Orangewomen Close Out BIG EAST Slate at No. 13 Notre Dame
4/30/2004 5:06:04 PM | Women's Lacrosse
Complete Game Notes (.pdf)
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The 14th-ranked Orangewomen (9-4, 4-1) close out the BIG EAST portion of their schedule on the road against No. 13 Notre Dame (10-4, 3-2) on Saturday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m. Syracuse and the Fighting Irish are battling for second place in the BIG EAST and both squads are in the hunt for an at-large bid to the 2004 NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship. Syracuse enters the pairing second in the BIG EAST standings at 4-1 and Notre Dame is currently third with a 3-2 mark in league play. Georgetown has already sewn up the conference championship and its automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. Senior Leigh-Ann Zimmer notched four goals and dished out two assists in the Orangewomen’s quadruple overtime loss to Cornell on April 27, becoming the first Orangewoman to amass 60 points in one season. Zimmer broke SU’s previous single-season record for points (57) set by Katrina Hable in 1999. Zimmer has racked up 42 and 19 assists in 2004, both team highs. She is just two goals shy of tying Lauren Brady for SU’s single-season goals record. Brady recorded 44 tallies in 2000. In addition, Zimmer’s 2004 assists total is the fourth-most by any SU performer. She is one helper away from becoming the third Orangewoman to hand out 20 assists in a campaign. Junior Monica Joines recorded an assist in the first half against Cornell and the helper put her in elite company in Syracuse women’s lacrosse team history. It was the 100th career point for Joines, who became just the seventh player to reach the century mark. She also added a goal against the Big Red and now has 101 points during her time at SU. Joines has 45 points this season (37 goals, eight assists) and entered this week tied for sixth in the BIG EAST in scoring. The Fighting Irish are in the midst of a four-game losing streak and have not won a match since defeating Ohio State, 14-6, on April 10. Prior to the skid, Notre Dame had begun the season 10-0 and had posted 14 consecutive triumphs dating back to 2003. The Irish are averaging 12.34 goals per outing, while holding their opponents to 8.3 tallies per contest. They have also scooped up 100 more ground balls than their foes this season (370-270). Preseason All-BIG EAST selection Meredith Simon leads the Irish in scoring and ranks second the conference with 60 points. Carol Dixon has started all 14 games for the Irish in goal and boasts a 8.33 goals-against-average. The Orangewomen have won five-of-six meetings with the Irish and own a 2-1 record in games played in South Bend. Syracuse won the first four series meeting against Notre Dame with its only loss coming in 2002 (12-7). In last year’s matchup at the Carrier Dome, Syracuse posted a 9-6 win against the visitors. Zimmer notched four goals in the win, including the 100th of her career. Joines contributed a hat trick for the Orange. The victory marked the 60th win for SU head coach Lisa Miller.
