Women’s Lacrosse to Square Off Against Northwestern In NCAA First Round

WORCESTER, Mass. – The Holy Cross women’s lacrosse team will face top-seeded Northwestern in the program’s second NCAA Tournament appearance on May 13, in Evanston, Ill., it was announced by the NCAA Division I Women’s Lacrosse Committee.

Holy Cross earned a berth in the 16-team field after defeating American, 12-8, on April 29 to win the Patriot League Championship for the second consecutive year and second time in school history. The team also captured the program’s second Patriot League Regular Season title this season.

The Crusaders will enter the first round of the tournament having won their last three games.

First-round games will be conducted May 13, and quarterfinal games will be played May 19. The preliminary-round games will be played on the campuses of competing institutions. The winners of the quarterfinal games will advance to the semifinals and final May 25 and 27 at Franklin Field, Philadelphia, hosted by University of Pennsylvania. The championship game will be broadcast live on College Sports Television (CSTV) May 27.

In other women’s lacrosse news, midfielder Patricia Sutton ’07, was selected the 2006-2007 Crusader of the Year by the Holy Cross Varsity Club. The annual award was announced at the Varsity Club’s 52nd annual dinner on May 5.

Sutton, from Saratoga Springs, N.Y., is a three-time first team All-Patriot League selection, she currently leads the team and the conference in scoring with 73 points on 55 goals and 18 assists. In addition, Sutton’s averages of 3.1 goals per game and 4.1 points per game stand 17th and 22nd in the nation, respectively. Over the course of her four year career at Holy Cross, Sutton has totaled 213 goals and 76 assists for 289 total points. Earlier this year, she became the Crusaders’ all-time leader in both career goals and career points.

The complete 2007 NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Division I Championship bracket is available on NCAAsports.com.