'Cats Look to Continue One Streak, End Another at UAlbany (April 6)

2019 UNH Women's Lacrosse
New Hampshire (8-3, 3-0 America East) at UAlbany (7-5, 3-0 AE)
Saturday, April 6 • Tom & Mary Casey Stadium • Albany, N.Y. • 1 p.m.
Video • Live Stats

The Matchup vs. UAlbany

UNH has an 11-12 lifetime record against the University at Albany, but the Great Danes have won 11 straight against the Wildcats.
Last year at UNH's Bremner Field, UAlbany scored the first three goals and raced out to a 6-1 lead; the Wildcats closed within 10-6, but the visitors closed the game on a 4-2 run to secure the 14-8 win. • Recap • Box
When these teams last met in Albany, the Great Danes were 9-8 victors; UNH erased an 8-5 deficit to tie the score with under a minute remaining in regulation, but the Great Danes scored with 18 seconds left and denied the Wildcats at the buzzer. Recap • Box
UNH's most recent win was in a 2009 America East semifinal at Boston University (17-9).
The 'Cats have lost six straight meetings in Albany dating back to a 6-4 win in the 2007 season.
These teams have met annually since the Great Danes joined America East in 2001.

The State of New Hampshire

UNH, led by seventh-year head coach Sarah Albrecht, has an 8-3 overall record that includes 3-0 in America East and 5-2 on the road.
New Hampshire extended its win streak to four games Wednesday with an 11-4 victory at UMass Lowell.
The Wildcats capped a perfect 3-0 homestand with a 16-6 win against Hartford last Saturday (March 30).
UNH won three straight games spanning Feb. 22 to March 1.
UNH is averaging 12.64 goals per game on a .404 shooting percentage; opponents are at 9.91 gpg with a .402 shooting percentage.
The 'Cats are No. 15 in the nation in shots on goal per game (24.91).
Six Wildcats have started all 11 games.
Catherine Sexton is the only Wildcat who has scored a goal every game; she is also the only 'Cat with a point all 11 games.
New Hampshire's 25-player roster is comprised of two grad students, four seniors, four juniors, five sophomores and 10 freshmen.
Senior defender Elise Chandler is the lone captain of the 2019 squad.

In the Clear

New Hampshire has been highly effective on clear attempts. The Wildcats enter the weekend ranked No. 8 in the nation (90.4%; 179 of 198). Opponents have been less effective at 78.5 percent (168 of 214).
UNH has had just one failed clear attempt six of the past seven games; the only exception was March 1 vs. Iona, when the 'Cats were 18-for-21.
This past Wednesday, UNH was 20-for-21 at UMass Lowell.
UNH was a perfect 21-for-21 on clear attempts at Sacred Heart (Feb. 22).

Inside the Win Streak

UNH is averaging 13.50 goals while yielding an average of 7.00 goals during the current four-game win streak (March 17-April 3).
New Hampshire has outscored the opposition 30-14 in the first half.
The Wildcats have scored 54 goals on 136 shots for a .397 shooting percentage in comparison to the opponent's .329 shooting percentage (28 goals on 85 shots).
In other stats, UNH has the edge in ground balls (22.3 to 13.8 per game) and draw controls (13.3 to 9.3 per game).
The 'Cats have excelled on clear attempts with a 91.8 percent success rate (67 of 73); that is in contrast to the opposition's 75.6 percent (59-for-78).
Rylee Leonard has fueled the offense with seven goals and seven assists for 14 points (1.75 gpg; 1.75 apg; 3.50 ppg).
Delaney Pratt has been dominant on draw controls with 17.
Issy Torres has stopped 33 of 61 shots on goal for a .541 save percentage.

The Last Time…

New Hampshire started a season with eight (or more) wins through 11 games was 2008, when the 'Cats were 9-2.
UNH had multiple win streaks of 3+ games in the same season was 2010; that team also had a four-game and three-game win streak.
The Wildcats won four consecutive games was in 2010 (spanned Feb. 24 to March 6).
The 'Cats won five consecutive games was in '08 (nine-game win streak).
UNH opened conference play with three wins was last year, when the 'Cats started 4-0 in America East.

Streaking

Catherine Sexton has an 11-game goal and point streak.
Rylee Leonard has a 10-game point streak and five-game assist streak. Leonard has tallied multiple points every game during the 10-game streak.
Mickenzie Larivee has a goal/point each of the last four games.

The Streak Is Over

Rylee Leonard's nine-game goal streak ended Wednesday at UMass Lowell; she also entered that game with seven consecutive multiple-goal efforts.
Devan Miller carried a nine-game goal and point streak into last Saturday, but she did not record a point against Hartford; she had recorded multiple goals seven consecutive games (Feb. 22 to March 17) and multiple points eight consecutive games (Feb. 16 to March 17).
Teagan Northrup saw her eight-game point streak and five-game goal streak end last Saturday vs. Hartford.

Last Time Out: UNH 11, at UMass Lowell 4 (Wednesday, April 3) • Recap • Box

After UMass Lowell scored back-to-back goals to close within 4-3, UNH scored six consecutive goals overlapping the first and second halves (three each half) en route to an 11-4 win at Cushing Field.
Mickenzie Larivee scored three consecutive first-half goals to give the Wildcats a 3-1 lead, then set up two of the first three tallies in the second half to match her season high of five points.
Devan Miller scored UNH's fourth, sixth, seventh and eighth goals to match her career high of four goals.
Issy Torres finished with eight saves. She held UMass Lowell scoreless a stretch of 16 minutes, 11 seconds (spanning the two halves), which allowed the 'Cats to build a seven-goal lead.

Senior Scoring

Senior attacker Catherine Sexton has scored a goal every game – and therefore recorded a point every game – with nine multiple-point efforts, including six with multiple goals.
She ranks second on the team in both points (33) and assists (11), and is tied for second in goals (22). Sexton's 32 shots ranks fourth.
Sexton has scored 22 goals on 32 shots for a team-high .688 shooting percentage.
Sexton tallied five goals and two assists at Central Connecticut State (March 1) to finish with career highs in both goals and points (seven).
She tallied two assists in three consecutive games spanning Feb. 23–March 3.

Back With a Vengeance

Both senior Devan Miller and junior Rylee Leonard were sidelined by injury in 2018 and both have been significant point producers this season.
Leonard leads the team in both points (35) and assists (13), and is tied with for second on the goals leaderboard with 22.
Miller leads all Wildcats with 26 goals and she ranks third in points (31) as well as tied for fourth in assists (five); she has a team-high 60 shots.
Miller matched her career high of four goals Wednesday at UMass Lowell.
She began the season with a goal and point in nine straight games, including seven consecutive games with multiple goals spanning Feb. 22 to March 17.
Miller recorded three points each of the first five games of the season before increasing that total to a career-high five points at Kennesaw State; her four goals also marked a personal best, which she matched vs. Iona College.
In addition to leading the team in assists and points, Leonard is second in shots (52), tied for fourth in ground balls (14), fifth in draw controls (11) and tied for fifth in caused turnovers (six).
Leonard has a nine-game goal-scoring streak with seven straight multiple-goal games, including a career-high four at Kennesaw State (March 10).
She also has a four-game assist streak.
Leonard recorded a career-high five points (2g, 3a) vs. Iona on March 17.
Leonard established a personal best of three assists at UConn (Feb. 24) and matched that at Iona.

Triple-Double

Junior midfielder Caroline Hernon is the only Wildcat who has recorded double digits in ground balls, draw controls and caused turnovers.
Hernon is UNH's leader in ground balls (24); she ranks second in draw controls (34) and is tied for second in caused turnovers (11).

Immediate Impact

Senior attacker Mickenzie Larivee, a transfer from Boston University, has made an impact on the 'Cat attack.
Larivee ranks fourth in both goals (17) and points (22). She has multiple points in 6 of 11 games with three multiple-goal efforts.
Larivee matched her season high of five points with three goals and season-high two assists against UMass Lowell on Wednesday to extend her point streak to four games (6g, 3a).
She recorded a point each of her first five games as a Wildcat.
Larivee netted her 100^th career goal – 11^th as a Wildcat – March 3 at Fairfield.
Larivee scored three goals in her UNH debut vs. Harvard on Feb. 16. She reached the career 100-point milestone with the last of those three tallies.
She scored a season-high five goals – all in the second half – at Sacred Heart.

Getting Possession

Possession begins with the draw control and freshman Delaney Pratt, who is often in the center circle, is UNH's leader in that stat with 38.
Caroline Hernon is a close second with 34 draw controls. Hernon also gains possession for the 'Cats via ground balls (team-high 24) and caused turnovers (11, which ranks second).
Senior captain Elise Chandler has a team-high 15 caused turnovers and ranks second in ground balls (23).
Freshman defender Meghan Doyle is tied for second in caused turnovers (11) and ranks third in ground balls (22).

Defensive Spotlight

Senior captain Elise Chandler has produced solid numbers as she leads UNH in caused turnovers (15) and is third in ground balls (23).
She finished with a career-high four caused turnovers and matched her personal best of four ground balls vs. Iona (March 17).
Chandler recorded three caused turnovers in the opener vs. Harvard and matched that at Vanderbilt. She established a career-high four ground balls at UConn (Feb. 24).
Chandler has at least one GB in 10 of 11 games with seven multiple-GB efforts. She has a caused turnover in 7 of 11 games.
Freshman Meghan Doyle has been consistent despite her youth with multiple ground balls in 8 of 9 games and a caused turnover in 8 of 9. She was a DNP at UMass Lowell this past Wednesday.
Doyle is tied for second in caused turnovers (11) and is third in ground balls (22).
She recorded four GBs and one CTO in her collegiate debut vs. Harvard. Doyle has corralled three ground balls three times and has tallied a high of two caused turnovers three times, most recently vs. Iona.
Senior Jessica Lee made her season debut March 1 at Central Connecticut State. In eight games (all starts), she has 13 ground balls and six caused turnovers.
Lee recorded a career-high five ground balls at CCSU; she's collected at least one GB in 7 of 8 games.
Freshman Taylor Dudek came off the bench in the opener but started both games the weekend of Feb. 22-24; Dudek has also started each of the past three games.
Dudek recorded career highs in both ground balls (five) and caused turnovers (four) against Hartford on March 30. Two of her CTOs and GBs directly led to UNH goals.
In 10 games (five starts), she has 12 ground balls and nine caused turnovers.

Last Line of Defense

Freshman goalie Issy Torres has started all 11 games and played 603:34 of a possible 660 minutes (91.4%). She has an 8-3 record with a 10.14 GAA and .460 save percentage.
Her numbers have been steadily improving during the four-game win streak. Torres entered the win streak with a 12.21 GAA and .422 save percentage.
Torres stopped 8 of 12 shots on goal in UNH's 11-4 win at UMass Lowell. She also had two ground balls and one caused turnover vs. the River Hawks.
On March 17 vs. Iona, Torres tallied double-digit saves for the third time this season with 10 in the 15-8 win against the Gaels.
Torres made 14 saves in her collegiate debut vs. Harvard. She also finished with double-digit saves (13) in the 13-12 win at UConn, and that included one with 66 seconds remaining to preserve the one-goal lead.
Torres stopped 7 of 10 shots on goal in 37:27 of action at Central Connecticut State (March 1).
Junior goalkeeper Amanda Gottlieb has played 56 minutes, 26 seconds in three games. She has a 7.44 GAA and .364 save percentage. She saw action in the first two games of March (March 1 at CCSU; March 3 at Fairfield).

Nothing's Free

New Hampshire has scored on 23 of 64 free-position shots (35.9%); in comparison, the opponents are 26-for-60 (43.3%).
The past two games, UNH is a combined 2-for-15 (13.3%).
Earlier this week, UNH converted 1 of 9 free-position shots into a goal (11.1%) at UMass Lowell. The River Hawks were 1-for-2.
Last weekend, the Wildcats scored on 1 of 6 free-position shots and Hartford did not score on its only free-position shot.
New Hampshire attempted just four free-position shots against Binghamton, but scored on two.
In the first weekend of March, the 'Cats got the better of CCSU (5-for 9 in comparison to 0-for-5). But then Fairfield was a perfect 5-for-5 in comparison to UNH's 1 of 5.

Road Warriors

New Hampshire played six straight games on the road spanning Feb. 22 to March 13 and went 4-2.
It was the program's longest streak of consecutive road games since the 1996 team began the year with seven games on the road (1-6 record).
The 'Cats also played six consecutive road games in 1994.
The last time UNH played more than three consecutive road games was in the 2013 season (four games spanning Feb. 28 to march 16).

Made of Granite

There are five Granite State natives on New Hampshire's roster, and that includes three Wildcats from Amherst: freshmen Taylor Dudek and Abby Cranney, and senior Mickenzie Larivee.
Junior Caroline Hernon calls Hampton home.
Sophomore Gabby Masseur hails from Nashua.

At the Polls

UNH was selected fourth in the 2019 America East Women's Lacrosse Preseason Poll with 32 points, just behind Binghamton University at 33.
Stony Brook received 49 points and all seven possible first-place votes; UAlbany tallied 41 points and the other first-place vote.
UNH was followed by UMBC (28 points), Vermont (20), UMass Lowell (14) and Hartford (7).

Scouting UAlbany

The University at Albany (Albany, N.Y.) enters Saturday's matchup with a 7-5 overall record that includes 5-1 at home and 3-0 in America East.
The Great Danes are coming off Wednesday's 14-9 win against Vermont. Seven different UAlbany players scored on Vermont's goalkeeper. Kendra Harbinger, Madison Conway and Hailey Carroll each recorded a hat trick and an assist. Sam Tortora tallied a goal and three assists.
The Great Danes have a two-game winning streak since losing to No. 3 Syracuse, 19-7, on March 27.
UAlbany averages 13.67 goals per game with a .436 shooting percentage, while opponents are averaging 11.75 goals per game on a .427 shooting percentage.
UAlbany has scored double digits 8 of 12 games with a high of 21 vs. Bryant.
Sam Tortora leads the team in points (47) and in assists (31). She is also second in draw controls (26) and third in ground balls (17).
Kyla Zapolski leads the team in goals (32) and is second for points (38).
Kendra Harbinger is third in both goals (28) and points (37), and her nine assists ranks second.
UAlbany has utilized two goalkeepers – Georgia Schneidereith and Erin Leghart. Schneidereith, who has started all 12 games and played 535:18 minutes, has a 5-5 record with a 12.11 GAA and .440 save percentage.
Leghart is 2-0 with a 10.19 GAA and .375 save percentage. Leghart has played 176:36 minutes in seven games, all off the bench.
Schneidereith leads the team with 32 ground balls.
Hailey Carroll has a team-high 37 draw controls.
Imani Hedgeman leads the team in caused turnovers (21).

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