Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website

14th-Ranked Women's Lacrosse Continues Homestand Versus Virginia Tech

March 28, 2002

Notre Dame, Ind. – The Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team, ranked 14th in the nation (the program’s highest ranking ever) in this week’s Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Poll , return to action on Saturday, March 30 when the Virginia Tech Hokies visit the Loftus Sports Center. The opening draw is set for 1:00 p.m.

The game is the fourth in a row for the Irish at home and their second BIG EAST game of the year. Notre Dame is 5-1 overall and 1-0 in BIG EAST play. Virginia Tech brings a 4-4 record for the season to South Bend and the Hokies are 1-1 in the conference.

Notre Dame is coming off a 9-7 win over Delaware on March 26th while Virginia Tech defeated Davidson at home 19-6 on Tuesday afternoon. The two teams have met just once in the series with the Irish taking a 19-8 will last year in Blacksburg, Va.

Virginia Tech is led offensively by juniors Kellyn Hentz with 16 goals and four assists for 20 points and Samantha Sybert who checks in with 11 goals and eight assists for 19 points. Hentz scored five goals in the win over Davidson and Sybert had two goals and two assists on the afternoon. Sophomore goalkeeper Jamie McGraw has played all but three minutes on the season with a 9.06 goals against and a .640 save percentage. For the year, Virginia Tech has outscored the opposition 81-73 through eight games.

The Irish come into Saturday’s game outscoring opponents by a 67-38 margin and have featured a balanced attack all season as 11 players have two or more goals. Junior midfielder Danielle Shearer (Hampstead, Md.) leads the team in scoring with 15 goals and nine assists for 24 points. She has scored at least one goal in every game this season.

She is followed by senior Natalie Loftus (Baltimore, Md.) with nine goals and five assists for 14 points while Alissa Moser (Sr., North Wales, Pa.) and Lauren Fischer (So., Pittsburgh, Pa.) each have 10 points. Moser has eight goals and two assists while Fischer has nine goals and one assist from her attack position.

In goal, junior Jen White (Annapolis, Md.) has played all six games for the Irish and has a 6.33 goals against and a .568 save percentage.

Following Saturday’s contest, the Irish wrap up their five-game homestand on Wed., April 3 with a visit from eighth-ranked Syracuse. Weather permitting, the game is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at Moose Krause Stadium.