McLean County Times

The Illinois Wesleyan University women's lacrosse team is scheduled to play Carthage College in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Tournament Semifinal on Wednesday, April 30. The match will begin at 7 p.m. at Art Keller Field.

The Titans, with a record of 8-8 overall and 3-2 in the conference, are entering the tournament as the No. 3 seed. Their most recent victory was against Elmhurst University on Saturday, April 26, with a score of 20-4. Senior Mia Fiandaca achieved a new program record for single-season caused turnovers, reaching a total of 58, and was the top scorer of the game with five goals and five points. Junior Sadie Newton and junior Sarah Riepe were notable for their contributions to draw controls and ground balls, registering eight and seven respectively. Senior Lizzie Rymarcsuk was successful in goal, making seven saves over 60 minutes.

Mia Fiandaca leads the Titans with 38 points in the season, with a team-high of 36 goals. Seniors Avery Setzler and freshman Maddie Gibson both have 35 points, with Setzler's account coming from 23 goals and 12 assists. Newton comes next with 24 goals this season. Anelise DiGiovanni leads in assists for the team with 15.

In terms of draw controls, Newton, Fiandaca, and Setzler have 60, 50, and 28 respectively. Fiandaca also leads in ground balls with 47, followed closely by Rymarcsuk with 46 and Setzler with 44. Defensively, Fiandaca ranks first with 57 caused turnovers this season and is just six away from tying the career record for the program, previously set by Dani Engelbreit between 2016 and 2019. Newton is second in this category with 31 caused turnovers, and Riepe follows with 21.

For goalkeeping, Rymarcsuk recorded 152 saves in 852:15 minutes of play and maintains a .484 save percentage, holding an 8-8 record. The team aims to reverse their previous loss to Carthage on April 19, where they fell short 10-8 despite a late-game comeback.

Carthage College, with a 12-3 overall record and 4-1 in the conference, recently secured the No. 2 seed after defeating North Central College, 9-5. The upcoming game marks the 13th meeting between the two teams, with Carthage currently leading the series. Carthage will offer a live stream of the game and live stats for fans to follow.