Lacrosse Plays at Villanova Wednesday on the BIG EAST Digital Network

Wednesday, April 20

Villanova, Pa.

7:00 p.m.

Temple University

Villanova

Junior Carly Demato

Photo by: Joseph V. Labolito/Temple University

Lacrosse Plays at Villanova Wednesday on the BIG EAST Digital Network

4.19.16 | Women's Lacrosse

PHILADELPHIA - Looking to move back up in the BIG EAST Conference standings, Temple lacrosse (9-5, 1-3) heads across town to Villanova (3-12, 1-4) for a 7 p.m. contest on Wednesday, April 20. The game will be televised by the BIG EAST Digital Network (BEDN) and can be watched live online through Fox Sports Go.

Two spots have been locked up in the four-team BIG EAST Championship field, with UConn and Florida the frontrunners for the No. 1 and 2 seeds, boasting 5-0 records. Neither Temple or Villanova have been mathematically eliminated from contention. The Wildcats will need to win to keep their hopes of qualifying for a second straight conference tournament alive. Nova enters the tilt with a 1-4 mark with a date with Vanderbilt still remaining on its schedule. A setback on Wednesday would officially put the Wildcats out of contention. The Owls are 1-3 and finish with Cincinnati and Georgetown. Temple could finish as high as No. 3 with two of its final three games against teams below them in the conference standings, but the Owls will need other results to fall in their favor to get there.

Headlines
• The Owls are 9-5 overall but are coming off back-to-back losses against UConn and at Marquette.
• Temple has three losses in its last four games, with two of those coming against the teams picked to finish first and second in the BIG EAST Conference this year (Florida and UConn).
• Most recently, the Owls lost 12-10 at Marquette on April 16, surrendering an 8-5 halftime lead. The Golden Eagles opened the second half on a 7-0 run for a 12-8 lead, and Temple was only able to get two back in the final minutes of the game.
• The Owls' other game last week was a heartbreaking, 9-8 overtime loss to UConn on April 13. Temple made a second-half comeback after trailing 4-1 at halftime, but UConn controlled both draws in overtime.
• The Owls' other recent one-goal loss came at #2 Florida in their BIG EAST opener on April 2. It was an extremely tight game throughout, and Temple fell short by a score of 10-9. Two of the Owls' five losses have come to teams ranked in the IWLCA Top 20 (also #16 Louisville, 8-5 on Feb. 12).
• Temple earned its lone BIG EAST win so far on April 9 in a 7-3 defeat of Vanderbilt. Temple held the Commodores without a single goal for over 50 minutes to end the game.
• The Owls won seven in a row early in the season, their longest win streak in 14 years, before falling 10-4 to Delaware on March 16.
• In its final non-conference game on March 26, Temple recorded an 18-3 blowout win against Cal. Three Owls recorded hat tricks in the win, led by senior Megan Tiernan with three goals and an assist.
• Senior goalkeeper Jaqi Kakalecik, who has played every minute in the cage this season for Temple, has been named the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week twice this season. Her goals-against average of 6.82 ranks seventh among all players in NCAA Division I, while her save percentage of .492 ranks 14th nationally.
• Temple has won six games by 10 or more goals. The Owls' 19-goal effort in a 19-9 win at UMBC was the most since a 19-3 win over Cincinnati in 2014.
• Seniors Rachel Schwaab and Megan Tiernan have combined for an impressive 74 total points this season, leading the way for the Owls' offense. Schwaab has tallied 26 goals and 14 assists, while Tiernan has 22 goals and 12 assists.
• Temple and Kakalecik have held opponents to just 6.86 goals per game, ranking ninth among all teams in NCAA Division I.
• Tiernan has notched five hat tricks already this season, while Schwaab has three. Seniors Kirstie Connor and Brenda McDermott along with junior Morgan Glassford are all tied for third on the team with 18 goals apiece. McDermott's 15 assists lead the team and give her 33 points to rank third on the team.
• Glassford, twice named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll already this season, has recorded 62 draw controls to lead the Owls and rank second all-time in a single season at Temple. Her 4.43 draws per game lead all players in the BIG EAST and rank 16th in the country.
• Senior midfielder Nicole Tiernan was a unanimous selection to the 2016 Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. The Owls were picked to finish sixth of eight teams in the conference in the preseason poll. Tiernan leads the team in caused turnovers (16) and ranks second in ground balls (21) and sixth in goals (16).
• The Owls are looking to make their first appearance in the BIG EAST Tournament since joining the league as an associate member in 2014. The four-team tournament will be hosted by Georgetown in Washington, D.C. on May 5 and 7.
• The Owls lead Villanova 8-1 in the all-time series, losing for the first time by a narrow score of 9-7 last season. Temple beat the Wildcats 12-10 in 2014.

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