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EAST STROUDSBURG – A new season begins for No. 14 East Stroudsburg University on Friday afternoon, with the Warriors set to take on No. 24 Mercyhurst in a PSAC semifinal matchup.

Opening draw is scheduled for 4 p.m. at top-seeded West Chester. ESU is the No. 2 seed in this year's conference tournament while Mercyhurst, the No. 3 seed, advanced with a 7-5 victory over sixth-seeded Millersville on Tuesday.

Friday's winner will play either West Chester or Seton Hill in the PSAC title game at 1 p.m. on Sunday. West Chester will be the host for all three tournament games over the weekend.

The Warriors (13-4, 13-4, 10-2 PSAC) are searching for their second conference championship in the last three years, as they topped Mercyhurst (13-5, 9-3 PSAC) by a 10-9 final for the program's first-ever PSAC title in 2017. ESU then won an Atlantic Region championship last spring, earning its first trip to the DII Final Four in the process.

This will be the fourth postseason meeting between the two teams in the last three seasons. The Lakers topped ESU 15-12 in last year's PSAC semifinals, but the Warriors quickly avenged the defeat with a 12-11 triumph in the opening round of the NCAA Division II tournament the following weekend.

Mercyhurst came out on top in this season's regular season matchup, scoring the final three goals to rally for a 7-6 home victory on April 20. That marked the only time out of 17 games on the year where ESU was held under 10 goals.

The PSAC's top two goal scorers will face off on Friday. Mercyhurst's Emma Hubert leads the conference with 60 goals this season, while ESU sophomore Krista Mitarotonda is right behind with 57. The Warriors have more depth overall, with a scoring offense of 15.06 goals per game which is second only to West Chester (16.65) in the league.

Junior Hana Cicerelle (44 G, 24 A) and senior TJ Jefferis (40 G, 18 A) follow Mitarotonda with 68 and 58 points, respectively. Mitarotonda has 73 points, and she is also ESU's leader with 78 draw controls this season.

Senior Emma Rufolo is near the top of ESU's rankings in most statistical categories. The 2017 PSAC Athlete of the Year is first in both caused turnovers (39) and ground balls (51), she is second in draws (67) and fourth in points (51 – 34 G, 17 A). Cicerelle, meanwhile, is second in both caused turnovers (17) and ground balls (35).

Other top offensive contributors include sophomore Shannon Dent (20 G, team-high 28 A), sophomore Gianna LeDuc (14 G, 12 A), senior Brooke Fritz (9 G, 10 A), junior Cassidy McKenna (15 G, 3 A) and junior Juliane Fitzsimmons (9 G, 3 A).

Junior Tatyana Petteway has posted a third-straight magnificent season in goal for the Warriors, as she is currently 12-4 with a .565 save percentage and an 8.52 goals-against average. That save percentage is tops in Division II, and her GAA is third among PSAC goalies.

While sophomore Kayleigh Pokrivka, a first team All-Region performer last spring, was lost to an injury on April 6, ESU has several other standouts who have contributed to a backline which ranks second in the PSAC in scoring defense (8.12 goals per game).

Sophomore Kristen Andreychak (34 ground balls, 14 caused turnovers) and junior Madison Mulligan (17 ground balls) have each started every game, while senior Natalie Jacobs (20 GB, 7 CT) has earned starts in 14 of 16 appearances. Sophomore Gillian McEvoy and freshman Hannah Lieto has seen increased roles in Pokrivka's absence.

Mercyhurst has won nine-consecutive games since suffering an 18-11 setback at West Chester on March 30. In addition to Hubert's scoring prowess, Lacey Netti leads the conference in points (77) and assists (49) and goalkeeper Kaitlyn Lippert is second in both save percentage (.549) and GAA (7.16).

Friday will be ESU's fifth game against a nationally-ranked opponent this season. The Warriors are 2-2 in their first four encounters, with victories over No. 6 LIU Post (15-12) on March 13 and No. 4 West Chester (15-14, OT) on March 27.