Gators Prepare for Owls in Weekend Matchup
Friday, March 11, 2011 | Lacrosse
The No. 14 Florida lacrosse team takes on the Temple Owls at Donald R. Dizney Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Opening draw is at 1:00 p.m.
Wednesday's victory over No. 9 Georgetown marked the first-ever defeat of a top-10 opponent in program history. The Gators outmatched the Hoyas in nearly every statistical category, including on the draw, where the Gators won 11 draw controls in the second half out of a possible 13.
The Gators have registered a program-record 19 draw controls in two games this season. Florida won 19 against UMBC and matched that number in their upset victory over No. 9 Georgetown.
The Gators are on a five-game win streak, the longest in program history. With convincing victories over Jacksonville, No. 20 Denver, UMBC, Lehigh and No. 9 Georgetown, the Orange and Blue are picking up momentum in the middle of their nine-game homestand. The Gators are undefeated at home in 2011. Florida has five more games in the homestand, including their first ALC contest of 2011 against Ohio State, before hitting the road on April 2nd. The Gators' last road trip was on February 16th to nearby Jacksonville.
Florida is led by sophomore midfielder and Tewaaraton Watch List honoree Kitty Cullen (Rockville, Md.), who is third in the NCAA in goals overall and goals per game, while ranking 10th in points overall. Cullen has 27 goals in six games thus far, which is quite an accomplishment considering she had 31 for the entire 2010 season.
Florida is 12th in the NCAA in points, 14th in scoring offense, 12th in scoring defense and 12th in scoring margin. Sophomore goalkeeper Mikey Meagher (Liverpool, N.Y.) is 10th in the NCAA in GA avg.
The Owls are now 1-3 on the season, having lost a heartbreaker to Jacksonville, 12-13, on Wednesday night. Two of Temple's three losses have been within one goal. The Owls are led by Charlotte Swavola with nine goals on the season. Stephany Parcell is second on the team with eight points (5 G, 3 A).
Last year, Temple went 7-10 overall but 4-3 in Atlantic-10 play to earn the number four seed at the conference tournament. The Owls lost to top-seeded Richmond in a close semifinal, 15-13, to finish out their season.
This is Florida's first-ever meeting with head coach Amanda O'Leary's alma mater, and O'Leary's first matchup with her alma mater as a collegiate head coach. O'Leary (formerly Moore) was a two-time All-American for the Owls and is a member of both the Temple Hall of Fame and the US Lacrosse Hall of Fame. O'Leary led the Owls' lacrosse team to a 19-0 record and the national championship in 1988. O'Leary was the Midfielder of the Year selection for the NCAA All-Tournament teams in 1987 and 1988 as well as the NCAA Most Valuable Player in 1988. Lacrosse Magazine also selected her as its 1988 Player of the Year.
The Gators' matchup with the Owls will be broadcast on www.GatorZone.com and WRUF SportsRadio 850 with Andrew Suarez on the call. Young Gator fans are encouraged to participate in forming the pre-game tunnel for player introductions on the field.
