Lacrosse Hosts #5 Michigan Wednesday

Lacrosse vs. #5 MICHIGAN
Date	Wednesday, April 3 \| 12 p.m.
Venue	Indoor Practice Facility \| Ypsilanti, Mich.
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live	Statistics
Social Media	Instagram: @emu_Lacrosse \| Twitter: @EMU_Lacrosse

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University lacrosse team is set to welcome a nationally ranked for to campus for the first time as the Eagles play host to the No. 5 Wolverines of the University of Michigan Wednesday, April 3, inside EMU's Indoor Practice Facility. The game between the Eagles (5-4, 2-0 MAC) and Wolverines (11-1, 2-1 B1G) was originally scheduled for Martin Luther King High School in Detroit, but inclement weather in the forecast forced the game to be moved indoors.

GROW OUR GAME ON HOLD
Eastern Michigan and Michigan were set to meet Wednesday, April 3, at Martin Luther King High School in Detroit as part of the 'Grow Our Game' initiative. Although the game needed to be moved indoors on EMU's campus, both programs will look to try again in 2025 as both teams are dedicated to facilitating increased access to the sport by bringing the game to areas of Michigan that might not otherwise be exposed.

OPENING DRAWS
» Eastern stands 5-4 overall and 2-0 in MAC play following its 12-11 home win over Kent State, March 31.
» The Eagles are currently tied for first place in the MAC standings, sharing the top spot with Central Michigan as both teams hold 2-0 records. Eastern also has doubled its win total in league play from last year (1-7).
» With a 5-4 record, Eastern has a winning percentage (.567) over .500 for the first time in program history.
» With their win over Kent State, March 31, the Eagles have won three MAC matches in a row for the first time in program history dating back to the end of the 2023 season. Additionally, Eastern has won back-to-back home games in the same season for the first time after downing Butler, 15-8, March 15.
» The Wolverines enter the game ranked as high as No. 5 in the latest ILWomen/IWLCA Top 25, marking the first time the Eagles will play host to a nationally ranked team in Ypsilanti. The Wolverines also will be the second nationally ranked team Eastern has played this year after opening the year at then-No. 7 Notre Dame.
» In the win over Kent State, March 31, the Eagles came back from a pair of three-goal deficits to win, 12-11, with Mackenzie Blackwell scoring five times, including the game-winning strike, to lead the way. The one-goal win is the second in as many games (W, 11-10, at Akron, March 24) after losing the previous four.
» Avery Schwab tied a school record with four assists in the win over the Golden Flashes. Schwab set the mark last year at Xavier, March 15.
» Sydney Lawrence stuffed the stat sheet against KSU as she scored three goals, collected four ground balls, a school-record-tying four caused turnovers, and three draw controls.
» Five Eagles were selected captains ahead of the 2024 season, including sophomores Mackenzie Blackwell, Skylar Hilmer, Gina Jaffurs, and Annika Wozney, and graduate student Sydney Lawrence.
» Head Coach Sara Tisdale is back for her second year building the Eagle program and carries a career record of 110-81 in 12 years of coaching. Eastern is the third program she has started from scratch after starting programs at Augustana (Ill.) in 2012 and Central Michigan in 2016.
» Eastern was voted fourth in the 2024 MAC Preseason Coaches Poll, up from a tie for sixth in 2023.

WITH A WIN OVER MICHIGAN, EASTERN WOULD...
» Have its first victory over a ranked opponent. Michigan is ranked No. 5 in the ILWomen/IWLCA Top 25 and No. 7 in the Nike/USA Lacrosse Top 20.
» Have its first win over the Wolverines. Eastern lost the first meeting, 16-3, at then-No. 17 U-M, March 19, 2023.
» Have its first victory inside the EMU Indoor Practice Facility (0-2).

AROUND THE MAC
With two weeks of MAC play in the books, the Eagles find themselves at the top of the standings along with Central Michigan as both schools hold 2-0 records with Detroit Mercy and Robert Morris tied for third with 2-1 marks. The top four teams in the final standings, April 28, will advance to the 2024 MAC Tournament with the regular season champion earning the right to host the two-day event.

SCOUTING: MICHIGAN
The Wolverines enter the game at Eastern following their first loss of the season, an 8-6 home setback to then-No. 1 Maryland, March 30. At 11-1 overall and 2-1 in the Big Ten, the Wolverines have climbed the national rankings to as high as No. 2 last week as they have defeated nationally ranked foes in No. 4 Denver (8-4, Feb. 17), No. 13 USC (9-3, Feb. 24), No. 19 Colorado (13-8, March 2), and No. 15 Penn (6-5, March 16). Offensively, Jill Smith and Kaylee Dyer have carried the load as the duo have tallied 37 and 34 goals, respectively. On defense, Erin O'Grady is one of the top goalies in the nation as she ranks first in the NCAA in goals against average (5.30) and save percentage (64.8).

IN THE SERIES: EAGLES vs. WOLVERINES
The Wolverines won the first meeting, 16-3, when the two teams met in Ann Arbor, March 19, 2023. Cassie Huber scored a pair of goals and Tracy Grollman added one as the Eagles fell to the No. 17 team in the nation.

IN THE RANKINGS
Eastern is set to play a nationally ranked team for the third time in program history and the second time this year when the No. 5 Wolverines come to town. Previously, the Eagles took on then-No. 7 Notre Dame on the road, Feb. 9, where they fell to the Irish, 21-6. Last year, the Eagles and Wolverines met in Ann Arbor with then-No. 17 U-M winning, 16-3.

LOOKING BACK: ANOTHER CLOSE CALL
Despite finding themselves trailing by three goals on two occasions, the Eagles battled back to take a three-goal lead halfway through the fourth quarter before hanging on to defeat Kent State, 12-11, March 31, in Ypsilanti. Mackenzie Blackwell, who scored five goals, including the game-winner, led the charge while Avery Schwab assisted on four goals to tie a school record. Sydney Lawrence added a hat trick, four caused turnovers, four ground balls, three draw controls, and was instrumental in limiting KSU's second-leading scorer to two goals.

CLOSE CALLS
Heading into the season, the Eagles were 0-3 all-time in one-goal games and saw their record drop to 0-3 after a close 7-6 loss at Lafayette, March 9. Since then, however, the Eagles have come out on top in back-to-back one-goal games, including their most recent 12-11 win over Kent State, March 31. One week prior, Eastern secured its first one-goal victory as it downed Akron on the road, 11-10, March 24.

SHE'S GOT FIVE ON IT
Mackenzie Blackwell has been on a scoring tear lately as the sophomore netted five more goals in the 12-11 win over Kent State, March 31. The goals gave the team's top scorer her seventh hat trick of the season and a hat trick in her fourth game in a row. Overall, Blackwell has netted 76 goals for the Eagles in one-and-one-half seasons and scored at least once in 22-of-25 games played at EMU.

ONE OF THE BEST
With her 37 goals in nine games, Mackenzie Blackwell is averaging 4.11 goals per contest, which continues to lead the MAC. Additionally, she ranks ninth among all NCAA Division I players and is the top scoring sophomore in the nation.

SYD STUFFS STATS
To say Sydney Lawrence was busy in the Kent State game, March 31, would be an understatement. Tasked with marking the Golden Flashes' second-leading scorer, Lawrence allowed her opponent just two goals in the game. Additionally, Lawrence, who scored three goals of her own, tied a school record with four caused turnovers while also recording four ground balls and three draw controls.

SHE HAS THE SCOOP
In the game against KSU, March 31, Maddie Porter not only secured her second career MAC victory in goal, she also added three more ground balls to her season total. Porter is averaging 4.38 ground balls per game, an average that leads the MAC and ranks second nationally. She also ranks 25th nationally with 9.0 saves per game and 14th with her 48.6 save percentage.

TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADERS
Eastern now leads the MAC in nine statistical categories, an improvement of one from last week. Offensively, the Eagles top the ledgers with 11.33 goals per game, 6.22 assists per game, 17.56 points per game, 20.11 shots on goal per game, and 1.89 woman-up goals scored per game. On the defensive end, the Eagles lead the way in saves percentage at 50.0, goals against average at 10.89, ground balls per game at 19.00, and draw controls per game at 15.00.

TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADERS, PART II
Individually, several Eagles hold the top spot in several categories as well. Mackenzie Blackwell leads the league in goals per game (4.11), points per game (4.33), and draw controls per game (4.89); Avery Schwab leads with 1.56 assists per game; Maddie Porter is tops in ground balls per game (4.38); and Giuliana Ditsky leads the way in save percentage (54.2).

NATIONALLY KNOWN
As a team, the Eagles rank among the national top 50 in six categories with the team's 50.0 save percentage ranking eighth to lead the way. Eastern also ranks 12th in ground balls per game (19.0), 31st in draw controls per game (15.0), 36th in assists per game (6.22), 38th in shot percentage (44.7), goals against average (10.89).

HIGH MARKS
As a team, the Eagles have posted three marks that rank among the top four nationally in single-game standings with the 20 saves recorded at Marquette (March 17) ranking third in a single game among all NCAA Division I teams. Earlier this year, the 26 draw controls recorded at Duquesne (Feb. 15) rank as the third-most while the 37 ground balls recorded at Howard (Feb. 25) rank fourth.

HAPPY HELPERS
It is no surprise the Eagles lead the MAC in assists as the top three individuals on the assist chart all wear the Green and White of Eastern. Avery Schwab tops the charts with 1.56 assists per game with Tracy Grollman sitting second at 1.50 and Sydney Lawrence third at 1.11. Additionally, Abby Alderman has added her name to the list at ninth (0.78).

ON THE HORIZON
The Eagles will hit the road Sunday, April 7, when they travel to face the Titans of the University of Detroit Mercy in a 1 p.m. opening draw at Titan Field in Detroit. The Mid-American Conference contest will be aired live on ESPN+.

FOLLOW US
For all things EMU Lacrosse, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMU_Lacrosse on X (formerly Twitter) and EMU_Lacrosse on Instagram.

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Players Mentioned

Abby Alderman

Mackenzie Blackwell

Giuliana Ditsky

Tracy Grollman

Skylar Hilmer

Cassie Huber

Gina Jaffurs

Sydney Lawrence

Maddy Porter

Avery Schwab

Annika Wozney

Eastern Michigan Athletics