SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.—The Skidmore College women's lacrosse team continues its pursuit of its first ever conference title this weekend, taking on Vassar in the Liberty League semifinals Friday at Union College.
 
Liberty League Semifinals
Skidmore (12-4, 7-2 Liberty League) vs. Vassar (10-5, 6-3)
Game Details: Friday, May 1 – 5 p.m. | Schenectady, N.Y.
Links: Tournament Homepage | Live Stats | Watch  

SCOUTING THE THOROUGHBREDS (12-4, 7-2 Liberty League): Skidmore narrowly missed out on the Liberty League regular season title, falling 9-8 at Union in its final game. The loss snapped the Thoroughbreds seven-game winning streak. Tyler Phillips became the program's fourth 50-goal scorer with nine goals over the weekend, potting five against William Smith and four against the Dutchwomen. Spencer Morgan notched her 100th-career goal in a hat trick performance against Union, while Emma Harris pushed her scoring streak to 12 with two goals against the Herons and one against the Dutchwomen.
 
The Thoroughbreds, who are making their first postseason appearance since 2011, have made the most of close games this season with eight of their 12 wins coming by two goals or fewer. They have been in every game having suffered their four losses by a total of six goals. Skidmore has taken advantage of strong starts against Liberty League opponents, outscoring conference foes 59-28 in the first half.
 
Philips leads the league with 52 goals and is tied for fourth with 61 points. She has collected a team-high 33 ground balls is averaging a team-best 2.81 draw controls per game. Morgan is seventh in the conference with 35 goals and second on the team with 39 points, while Harris is third with 32 goals and 38 points. Megan Kolopsky has started all 16 games in goal, ranking second in the conference with an 8.54 goals against average.
 

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SCOUTING THE BREWERS (10-5, 6-3 Liberty League): Vassar closed out the regular season with league wins against St. Lawrence and Clarkson, extending their winning streak to five games. Isabelle Goldstein had six points on three goals and three assists against the Saints, while Julia Trudell contributed a hat trick and an assist. Defender Jacqueline Palma caused a game-high five turnovers. Goldstein added five points against the Golden Knights with four goals and a helper and freshman attacker Storm Sideleau scored a career-high five goals.
 
The Brewers success has come from their consistency at both ends of the field. Vassar is 16th in Division III in caused turnovers per game (11.93) and it leads the league in ground balls per game (21.27), while ranking second in the conference in in goals per game (11.00), assists per game (5.13) and points per game (16.13). Vassar is 8-0 when scoring 10 or more goals this season and it has outscored league opponents 44-33 in second half.
 
Goldstein leads the team with 56 points on 24 goals and 32 assists. She is 29th in the nation in assists per game (2.46) and third in the conference in points per game. Sideleau has scored a team-high 26 goals. Palma has been the defensive catalyst, causing 2.60 turnovers per game which ranks 18th in the country. She is also second in the Liberty League in ground balls per game (3.20). Senior Kate Pula has started all 14 games in goal and holds a 8.93 goals against average and a .450 save percentage.
 

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LAST MEETING: April 4, 2015 at Skidmore
Skidmore 11, Vassar 6
 
Women's lacrosse knocks off Vassar, 11-6