No. 17 Women's Lacrosse at No. 16 MIT
Saturday, April 11 | 1:15 p.m.
Jack Barry Field | Cambridge, Mass.

SERIES HISTORY
• Babson is 40-7 all-time against MIT in a series that dates back to 1988.
• The Beavers have won 10 of the last 13 games against the Engineers since 2016 but MIT has won twice in the six meetings since 2023.
• The Green and White have won 13 straight games against MIT in Cambridge going back to 1997.
• Ten of the last 14 contests between the teams have been decided by three goals or fewer.
• Saturday's game is the same matchup as the last three NEWMAC title games.

LAST MEETING
• Junior goalie Pauline Vien made 13 saves and a stifling defense limited Babson to 11 goals below its season average as second-seeded MIT defeated the top-seeded Beavers, 16-6, to capture the NEWMAC tournament championship on May 3, 2025, at MacDowell Field.
• Clare Connolly '25 tallied three goals and grabbed four draw controls to lead the Beavers, Kathryn Blake '25 scored twice and Jessica Evans '25 added one goal, two caused turnovers and a team-high three ground balls. Kathleen Murphy '25 finished with six saves in goal in the loss.
• Vien, the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, added three ground balls to her 13 saves. Senior Ashley Thomas led the Engineers with three goals and three assists, and Sydney Pyon '25 and sophomore Alexis Reinard added three goals and an assist apiece. Julianne Flusche '25 and seniors Gwen Flusche and Annica Lam chipped in with two goals each, and Julianne (5) and Gwen (4) Flusche combined for nine draw controls.

SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
• Babson (7-4, 4-2 NEWMAC), ranked 17th by USA Lacrosse Magazine, is coming off a lopsided 15-1 win over Clark on Wednesday at MacDowell Field.
• Sophomore Courtney Laden and first-year Caroline Burtch scored three times apiece to lead five players who notched at least a pair of goals in the win. Senior Lilly Bedard, sophomore Estelle Gromko and first-year Jenna Wong chipped in with two goals each for the Green and White. Laden had a team-high four draw controls, Gromko and first-year Ellie Grahn caused two turnovers, and Austin collected a team-high three ground balls.
• Bedard (22-22-44) is ranked fifth in the NEWMAC in assists and ninth in points, and Wong (22-2-24) is tied with Bedard for the team lead in goals. Junior Jen Austin (8-9-17) is second on the team in assists and Laden (16-0-16) is third on the squad in goals. Laden (37) is tied for ninth in the NEWMAC in draw controls and ranks sixth in the league with 18 caused turnovers.
• McGahan (7.99 GAA, .416 sv. pct., 47 saves) has started all 11 games and is second in the NEWMAC in goals against average.

SCOUTING THE ENGINEERS
• MIT (10-3, 6-0 NEWMAC), ranked 16th by USA Lacrosse Magazine, has won its last three games, including a 16-13 victory over Endicott on Tuesday in Cambridge.
• Thomas (5g, 3a), Lam (5g, 1a) and Flusche (2g, 1a) powered the MIT offense and Flusche grabbed a game-high eight draw controls. First-year Loralei Quinn forced three turnovers and scooped up five ground balls, classmate Mairin Anderson had two caused turnovers and three ground balls, and Vien made nine saves in goal in the victory.
• Thomas (44-43-87) ranks second in Division III in points and third in assists, while Lam (41-10-51) joins her in the top four in the NEWMAC in goals. Flusche (26-9-35), Reinard (14-20-34), senior Nina Petulla (21-3-24) and junior Jillian Butler (19-5-24) give the Engineers plenty of firepower, and Flusche (50), junior Laura Day (38) and Anderson (30) are all strong on draw controls.
• Quinn has a team-high 13 caused turnovers and Reinard (26) and Flusche (25) lead the way in ground balls. Vien (10.70 GAA, .482 sv. pct.) has started all 12 games in goal and leads the league in save percentage.

NEWMAC RACE 
• With two weeks to go before the start of the conference tournament, Babson (4-2) and Springfield (4-2) are tied for fourth place in the standings, a half-game behind third-place Wheaton (5-2) and a half-game up on sixth-place Smith (4-3).
• MIT (6-0) and Coast Guard (6-0) are in a battle for the regular season title and will face each other on April 18.
• Salve Regina (2-3), Wellesley (2-5) and Mount Holyoke (1-5) are in contention for the seventh and final playoff berth.

ROOKIE CLASS 
• The first-year class for the Beavers has made a strong impact on this year's team, with eight rookies seeing action in at least seven games and six starting at least three contests.
• Wong (22g, 2a), Hailey Murray (13g), and Grace Rooney (12g) are all in the top six on the team in scoring, and Allie Collins (16), Rooney (14) and Burtch (13) are 2-3-4 on the squad in draw controls.
• Collins (9) and Rooney (7) are in the top six in caused turnovers and Collins is second on the team in ground balls.

CONSISTENT PLAY 
• Laden has produced at least three points and three draw controls in her last three games, and has at least one draw control in all 11 games this season.
• Bedard has five multi-goal games in her last six outings, and has at least two points in 10 of her 11 games this spring.
• Wong has five multi-goal games this spring and at least one point in all 11 outings.

BEAVER BITES
• Babson has scooped up more ground balls than the opponents in nine of 11 outings this spring.
• The Green and White have outshot their opponents this season in eight games and tied in another.
• The Beavers are tied for second in the NEWMAC with 1.82 woman-up goals per game.

NUMBERS TO KNOW
• The Green and White are 5-0 this spring and have gone 33-0 over the past three seasons when leading at halftime.
• Babson is 5-0 this season and 46-1 over the last four seasons when scoring at least 12 goals.
• The Beavers are 7-0 this season and 32-2 going back to 2024 when winning more draws than its opponents.

UP NEXT
• The Beavers play their next three games at home beginning with Bowdoin on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at MacDowell Field.