Bracket
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Queens University of Charlotte women's lacrosse team landed a spot in this year's NCAA Division II Women's Lacrosse Championship taking on Mercyhurst University Friday, May 13 at 5:00 p.m. (6:00 p.m. eastern). The teams will face off at a neutral site in St. Charles, Mo., at the Harlen C. Hunter Stadium which is located on the campus of Lindenwood University.
The 13th ranked Royals clinched an opportunity to participate in the NCAA championships for the first time in program history after being ranked sixth in the region following a victory over Limestone on April 25. The win was the first over the Saints since the 2006 season. They then went on to grab their third South Atlantic Conference Regular Season and Championship Titles in a row a week before the selection show. Queens currently has a program record 17 wins this season heading into the tournament. They have two losses the season with last dating back to March 25 when they fell 14-6 at No. 3 Florida Southern.
SAC Freshman of the Year
Hanna Scott leads the Royals this season with 75 points on 37 goals and 38 assists. She ranks 30th in the nation in points and 19th in assists. SAC Championship MVP
Abigail Paulus holds 72 points on 38 goals and 34 assists.
Kelly Dowd leads the Royals in goals with 43 on the year. She also leads in draw controls, caused turnovers and ground balls.
The Mercyhurst Lakers could be a challenge for the Royals this weekend as they are entering the game ranked sixth in the IWLCA polls. Mercyhurst claimed their first-ever PSAC crown after beating West Chester University 17-14 on May 8. Janelle Williams led Mercyhurst scorers with four goals and one assist, while Kristin Anderson's stats resulted in her winning the PSAC Most Valuable Player Award. Anderson scored two goals and won 10 draw controls during the conference final, finishing with six goals and 17 draw controls in the tournament.
The Lakers are led by Emily Gebhardt and Anderson who each have 59 points this season. Gebhardt has 25 goals and 34 assists, while Anderson has 48 goals and 11 assists. Carly Zimmerman and Williams follow in points with 58 and 51, respectively.
This is the first time that the Queens women's lacrosse team will make an appearance at the NCAA DII Women's Lacrosse Championship and it will be Mercyhurst's first appearance at Nationals since 2009. In the last meeting between the two teams during the 2015 season Queens fell, 13-9.
A win over the Lakers will advance Queens to the second round where they will face No. 4 Lindenwood University.
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