ROCK HILL, SC – The Winthrop lacrosse team will put its five-game win streak on the line Sunday afternoon on the road at Fresno State as the Eagles take on the Bulldogs at 3 p.m. EST/12 p.m. PST.
Winthrop will be playing its first road game in more than a month as the Eagles just completed a six-game home stand, going 5-1.
The Eagles' offense has been clicking this year as they lead the conference and rank fourth in Division I in scoring offense, averaging just over 16 goals per game. Winthrop is eighth in the country in total points with 150, sixth in draw controls and ninth in ground balls, averaging 15.29 and 20.43 per game respectively.
Senior attacker Jenna Kasmarik, who has earned three Big South Attacking Player of the Week awards, has averaged five goals per game which leads the NCAA and her 30 total goals ranks second. She is also third in points per game and sixth in total points.
Freshman Katherine Judge leads the conference and is second in the NCAA, averaging 3.83 ground balls per game. Junior Shannon Gallagher is eighth in Division I, averaging 2.29 caused turnovers per contest.
Winthrop and Fresno State have met only once before. The Eagles and Bulldogs met in 2013 in Denver, CO with Winthrop coming away with a 17-10 victory. The Eagles were led that night by Gallagher who totaled seven points on six goals and one assist and junior Logan McCarthy who had a career-high four goals.
Fresno State enters Sunday's contest with a 2-4 overall record with its two victories coming over Big South opponents, Gardner-Webb and Campbell.
Sophomore Caroline Dineen-Carlson leads the Bulldogs offensively this season with 14 goals while fellow sophomore Kyleigh Westgarth has totaled 10 goals and leads the team with 18 draw controls. Freshman Natalie Chaffin has been the team's primary goalie, appearing in all six games while making five starts. She has allowed just over 15 goals per game this season with a .346 save percentage.
Following Sunday's contest the Eagles will remain in California for a Wednesday contest against San Diego State. The game is slated for a 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST start.
