After consecutive road victories over Allegheny and Wittenberg led to another North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament championship, the NCAA announced on Sunday night that Denison will travel to Washington and Lee to open the 2014 NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Tournament on Saturday, May 10 at 1 p.m.
This is Denison's 16th NCAA Tournament appearance and the program's fourth berth since 2006. The Big Red bring a 13-4 record into this year's tournament with their only losses coming to Vassar (16-11), Allegheny (14-12), Augustana (15-14), and Wittenberg (15-14).
Denison boasts the nation's 24th ranked scoring offense and is averaging 15.2 goals per contest. Junior attack Molly Chapman is ranked in the top-40 nationally in assists (38), and draw controls (106). She recently became just the fourth player in conference history to score 100 goals and post 100 assists in her career.
First-year Claire Ludlow leads the team with 44 goals, and junior Whitney Powel has been an all-around threat, recording 38 points, 56 ground balls, 59 draw controls, and 27 caused turnovers.
Denison entered this year's NCAC Tournament as the No. 3 seed, opening the tournament with a miraculous comeback win over Allegheny in the semifinals. In Saturday's Championship, DU scored the final nine goals of the game en route to a 16-12 win over the top-seeded Tigers.
Washington and Lee is 16-2 and is ranked 12th in the latest IWLCA Top-20 Coaches Poll. The Generals are led in goals by Margaret Klein (47), and assists by Melissa Coggins (19). W&L defeated Guilford, 9-6, on Saturday to win the Old Dominian Athletic Conference for the 15th time in school history.
The winner of the Denison-Washington and Lee match will take on either The College of New Jersey, Susquehanna, or Meredith in the regionals on Saturday, May 17 at a site to be determined.
