UMBC

Amanda Gable leads the America East in draw controls.

BALTIMORE—The UMBC women’s lacrosse team (2-2) takes on its third straight nationally ranked team on Wednesday when it travels to cross-town rival Towson to take on the No. 17 Tigers at 4 p.m. at Johnny Unitas Stadium.

Last Time Out: Junior midfielder Amanda Pappas (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) led the Retrievers with three goals in a 17-10 loss to No. 13 Vanderbilt on Saturday. Junior midfielder Ashley Stodter (Silver Spring, Md./Good Counsel) and sophomore attack Emily Coady (Westminster, Md./Westminster) each added a pair of goals, as well. Senior goalkeeper Kate Quick (Phoenix, Md./Maryvale Prep) recorded eight saves, and freshman defender Jamie Fahey (Baldwin, Md./Loch Raven) won six draw controls and picked up three ground balls.

On the Tigers: Wednesday’s game marks the 2010 season opener for Towson, which returns to the field after capturing the 2009 Colonial Athletic Association championship, their third CAA title in the last four years. The Tigers will be led by CAA Preseason Player of the Year Hillary Fratzke, who is looking to rebound from an injury-marred 2009 and return to form from 2008, when she was named CAA Player of the Year with 62 goals and 86 points. Midfielder Nikki Marcinik led the league last spring with 50 goals and 55 draw controls, while goalie Mary Teeters ranked ninth in the nation with a .506 save percentage.

Inside the Series: Wednesday’s game marks the 33^rd all-time meeting between UMBC and Towson, and the Tigers hold a 27-5 series advantage. Towson has taken five straight, including last season’s 14-8 decision at UMBC Stadium. Midfielders Kara Dorr and Carrie Paris (Longwood, Fla./Lake Brantley) each scored a pair of goals in the Retriever loss, while Fratzke and attack Meggie McNamara each posted four points on three goals and an assist to lead the Tigers. Quick recorded 16 saves in net for UMBC, while Teeters stopped 12 shots.

Top Dawg: UMBC leads the America East with 12.0 goals per game, 30.0 shots per outing, 12.0 draw controls per game and 10.75 caused turnovers per contest. In addition, the Retrievers rank second in points (15.25 pg), ground balls (20.25 pg) and save percentage (.493). Pappas ranks second in the conference in goals (3.5 pg) and third in points (3.75 pg), while Coady is fifth in goals (2.25 pg). Junior attack Erika Braerman (Fallston, Md./Fallston) and sophomore attack Alicia Krause (Ellicott City, Md./Mount Hebron/Duquesne) are both among the league leaders in assists and points. Senior midfielder Amanda Gable (Mount Airy, Md./Glenelg) leads the league in draw controls (3.5 pg), and junior defender C.J. Durham (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) is second in caused turnovers (2.0 pg). In addition, Quick leads the America East with 8.25 saves per game.

Tiger Tamer: UMBC first-year head coach Kelly Berger played collegiately for Towson’s CAA rival James Madison from 2004-07. In four years, Berger’s Dukes posted a 4-1 record against the Tigers, and she scored 11 goals and seven assists in those games.

Taking on the Best: UMBC will face five teams that were ranked in the top 20 in the most recent IWLCA coaches’ poll. The Retrievers will take on No. 11 Loyola (Feb. 23), No. 12 Boston University (April 10), No. 14 Vanderbilt (Feb. 27), No. 17 Towson (March 3) and No. 19 New Hampshire (April 3).

Retrievers Picked Fifth: UMBC was predicted to finish fifth in the America East standings, according to a vote of the league’s coaches. The Retrievers received 19 points in the America East preseason coaches’ poll. Five-time defending champion Boston University is the unanimous preseason favorite to win the sixth straight league title. The Terriers received all six possible first-place votes and 36 points to distance themselves from second-place New Hampshire, which received 29 points. The final first-place vote went to Vermont, which finished third in the poll with 23 points, tied with Albany. UMBC (19), Stony Brook (10) and Binghamton (7) round out the seven-team poll. The top four teams in the conference will advance to the America East Championships May 6-8. The Retrievers look to return to the league tournament for the first time since 2006.

Back in the Mix: The Retrievers return nearly 70 percent of an offense that scored 199 goals in 2009, the most since 2006. Pappas is the Retrievers’ top returning scorer wit h28 goals and 37 points a year ago, while Coady earned America East All-Rookie honors after posting 35 points on 22 goals and 13 assists. Also back is Stodter, a Second-Team All-Conference member whose breakout sophomore campaign resulted in 25 goals and 28 points. On the other end of the field, Quick was tabbed the conference’s top goalie with a 10.35 goals-against average and a league-best .483 save percentage.

Dawg Bites: Pappas leads the Retrievers with 14 goals and 15 points, while Braerman has 12 points on seven goals and a team-high five assists… Quick has posted an 8.50 GAA and a .493 save percentage with 33 saves in the first four games this season… Four Retrievers have picked up a team-high seven ground balls… Durham leads UMBC with eight caused turnovers, while Gable has won a team-high 14 draw controls… Coady has scored a goal in eight straight games dating to April 8, 2009… Ten different players have found the back of the net for UMBC so far this season, and 11 have tallied at least one point… Braerman and freshman midfielder Lindsay Cox (High Bridge, N.J./Voorhees) were named America East Player and Rookie of the Week, respectively, for the first week of the season, while Pappas and freshman midfielder Kerianne Allen (Ellicott City, Md./Mount Hebron) earned the same honors a week later.