Women's lacrosse looks to seal high seed against Georgetown

If the excitement of No. 3 Georgetown versus No. 5 Princeton wasn't enough, this high stakes game for the Tigers will be determinant of their seeding for the upcoming NCAA Tourn-ament.

Princeton and Dartmouth tied for the Ivy League championship. The Big Green received the automatic NCAA bid because they beat the Tigers by a score of 13-5 on April 21.

Without an automatic bid to the tournament this year, the Tigers (12-3, 6-1) will have to play an excellent game against Georgetown to get the caliber of seeding that the team is used to.

Georgetown has had a phenomenal season, with a 13-2 record — the team destroyed all of its Big East competition, remaining undefeated in the league. Both of the Hoya losses were against the two teams ranked above them, Duke and Maryland. Both close games, Georgetown fell 13-9 to Maryland April 12. The Hoyas' loss to Duke was even closer. Facing the Blue Devils in Washington, D.C. on March 24th, the Hoyas lost 8-7.

Since their loss to the top-ranked Terrapins, Georgetown has won three straight games, including their last two home games. A fast and explosive team, Georgetown is very similar to Princeton in that aspect. Led by their All-American attacker, senior Sheehan Stanwick, the high scoring Hoyas will pose a great threat to the Tigers. Princeton will have to evoke the same kind of defensive effort that it used against Maryland to keep the potent Georgetown attack from getting started.

"We need to make sure we set the pace of the game," senior captain Julie Shaner said. "If we can keep the ball in our end of the field we should be all right."

Stanwick leads the Hoyas in both goals and total points with 47 goals and 71 points. Following close behind her is attacker Erin Elbie, with 35 goals and 52 points. Third for points on the Georgetown team is the team leader's little sister, Whick Stanwick, with 29 goals and 38 points.

"Sheehan and Erin Elbie can really score," Shaner said. "Sheehan's sister Whick is also becoming a really good player."

But after their top three scorers, the rest of the team does not provide the same offensive threat. And this is where Princeton and Georgetown differ.

The Princeton scoring statistics are very spread out, as the team relies on almost 10 different players to provide valuable offensive contributions. Junior attack Lauren Simone leads the team with 44 points (27 goal and 17 assists), but junior Kim Smith is close behind Simone with 38 points on 32 goals and six assists. But Princeton's scoring threats do not end with these two, as it has six players with double-digit goal totals.

"We need to capitalize on our opportunities to win against a team like Georgetown," Shaner said. "Every time we get a good chance we have to score."

The game will be very interesting as Princeton fights for an NCAA Tournament bid, which they definitely receive if they win the game, and Georgetown is playing for pride and a higher NCAA bid, as the team has the Big East automatic berth for winning the league.

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With a victory tomorrow, the Tigers will most likely receive either the three or four seed, behind Maryland, Duke, and possibly Dartmouth.

"This is going to be a really big game for us since a win will give us a seed in the top four, but with a loss we'll be between five and eight," Shaner said. "If we're in the top four we get two home games to start the tournament which would be really nice."