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HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point University women's lacrosse team (10-4, 6-0) plays the first of two road games to wrap up the regular season Wednesday when the Panthers battle Longwood (7-8, 3-4) in Farmville, Va.
 
First draw between the Panthers and Lancers is scheduled for 6 p.m. The game will be streamed live on the Big South Network, with live stats also available via longwoodlancers.com.
 
LAST TIME OUT
HPU wrapped up its home slate with a 19-4 Senior Night victory over Radford Saturday evening inside Vert Stadium. All eight seniors scored for the Panthers, helping the Purple & White jump out to a 10-1 lead and a 15-2 halftime advantage. The Panthers held significant advantages in shots (32-5), ground balls (21-7), draw controls (18-7) and caused turnovers (11-2) in the contest.
 
FRESHMEN SUCCESS
This season, HPU has received excellent contributions from a number of freshmen on the roster. Goalie Molly Andrews – this week's Big South Freshman of the Week and a two-time league defensive player of the week pick – has put together an outstanding first season in goal. She ranks first in the Big South in save percentage in league games (.545) and is second in goals against average (5.47). Overall, Andrews is 19^th nationally in save percentage (.487).
 
In addition, fellow freshman Samantha Herman has become an anchor all season long in the midfield, despite missing the last two games due to injury. Herman ranks second on the team in draw controls (25) and is fifth overall on the team in points with 31 (20g, 11a). On the defensive side of the field, freshman Hayley Norris also has become a major factor despite also battling injuries. She has started 10 games and caused 16 turnovers while picking up 16 ground balls.
 
BLOWING UP THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
HPU has put forth a well-rounded effort both offensively and defensively this season and there are plenty of national rankings to prove it. The Panthers rank 12^th in the country in scoring offense (13.29 goals/game) and are ninth in assists per game (6.79). The Panthers pick up 22.14 ground balls per game, which ranks fourth in the nation, while the Panthers also are fifth nationally in caused turnovers/contest (12.36).
 
Senior captain Emily Meier is eighth in the country in assists per game (2.14) while junior captain Christina Del Sesto is 25^th nationally in caused turnovers per game (1.79).
 
HISTORY vs. LONGWOOD
HPU is a perfect 8-0 all time against the Lancers, including a 2-0 mark in Farmville. Last season, High Point swept a pair of meetings, including a 15-6 home win on April 19 and 14-9 victory in Vert Stadium on April 28 in the Big South quarterfinals. Leah Pace posted career highs in points (5) and ground balls (6) in the regular season matchup, while then-sophomore Samantha Brown had a breakout game in the quarterfinal, with a career-high five goals in the win over the Lancers.
 
A LOOK AT THE LANCERS (7-8, 3-3 BIG SOUTH)
Longwood was picked to finish sixth in the 2016 Big South preseason poll and is currently fifth with a 3-3 league mark. The Lancers' three league wins have come over Presbyterian (20-4), Gardner-Webb (22-8) and Radford (21-7). LWU ranks seventh nationally in points per game (21.20) but is 70^th in scoring defense (11.00 goals allowed/game).
 
LWU has the top-2 scorers in the nation in its attacking unit. Katie McHugh leads the conference in points/game (6.50) is No. 1 in the nation in total points (84). Teammate Sarah Butler is second in the country in total points (80) and averages 5.3 per contest. Sarah Butler and Shiloh McKenzie are tied for second in the Big South in draw controls/game (4.67) and goaltender Imani West is fifth in the league in save percentage (.370) and fourth in goals against average (9.78).
 
NEXT UP
High Point finishes up its regular season schedule with an important game at Winthop (14-2, 6-0) on Sunday in Rock Hill, S.C. First draw between the Panthers and Eagles is scheduled for 1 p.m.

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