Women's Lacrosse Heads to D.C. to Face American Saturday Afternoon

Saturday, April 13

Washington, D.C.

12 p.m.

Bucknell University

American

Women's Lacrosse Heads to D.C. to Face American Saturday Afternoon

4/11/2024 1:57:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

Bucknell (4-7, 2-3 PL) at American (5-8, 1-5 PL)
When: Saturday, Apr. 13, 12 p.m.
Where: Jacobs Recreational Complex, Washington, D.C.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: AUEagles.com
Follow on Twitter: @Bucknell_WLAX

Bucknell at a Glance

Fresh off a much-needed win over Colgate, the Bison look to make it two straight when they travel to American on Saturday for the Eagles' senior day game. At 2-3 in the Patriot League, Bucknell currently occupies the sixth and final PL Tournament slot, with Colgate (1-4), Lafayette (1-4), and American (1-5) all looking to move up.
After dropping three straight games to upper-division teams Navy, Holy Cross, and Lehigh, Bucknell bounced back with a come-from-behind 15-13 win over Colgate at Graham Field last Saturday. The Bison trailed 4-1 early and 11-8 in the third quarter before finishing the game on a 7-2 run.
Taylor Kopan (5-1-6) and Megan Krestinski (4-3-7) were the offensive catalysts against the Raiders. Kopan scored four of her career-high five goals in the second half, and on Monday she was selected as the Patriot League Attacker of the Week. Krestinski's seven points were also a personal best.
Allie Boyce (22-6-28) continues to lead the team in goals and points, and her 108 career goals are ninth-most in team history. Next on the list is Maddy Molinari with 113.
After leading the nation in shot percentage last season, Boyce is currently No. 5 nationally this season at .647. Boyce is also hitting a .727 clip on free-position attempts, which leads the Patriot League and ranks 10th nationally.
Kopan (17-4-21) has scored a goal in all but one game (Navy) this season, and she is now five shy of her career high of 22. Krestinski (16-8-24), Emily Baird (12-4-16), Katie Browne (12-1-13), and Braeden Siverson (10-2-12) also have double-digit goals.
Taylor McClain (7-14-21) leads the team in assists, and with 59 career assists she is now alone in fourth place on Bucknell's all-time list. She needs 13 more to catch Melissa Montefusco for third.
The freshman Siverson has been Bucknell's primary draw specialist this season, and she leads the team with 50 draw controls. Aliza Thir (1-1-2) has 26, and Tatumn Kohlbrenner (7-3-10) had 18 draw controls, 13 ground balls, and 10 caused turnovers before suffering a season-ending injury last week.
Colleen Kazanjian has started nine of the 11 games in goal and has a .348 save percentage and 14.75 goals-against average.
As a team, Bucknell ranks fifth in the Patriot League in scoring with 11.64 goals per game. American is seventh at 10.31.
Bucknell's 13.18 turnovers per game are fourth-fewest in the league and 26th-fewest in the nation.
The Bison returned 195 of their 209 goals (93.3%) from last season. The 209 goals were the team's most since 2016. Boyce led the way with 50, while Kopan, Baird, and Krestinski all tallied 22.
Bucknell's biggest graduation loss was First Team All-Patriot League defender Ella Payer, who departed as the program's all-time leader in draw controls.
Head coach Jackie Dando is in her fifth season as Bucknell's head coach. Lisa Oakley is back for her second season working with the defenders and draw specialists, while Jordan Baerga is in her first year working with the attack unit.

American at a Glance/Series History

The Eagles started the season 4-2, including consecutive wins over George Washington, UMBC, and George Mason, but they have dropped six of their last seven since then.
Most recently, American fell 22-9 at Army last Saturday. The Black Knights led 8-0 after one period and never looked back. Hannah Spease (4-1-5) and Reagan Murdoch (3-1-4) combined for seven of the team's nine goals.
Murdoch (30-7-37) is the team's top scorer, with Becca Frank (23-8-31), Spease (26-4-30), Maddy Spratt (13-10-23), and Alyssa Apuzzo (11-11-22) all over the 20-point mark.
Spease leads the team with 39 draw controls and 23 ground balls, while Jenna Walls has a team-high 18 caused turnovers.
Caleigh Forti is the team's lead goalie. In 11 starts she has a .472 save percentage and 12.51 GAA. She ranks third in the Patriot League in save percentage and second in saves per game (10.0).
Bucknell is 12-16 all-time against American, but the Bison have won six of the last seven meetings. After winning five straight, the Bison fell 12-11 on their last trip to D.C., in 2022. Bucknell avenged that loss with a 20-11 victory at home last season.
Last year's game at Graham Field was highlighted by a school-record-tying 10-goal performance from Allie Boyce. Boyce had a perfect 10-for-10 shooting day, and she joined Sue Gray (1984) as the only Bison to record 10 goals in a game. Seven of Boyce's 10 goals came in the first half, helping Bucknell jump out to a 13-6 halftime lead.
Boyce recorded a hat trick in the 2022 game at American and has 13 goals in two career games against the Eagles.

Next Up

Bucknell has two home games next week, including a mid-week affair against Lafayette on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The Bison will then host Army on Senior Day on Saturday, Apr. 20, at 1 p.m.