Game Week Preview
No. --/rv San Diego State (8-1, 0-0 MPSF) at Cincinnati (3-5, 0-0 AAC)
Friday, March 22 | 5 p.m. ET | Gettler Stadium | Cincinnati, Ohio
No. --/rv San Diego State (8-1, 0-0 MPSF) at Ohio State (6-3, 0-1 Big Ten)
Sunday, March 24 | Noon ET | Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium | Columbus, Ohio
Aztec Lacrosse Storylines
* After completing a perfect 5-0 homestand, the San Diego State lacrosse team embarks on a six-game road swing, starting this weekend when it travels to the Buckeye State to face Cincinnati on Friday, March 22, before trekking north to Columbus to battle Ohio State on Sunday, March 24.
* Links to live stats will be available for both contests on GoAztecs.com, as well as a link to streaming video for the Aztecs-Bearcats game. In addition, a webcast of the SDSU-OSU clash will be offered on a subscription basis through BTN Plus.
* The Aztecs extended their winning streak to six games overall with an 18-15 triumph over LIU Brooklyn in their last outing on March 16. With the victory, SDSU wrapped up an unblemished homestand (5-0) and continued the best start in program history at 8-1.
* As a result, the Aztecs also received votes in the latest Inside Lacrosse Division I women's media poll released March 18. Entering the weekend, SDSU is tied for the fifth-best winning percentage in the country (.889) with USC and North Carolina, trailing only unbeaten Michigan (10-0), Boston College (9-0), Maryland (8-0) and Notre Dame (8-0).
* Against LIU, the Aztecs received goals from 10 different players, including hat tricks by Harlowe Steele, Caitlin Jones and Taylor Sullivan, while Kirstie Greenlaw, Gabbie Garrison and Bailey Brown collected three ground balls apiece.
* Additionally, Sullivan posted a career-high seven draw controls and tied her personal best with three caused turnovers vs. the Blackbirds on the way to earning Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Defensive Player of the Week honors. Earlier in SDSU's 20-8 conquest of Bucknell on March 13, Sullivan tallied four points on three goals and one assist to go with two more caused turnovers.
* With her award, Sullivan gives the Aztecs six MPSF conference weekly selections this season. Goalkeeper Katy Sharretts garnered two accolades on defense (Feb. 18 and March 11); Jones was twice named top rookie (Feb. 25 and March 11), while Steele previously merited offensive recognition (March 11).
* As of March 20, Jones occupies the fourth spot nationally in free position percentage (.800, 8-10), while Sharretts ranks 10th in save percentage (.517), 14th in saves (89) and 26th in saves per game (9.89). Elsewhere, Steele and Sullivan are tied for 20th with an average of 1.11 free position goals per game.
* As a team, SDSU finds itself among the Division I leaders in shots per game (5th, 36.89), shots on goal per game (6th, 27.78), scoring offense (10th, 15.56 goals/g) and free position percentage (13th, .479). In addition, the Aztecs rank 18th in scoring margin (4.78) and 21st in draw controls per game (14.78).
* The Aztecs will square off against Cincinnati for the just the second time on Friday after defeating the Bearcats 14-9 in the program's first-ever home game on Feb. 17, 2012. SDSU is 3-1 against current members of the American Athletic Conference, including a 15-14 victory over visiting Vanderbilt in double overtime on March 8. The Aztecs also knocked off Temple 19-12 at home in 2013 before falling at Florida 17-7 in 2015.
* A 2002 Ohio State alumna, Kylee White will be facing her alma mater for the third time as San Diego State's head coach on Sunday. The Aztecs played the Buckeyes in the program's inaugural game on Feb. 11, 2012, dropping a 19-4 decision in a neutral-site game at Stanford. The following year, SDSU clashed with OSU in Columbus, but found itself on the wrong side of a 19-11 score. The Aztecs have played one other Big Ten team in their history, splitting two games with Michigan in 2016 (L, 10-6) and 2017 (W, 11-7).
* One of the reasons for SDSU's strong start is its scoring offense, which ranks 10th nationally entering the weekend with 15.56 goals per game. The Aztecs have racked up 140 goals on the year, which marks the best nine-game stretch to start a season in program history, surpassing the 2013 and 2018 squads, which posted 135 tallies in the same span. Currently, San Diego State is on pace to shatter last year's school record of 256 goals.
* After completing three consecutive hat tricks vs. Lehigh, Bucknell and LIU Brooklyn, Harlowe Steele has scored at least three goals in 13 different games during her career, including five this season. In addition, the Aztec tri-captain has notched at least one tally in 18 of her last 19 starts dating back to last year, with the lone exception in that stretch occurring in the 2018 regular-season finale at Notre Dame.
* Steele has also racked up a team-high 28 draw controls this year, surpassing Grace Korandovich for fourth place on the program's all-time list in that category with 120 draws won for her career.
* Taylor Sullivan's five-goal effort vs. USC marked the sixth time an Aztec player has recorded at least five tallies over the past two seasons and the second time this year after Kirstie Greenlaw accomplished the feat vs. Cal on Feb. 17. In the quarterfinals of the 2017 MPSF tournament, Ijeoma Ikpe tied a program record with seven goals vs. Oregon, while Alex Watson had five at Michigan earlier that year. Last season, Steele put up five scores vs. Arizona State, while Grace McGinty duplicated the total at Furman. With the exception of the USC clash, San Diego State emerged as the winner in the other five outings.
* Including Saturday's victory over LIU Brooklyn, March has proven to be a very fruitful month for the Aztecs over the past three years, with the Scarlet and Black posting a 17-4 record during that span, including a 15-2 mark at home. Since 2017, SDSU is 18-7 overall at Aztec Lacrosse Field.
* The Aztecs once again signed a talented recruiting class for the 2019 season. Highlighting the group are four high school All-Americans, three all-CIF performers, seven all-conference selections, two all-county picks and five Player of the Year/Most Valuable Player award recipients. In addition, the class includes multiple players with a plethora of prep postseason and national tournament experience, while many have displayed their versatile talents in other sports as well.
* After nine games, Caitlin Jones leads the stellar San Diego State rookie class with 15 goals, 10 draw controls and seven ground balls, while Arielle Shahrabani has six goals, three ground balls and three caused turnovers. In addition, Courtney Robinson has three goals to her credit, along with eight draw controls, four ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers.
* After a successful run at Aztec Lacrosse Field last season, the 2019 MPSF Championships will be contested on April 26 and 28 at Aggie Stadium in Davis, Calif. For the second year in a row, the MPSF tournament format will pit the second and third seeds in the semifinal game, with the winner advancing to the championship final against the No. 1 seed.
* The program's only coach after lacrosse became the 19th intercollegiate sport at San Diego State in 2012, Kylee White begins her seventh season at the helm of the Aztecs. She has transformed SDSU's fledgling program to a strong competitor on the West Coast, highlighted by a school-record 11 victories and the squad's first-ever MPSF championship last year. In November 2016, White was inducted into the London (Ontario) Sports Hall of Fame after becoming the only women's lacrosse player to represent Canada in each of the last three decades. In 1995, she played on the inaugural U-19 Canadian National Team and later served as an assistant for the squad in 2007. White also played for Team Canada at four IFWLA World Cups (2001, 2005, 2009, 2013), helping the 2013 team to a silver medal. A four-year letterwinner at Ohio State, White was a four-time Buckeye scholar-athlete pick and an Academic All-Big Ten performer on three occasions. She co-captained the 2002 squad to an 11-5 record and a runner-up finish in the American Lacrosse Conference, helping Ohio State claim its first NCAA berth.
Up Next
- Following this weekend's action, San Diego State returns to the Eastern time zone on Saturday, March 30 to tackle defending national champion James Madison in Harrisonburg, Va. Opening draw is set for 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT.
Opponent Notebook
Cincinnati
The Bearcats (3-5) have dropped three straight, including an 18-12 setback at Louisville in their last outing on March 14. Taylor Gysin led the Cincinnati offense with six points on five goals and one assist vs. the Cardinals, while Kylie Nause totaled three goals, three draw controls and one caused turnover to earn American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Week honors. For the season, Monica Borzillo ranks eighth in the country with 45 points on 23 goals and 22 assists while recording an additional team high of 18 caused turnovers. Cincinnati has also received double-digit goal production from Gysin (16), Alyssa Adams (13), Nause (12) and Sam Mlkvy (11), who tops the squad with 40 draw controls. In addition, Amanda Donovan has displayed her versatility with a team-high 31 ground balls to go with 19 draw controls and 17 caused turnovers. Goalkeeper Giuliana Durso has started seven of eight games, posting a 14.61 goals against average and a .419 save percentage, while backup Kate Brocato has notched a 9.28 goals against average and a .444 save percentage in five appearances, including one start. As of March 20, the Bearcats lead the nation with 28.50 ground balls per game and rank fifth with 13 caused turnovers per contest. Collectively, Cincinnati is also averaging 13.13 goals per game, while allowing 14.75. Gina Oliver, another Ohio State alumna, is in her seventh season as head coach at Cincinnati after spending five years as defensive coordinator at Duquesne from 2008-12.
Ohio State
The Buckeyes (6-3) have lost two in a row, falling to UMass by a narrow 15-14 count in a neutral-site battle at Stetson University in DeLand, Fla, before suffering a 16-1 setback at No. 2/2 Maryland in their Big Ten opener. Prior to Sunday's showdown with the Aztecs, Ohio State will play host to conference rival Michigan on Thursday, March 21. Ohio State has been paced by the two-pronged attack of Baley Parrott (26 goals) and Liza Hernandez (24 goals), who also owns a team-leading 14 assists. In addition, Riley Ewing tops the squad with 34 draw controls, while Caroline Mackrides shares the team lead among Buckeye field players with 20 ground balls to go with 12 caused turnovers. As of March 20, goalkeeper Jill Rizzo sports an 11.54 goals against average, but finds herself among the nation's leaders in saves (4th, 106), saves per game (7th, 11.78) and save percentage (11th, .515). Not to be outdone, Rizzo also ranks third in the country with 4.00 ground balls per contest (36 total). As a team, Ohio State is fourth nationally in ground balls (23.56/gm), eighth in free position percentage (.525) and 16th in caused turnovers (11.56/gm). The Buckeyes are averaging 12.78 goals per outing while yielding 11.44. Head coach Alexis Venechanos is in her seventh season at the helm of the Ohio State program after a four-year stint as head coach at UMass from 2007-10. As a player, Venechanos was an All-America goalkeeper at Maryland, where she helped the Terrapins to a pair of national championships in 2000 and 2001.