang has been the hot hand on offense for Cal, leading the team with six goals already in 2024, all coming in the team's season-opening 19-10 win over Akron. Kate Rothman also leads Cal with three assists dished out against the Zips. 
- All three of California's goalies have seen action through two games this season. Senior Callan Fritsch has started both contests, giving up 14 goals and having a .176 save percentage coming into Saturday's contest. 
- Cal's offense has not been afraid to test opposing goalkeepers, ripping off 66 total shots through two games, with 44 of those being on goal. 
- Head coach Jennifer Wong is in her second season leading California. In her first season at the helm in 2023, Wong led the Golden Bears to their most wins since 2019 with a 5-13 overall record, with two of those wins coming in a sweep of Pac-12 foe Oregon.
- Saturday will be the second time Wong will coach against Cornell's Jenny Graap as head coach of Cal. But Wong was on the sidelines twice against Cornell as an assistant during her 14 seasons at Temple. The Big Red took home both matchups in 2014 (17-9 in Ithaca) and 2015 (17-8 in Philadelphia).
- The Golden Bears will look to find someone to pick up the offensive production after losing its top three goal scorers to graduation. Junior attacker Mya Wong returns for her third year in the blue and gold after recording 20 goals and a team-high 13 assists in 2023. 
- Charlotte Smith also returns for her senior season after leading Cal with 21 ground balls and 11 caused turnovers last season. 
- Cal's top draw controller returns to the field for her fifth season in Kennedy Goss. The Johns Creek, Georgia native secured 83 wins and averaged 4.61 per game last season, putting her in the top five in each category in the Pac-12.

LAST TIME vs. CAL: BIG RED BEGINS WEST COAST TRIP WITH 13-9 VICTORY OVER GOLDEN BEARS
Ellie Horner had 13 of her career-high 16 saves in the second half as the Cornell women's lacrosse team picked up its fifth-straight victory over Cal, 13-9, on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023, from California Memorial Stadium.

Cornell's attack raced forward with the first three goals of the contest and never trailed. Cal made some noise late, scoring two straight goals to open the fourth. But Horner stayed the course in the cage, recording four saves over the final 7:48 to secure the win.

Five Big Red athletes netted at least two goals in the victory, led by a hat trick and assist from Katie Castiello and Maggie Pons. Grace Faircloth also had a team-best three ground balls, while Marissa Stafford had a team-best two caused turnovers. Annie Thomas also grabbed five draw control wins, becoming the fourth player in program history to have 140 or more in a career. 

Cornell burst out to a 3-0 lead less than five minutes in and never looked back in the victory while outshooting the Bears (38-31) and picking up more ground balls (19-15). 

UP NEXT
The Big Red faces a quick turnaround as it heads up I-81 to battle Central New York foe Le Moyne College on Tuesday, Feb. 20, at 2:30 p.m. from Ted Grant Field.