March 25, 2014
SAN DIEGO -
Game Week Reset
San Diego State (6-2, 3-0 MPSF) at USC (3-4, 1-0 MPSF)
Wednesday, March 26 | 4 p.m. PT | McAlister Field | Los Angeles, Calif.
Aztec Story Lines
- The San Diego State women's lacrosse team resumes Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) play against regional foe USC on Wednesday, March 26, beginning at 4 p.m. PT in Los Angeles, Calif. Live stats will be available on GoAztecs.com.
- SDSU is in first place in the MPSF standings, as the Aztecs have won three-consecutive conference games to begin the season. A victory over USC will be a program-best fourth victory in conference play since its inception in 2012. Wednesday will be San Diego State's second all-time meeting with USC, as the Aztecs lost a close game to the Women of Troy, 12-11, a year ago in the 2013 season finale.
- San Diego State is coming off a loss to Princeton, 16-9, on March 22, in a game played at Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego, Calif. The Aztecs fell behind early in the contest, but pulled within two in the second half when senior Meris Walsh (Easton, Md.) scored off a pass from sophomore Andrea Killebrew (Las Vegas, Nev.) with 17:43 left to play. However, the Tigers scored the game's next five goals before holding on for the victory.
- Walsh scored a game-high four goals for the Aztecs against Princeton, which was her second-consecutive four-goal performance and sixth time this season scoring at least three goals. The senior leads the team and is tied for 44th in the country with 23 goals, and is also currently 27th in the nation and second in the MPSF in goals per game, averaging 2.88 a contest. The Easton, Md., native was named conference Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season on March 17.
- SDSU is 4-0 in road games this season, having already defeated California, Saint Mary's, Winthrop and Davidson in 2014. The Aztecs are 1-0 in games played on Wednesday, defeating LIU Brooklyn, 22-6, on March 12, which also made them 1-0 on the year in games following a loss.
- San Diego State is 5-0 and winners of six-straight games overall when leading at halftime, while its 6-1 and winners of two-straight when having the lead at any point in the game. In addition, the Aztecs are 5-0 this season when outshooting its opponent, 3-0 when scoring the final goal of the game, 3-0 when they have the edge in draw controls and 6-1 when scoring at least 10 goals.
- Junior Christina Ricciardulli (Poway, Calif.) is 40th nationally with 29 draw controls and fourth in the MPSF with 3.6 draws per game. Meanwhile, junior Lauren Paul (Grasonville, Md.) has a team-best 16 groundballs, and junior Grace Korandovich (Columbus, Ohio) has a team-high eight caused turnovers.
- The Aztecs are 10th in the nation and second in the MPSF in scoring offense, averaging 14.8 goals per game, while they're also 23rd in the country in total points. In addition, SDSU is 20th in the nation and second in the MPSF with 13.7 draw controls per contest, 25th in the country with 9.5 caused turnovers per game and 20th in scoring margin (3.75). San Diego State also leads the MPSF in shot percentage, scoring 119 goals on 236 shots (.504).
- For the season, SDSU has outscored opponents 119-89, while outshooting the opposition 236-197. The Aztecs have a 122-106 advantage in groundballs and are even in draw controls 110-110. San Diego State also has converted on 22-of-46 free position attempts (.478), while opponents are only 11-for-30 (.367).
Opponent Notebook
USC
The Women of Troy enter Wednesday's game with a 3-4 overall record and currently on a two-game losing streak after falling to Princeton, 14-7, on March 19 before suffering a road loss at Massachusetts, 14-6, on March 22. Wednesday will be USC's final home game before beginning a stretch of five-straight road contests in MPSF play. Sophomore Caroline de Lyra leads the Women of Troy with 15 points on seven goals and eight assists, while freshman Alex Moore and sophomore Caroline Cordrey share the team lead with 12 goals apiece. Defensively, sophomore goalkeeper Liz Shaeffer leads the MPSF and is 7th in the nation with 3.4 groundballs per game, while USC averages the third-fewest turnovers in the conference. Freshman Michaela Michael was named conference Rookie of the Week on March 17, and midfielder Amanda Johansen is the reigning MPSF Rookie of the Year and was a first-team all-conference selection along with sophomore defender Courtney Tarleton and de Lyra in 2013. USC was picked to finish third this season in the MPSF preseason poll, after finishing fourth and earning a berth into the conference tournament semifinals in its inaugural season in 2013. The Women of Troy are coached by Lindsey Munday, who won two NCAA titles as a player with Northwestern in 2005 and 2006, before helping the Wildcats win three-straight national championships as an assistant from 2007-09. As a player at Northwestern, Munday is regarded as one of the greatest players in the school's history. She finished her career as the program's all-time leader in assists (128), third in points (268) and fifth in goals (140), while also setting single-season records for points (107) and assists (54) in 2005.