LEXINGTON, Va. - The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) announced its 2024 Division III Women's Lacrosse Tournament field and play continues on Sunday, May 12. The 7th-ranked Generals of Washington and Lee will match up with Rhodes College.
The Lynx advanced to the second round with a strong
22-9 win over Transylvania in the opening round while the Generals received a first-round bye. The two teams will match up at 1 p.m. on Alston Parker Watt Field on Sunday.
Rhodes (12-4) secured their
9th straight Southern Athletic Association championship with a 19-8 win over Centre College to earn the league's automatic bid. On the other end of the sideline, the
seventh-ranked Generals are 16-3 overall this season and on a 15-game winning streak. W&L earned the ODAC's automatic qualifier into the DIII postseason after Sunday's
11-10 thrilling win over No. 12 Roanoke. The Blue and White will make the 14th consecutive and 22nd overall NCAA Women's Lacrosse Tournament appearance on Sunday.
The two teams have only met up once previously. The Blue and White defeated the Lynx on February 26, 2020.
BY THE NUMBERS
The Generals offense is led by seniors
Hanna Bishop and
Julia Thomson. Bishop, the ODAC Offensive Player of the Year, has blossomed into a dual threat with nearly half of her 75 total career assists being recorded this season. The co-captain has accumulated 51 goals and 33 assists for a career-best 84 points. Thomson is second on the team behind Bishop in goals, assists and points with 42 scores and 13 helpers for 55 points.
The duo has helped orchestrate a high-powered offense that has tallied 298 goals through 19 contests with a .472 shooting percentage and 103 assists off 33.3 shots per game. The W&L attack is well-balanced with 10 players scoring double-digit points and nine in goals alone.
Rhodes is led by senior Avery Burk, the Southern Athletic Association's Offensive Player of the Year, and Chloe Parker. Burke has registered 45 goals and 12 assists while Parker is the top-scorer with 48 goals and 17 assists. As a team, RU has registered 261 goals in 16 contests (16.31 GPG) and 128 assists. Molly Martiner has dished out a team-high 32 assists.
The W&L midfield is anchored by three All-ODAC selections including the primary draw specialist,
Cat Caples. The second-year starter has 63 draw controls to herself this season, second most on the team, and is leading the unit as a whole to a 61.7 percent success rate off of the whistle ( 300-of-468 attempts). The program's career leader in draws and ODAC Defensive Player of the Year,
Eugenie Rovegno, lines up on the circle.
Rovegno's defensive impact stretches into the midfield with a career-best 97 draw controls this season. The Duxbury native has collected 39 ground balls and 37 caused turnovers to lead the team in both categories.
As a defensive unit, the Generals have recorded 296 successful clears out of 331 opportunities for an impressive 89.4 percent success rate and a combined 206 caused turnovers. With one of the most competitive and toughest schedules in Division III, the back line allowed just 127 scores through the 19 contests, an average of 6.6 goals against, and 18.6 shots per game. From the hashes, the Blue and White have limited opponents to 29-of-66 free position goals (43.9 percent).
The Lynx defense has allowed 156 goals against and 32 shots (45.6 percent) including 30 free position goals. Goalie Olivia Wood has played in all 960 minutes for RU and lets in an average of 9.75 goals past her, per contest.
To view the complete 2024 NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Tournament bracket, click
here.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
