POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (April 1, 2015) – The Vassar College women's lacrosse team will play on the road this weekend for the first time this season for a pair of Liberty League games against conference rivals Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Skidmore College. 
 
Game Details
Opponent: RPI
Links: (RPI Women's Lacrosse Homepage) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Troy, NY
Facility: Renwyck Field
Date: April 3, 2015
Time: 4:00 pm
Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)
 
Game Details
Opponent: Skidmore
Links: (Skidmore Women's Lacrosse Homepage) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Saratoga Springs, NY
Facility: Wachenheim Field
Date: April 4, 2015
Time: 2:00 pm
Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)
 
Last Time Out
Vassar finished 1-1 last weekend at home, falling to Union in the team's Liberty League opener 11-9 in overtime. The Brewers bounced back against William Smith the following day, overcoming a two-goal deficit in the second half to earn a 9-8 victory.

A Look at the Engineers
RPI enters Friday's contest 3-3 on the season, fresh off a 9-8 triple overtime victory over
Skidmore on March 28 in both teams' Liberty League opener. The Engineers have swapped wins and losses each game since starting their 2015 campaign, also notching wins against Onetona and Babson.
 
Sophomore Sophie Hager has been an integral component of the Engineer attack this season, and currently ranks first in the Liberty League in assists (18) and seventh in points (25). Graduate student Meg Colitz leads the team in goals (15) this season, while senior Erin Riley has chipped in 13 for RPI. Colitz was named the conference's Offensive Player the Week on March 9.   
 
Senior goalie Erin Amarello has had a solid season in goal thus far for the Engineers, twice being named the Liberty League Defender of the Week. Amarello currently holds a 9.72 GAA and .471 save percentage in six starts.
 
Against RPI All-Time
Vassar is 3-21 against RPI all-time and has fallen to the Engineers in their last five meetings. Vassar lost 10-8 last year on March 29, as the Engineers overcame a two-goal deficit in the second half scoring five unanswered goals to top VC. The Brewers' last win against RPI took place on April 18, 2009 when Vassar clinched a 13-12 double overtime victory over the Engineers.   
 
A Look at the Thoroughbreds
Skidmore enters the weekend 5-3 on the season, falling to RPI in triple OT its last game on March 28.The Thoroughbreds will matchup with Bard College on April 3 before hosting the Brewers for both team's second game of the weekend on April 4. The Thoroughbreds started the season hot, winning five out of its first six games before dropping matchups to Hamilton and RPI last week.
 
Vassar will look to limit the production of sophomore Tyler Philps, who currently leads the Liberty League in goals scored with 26 on the season. Senior Spencer Morgan and junior Emma Harris have also been solid contributors on the offensive end, combining for 33 goals and seven assists for the Thoroughbreds. Sophomore Megan Kolopsky has played every minute in goal for Skidmore this season, holding an 8.57 GAA and .474 save percentage.      
 
Against Skidmore All-Time
Vassar is 6-17 against Skidmore all-time and has defeated the Thoroughbreds in their last two meetings. The Brewers last earned a victory on March 28, 2014 when VC edged Skidmore 7-6 at home on Weinberg Field.  
 
Sophomores Strike
Several young players stepped up for Vassar this past weekend, headlined by sophomore Brittany Botticelli (Commack, NY/Commack) who tallied back-to-back hat tricks against Union and William Smith. Fellow sophomore Julia Trudell (Newtown, CT/Newtown) led the team in assists (4) over the two-game span, while sophomore Phoebe Hankins (Belvedere, CA/San
Francisco University) notched the go-ahead goal for VC against William Smith.
 
First-Year Firepower
Freshman Julia O'Mara (Severna Park, MD/Severna Park) scored her first career goals against Union on March 27, finishing with a hat trick on four shots. She added another goal the following day against William Smith, while fellow freshman Storm Sideleau (Hopkinton, NH/Kimball Union Academy) tallied two goals against the Herons. Freshman Amelia Rivoir (Huntington Station, NY/Walt Whitman) made her second career goal a big one, giving VC a lead late against Union.
 
Wrecking Havoc
Vassar is currently ranked first in the Liberty League sand third in the country in caused turnovers per game (14.67), as the defense has given opposing attacking units problems all season. Leading the way for the Brewers is senior Jackie Palma (Manhasset, NY/ Manhasset Junior-Senior), who is ranked first in the Liberty League and sixth in the nation in caused turnovers per game (3.33). Fellow senior defender Evie Toland (Nyack, NY/ Nyack) has also given opponents fits, averaging 2.00 caused turnovers per game ranking fifth in the Liberty League.
 
On Point
Junior Isabelle Goldstein (Belmont, MA/Belmont) remains one of the nation's assist leaders heading into the weekend, averaging 2.80 helpers per game this season which ranks 16^th in the country and second in the Liberty League.
 
Razor Thin Margins
If last weekend's games were any indicator, the 2015 Liberty League title race may be one of the closest in recent memory. Of the eight conference games played March 27-28, five were decided by two goals or less, three were decided by one goal and two games went into overtime.
 
One for the Record Books
Senior Jackie Palma is now third all-time in caused turnovers in program history, passing Emily Learner ('05) and Liz Pacheco ('10), who both finished their careers with 75. Palma has racked up 78 caused turnovers in the burgundy and gray, and is quickly approaching Emile Moeckel's ('05) school record of 86.  

Up Next
Vassar will play another Liberty League road doubleheader April 10-11 when the team travels to face the Rochester Institute of Technology and the University of Rochester.