Women's Lacrosse | 2/18/2020 11:21:33 AM
St. John Fisher will look for its ninth straight Empire 8 title, as eight teams will battle for the 2020 E8 Championship, as the upcoming season gets underway with Elmira playing in Texas on Feb. 17 and 19 before Nazareth and Alfred are in action up north on Feb. 22. League play begins on March 21. The top-four teams will advance to the Empire 8 Championship Tournament, which will take place at the home of the regular season champion and top-seed on May 2-3. The Empire 8 Champion will receive an automatic berth into the 2020 NCAA Division III Women’s Lacrosse Championship.
Fans can watch the action all season long, free of charge on
Empire 8 TV.
Players to Watch (Sorted Alphabetically by Player)
Cori Beck, Houghton, Houghton, Sr., M, Monkton, MD/Hereford – Beck, a two-sport star (women’s basketball) returns for her final season after leading the Highlanders with 57 points on 38 goals and 19 assists last season. She also had team-best totals of 79 ground balls, 57 draw controls and 27 caused turnovers on her way to earning All-Empire 8 second team accolades.
Mikayla Carfello, Elmira, So., A, Pequannaock Township, NJ/Pequannock Township – Carfello was Elmira’s leading scorer as a newcomer in 2019, tallying 24 goals and 26 points.
Mallory Eymer, St. John Fisher, Sr., A, Syracuse, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse – Eymer, an All-Empire 8 first team selection and All-IWLCA second team all-region pick, was second in the league with 63 goals and 86 points in 2019. She enters her final season with 117 career goals and 146 points.
Brittany Gage, Sage, Gr., M, Pine Bush, NY/Pine Bush – Gage tallied 20 goals and 28 points for the Gators, while also leading the team with 53 draw controls to go along with 45 ground balls and 21 caused turnovers in 2019.
Emma Robinson, Nazareth, So., A, Central Square, NY/Paul V. Moore – Robinson enjoyed an outstanding rookie season for the Golden Flyers in 2019, scoring 46 goals on her way to earning All-Empire 8 second team honors.
Lexi Scaccia, Utica, So., A/M, Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro – Scaccia, a 2019 All-Empire 8 second team selection, led the squad with 90 draw controls and 51 ground balls, while adding 24 caused turnovers. Offensively, she added 42 points on 25 goals and 17 assists.
Sarah Turner, Alfred, Jr., M/D, Bentonville, AR/Bentonville – Turner will serve as team captain for the Saxons in 2020. She started all 14 games for the Saxons last season and will be counted on to play big minutes in 2020.
GinaMarie Wilson, Hartwick, Jr., A/M, East Meadow, NY/East Meadow – Wilson earned All-Empire 8 second team accolades in 2019 after leading the Hawks with 46 goals and 57 draw controls.
Team Capsules (Sorted by 2019 Standings)
St. John Fisher
St. John Fisher has emerged as a dominant force in the Empire 8, having won eight straight league championships. The Cardinals are coming off a tremendous 2019 season in which they finished 19-2 and advanced to the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament. The Cardinals set single-season program records with a 17-game winning streak, 19 total wins and led all of Division III in scoring defense, allowing just 4.81 goals per game. The Cardinals had six student-athletes earn IWLCA All-Region honors, including four underclassmen. Senior Mallory Eymer was second in the league with 63 goals and 86 points in 2019. She enters her final season with 117 career goals and 146 points. Sophomore Sydney DeGirolamo, the 2019 E8 Rookie of the Year, was right behind with 79 points on 40 goals and a league-high 39 assists. Overall, St. John Fisher returns 22 players, including seven starters. The Cardinals are ranked No. 11 in the 2020 IWLCA Division III Preseason Poll.
Utica
The Pioneers enjoyed an excellent 2019 season, finishing 13-4 overall, while garnering the No. 2 seed in last season’s E8 Tournament. Utica returns 20 players from last season, including its top eight goal scorers. Sophomore Lexi Scaccia, graduate student Katlyn Scarpinella and senior goalkeeper Hali Vandermeulen will lead the way in 2020. Scarpinella was an All-Empire 8 first team pick in 2019, recording 46 points to go along with 61 draw controls, 46 ground balls and 28 caused turnovers. Vandermeulen earned All-Empire 8 second team accolades and IWLCA All-Region plaudits. She was a five-time E8 Goalkeeper of the Week in 2019. Defensively, seniors Devon Burri and Hailee Dumont, along with junior Sydney Scaccia lead an experienced group.
Nazareth
The Golden Flyers look to challenge for the Empire 8 title in 2020, as 18 players, including eight starters return from last season’s squad that went 6-2 in league play. Nazareth hopes to have senior Bridget Collins (19 goals in 2018) and junior Tori Blazey (20 goals in 2018) back on the field after both missed all of 2019 to injury. In addition, Nazareth is looking for Katie Lawrence to emerge as a strong goaltender to replace two-time All-Empire 8 selection Brianna Rizzari, who is back as an assistant coach. Sophomore Emma Robinson enjoyed an excellent rookie season in 2019, scoring a team-best 46 to earn All-Empire 8 second team accolades. Senior Lily Aldrich is back for her final season after dishing out 37 assists in 2019.
Hartwick
Hartwick enters the 2020 season eager to earn its first Empire 8 postseason berth since 2004. First-year head coach Nora Fallon-Oben was an assistant at nationally-ranked Hamilton College for the past four seasons. The Hawks return 14 players, including eight starters from last season’s squad. Junior GinaMarie Wilson will be counted on to lead the offense in 2020. She earned All-Empire 8 second team accolades in 2019 after leading the Hawks with 46 goals and 57 draw controls. Senior midfielder Jennifer Darasz, an All-E8 honorable mention pick, is a strong two-way player. In net, senior Ashley Jablonowski, the 2019 E8 Goalkeeper of the Year, is back for her final season. She recorded an impressive .550 save percentage in 16 contests last season.
Houghton
The Highlanders look to earn an E8 postseason berth after recording five victories last season. Houghton returns five starters from last season’s squad, including senior Cori Beck, an All-Empire 8 second team selection. Beck led Houghton in 2019 with 57 points on 38 goals and 19 assists in addition to 79 ground balls, 57 draw controls and 27 caused turnovers. Classmate Marissa Hews, an All-Empire 8 honorable mention selection, is back after scoring a team-best 44 goals. Midfielders Britany Dones and first-year Mary Doell will be counted on to be key pieces on both ends of the field for Houghton.
Elmira
The Soaring Eagles return all five of their top scorers from 2019, as they look to make a postseason push in 2020. Overall, eight starters return, including sophomore attack Mikayla Carfello, who led the team in scoring last season with 24 goals. Classmate Stephanie Martin had 30 draw controls and 15 goals last season and will be joined in the midfield by three-year starters Kate Gibson and Rachael Goetz. Gibson recorded 34 ground balls, 23 draw controls and caused 10 turnovers, while Goetz added 18 goals in 2019. Junior Krystyna Lilland and first year Alex Cox will compete for the starting role in net, while fellow newcomers Kendra Heath and Taylor Johnson can both make an immediate impact.
Sage
Sage is looking to take a step forward and contend for an Empire 8 postseason berth in 2020. The Gators return eight starters from last season’s team, including Brittany Gage, Alexandra Lettre and Marina Azab. Gage, a graduate student, tallied 20 goals and 28 points in the midfield for the Gators, while also leading the team with 53 draw controls to go along with 45 ground balls and 21 caused turnovers in 2019. Lettre, a sophomore defender, earned All-Empire 8 second team honors as a first-year last season, recording team-best totals of 66 ground balls and 42 caused turnovers. Azab, a junior, will expected to see plenty of time in goal for the Gators.
Alfred
The Saxons of Alfred University will look for improvement in 2020, as eight starters return from last season’s squad. Senior goalkeeper Paige Rowlee is back for her final season in net, while junior captain Sarah Turner will help lead a young defense and classmate Krystina Gauer paces the offensive unit. Rowlee made 180 saves in goal for the Saxons in 2019. First-year attack Brenna Turner, younger sister of Sarah and defender Rosemary Robertson will look to contribute as team leaders right away.
Final 2019 Empire 8 Women’s Lacrosse Standings
St. John Fisher (19-2, 8-0 Empire 8) – League Champions
Utica (13-4, 6-2 E8)
Stevens (9-10, 6-2 Empire 8) *
Nazareth (10-8, 6-2 E8)
Hartwick (7-9, 4-4 E8)
Houghton (5-10, 3-5 E8)
Elmira (2-15, 2-6 E8)
Sage (2-13, 1-7 E8)
Alfred (1-14, 0-8 E8)
*Stevens moved to the MAC Freedom Conference effective for the 2020 season
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
EMPIRE 8 SOCIAL MEDIA
YouTube –
Facebook –
Twitter –
Instagram