DII Tournament Program  |  2019 ESU Statistics  |  Friday Live Stats  |  Live Video

Tickets
$10 - general admission
$5 - students/seniors
$2 - children ages 3-12
Free - children ages 0-2

EAST STROUDSBURG – A familiar face awaits East Stroudsburg University in the first round of the Division II women's lacrosse tournament, with the Warriors set to take on Mercyhurst for a third time this season.

Opening draw is scheduled for 3 p.m. on Friday. West Chester, which will host first and second round Atlantic Region contests this weekend, plays Seton Hill to begin the tournament at 11 a.m.

Friday's winners will advance to the Atlantic Region title game at 12 p.m. Sunday afternoon. The DII semifinals and final take place the following weekend at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Mich.

ESU (14-5) was ranked No. 14 in the latest IWLCA DII coaches' poll, while Mercyhurst (13-6) was listed No. 23 nationally. The Warriors fell 7-6 on the road in the teams' regular season meeting on April 20, but they avenged that setback with an 8-7 overtime win in the PSAC semifinals last weekend.

Sophomore Krista Mitarotonda had three goals, including the game-winner, while senior TJ Jefferis supplied three goals and an assist in last week's victory, as ESU rallied from a 7-5 deficit in the final 6:30 of regulation. Junior Tatyana Petteway added 16 saves with a .696 save percentage in goal.

Mitarotonda, Petteway, senior Emma Rufolo and junior Hana Cicerelle were all named first team All-PSAC last week, while Jefferis was selected to the second team. Mercyhurst is led by first team All-PSAC honorees Emma Hubert (61 G, 9 A) and Kira Kolb (108 DC, 81 GB, 45 CT).

The Lakers lead 14-8 overall in a series history which dates back to 2000. ESU, though, has won 5 of 7 contests in the last three seasons, including 3 of 4 postseason meetings during that span.

The Warriors topped Mercyhurst 10-9 for their first-ever PSAC championship in 2017, and they bested the Lakers 12-11 for their first DII tournament win last spring. Four the last six games between the two teams have been decided by a single goal.

ESU enters Friday's matchup with 273 goals on the year, one shy of breaking the single-season program record of 274 which was set in 2018. Mitarotonda (61), Cicerelle (45), Jefferis (44) and Rufolo (36) all have over 35 goals this season. Sophomore Shannon Dent has chipped in 21 goals to go along with a team-high 28 assists.

Coverage links (live stats/video) for Friday's first round contest will be posted to ESUWarriors.com as they become available.

2019 NCAA Division II Women's Lacrosse Tournament

Friday, May 10 (First Round – at West Chester)
No. 1 West Chester (17-2) vs. No. 4 Seton Hill (11-8) – 11 a.m.
No. 2 ESU (14-5) vs. No. 3 Mercyhurst (13-6) – 3 p.m.

Sunday, May 12 (Atlantic Region Final – at West Chester)
Friday winners – 12 p.m.

Friday, May 17
National Semifinals (at Grand Valley State) – 11 a.m./3 p.m.

Sunday, May 19
Division II Championship Game (at Grand Valley State) – 12 p.m.