Courtesy Bridgewater State Sports Information

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Bridgewater State University will travel to Brunswick, Maine to take on Bowdoin College in the opening round of the 2013 NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Tournament on Wednesday, May 8th at 7:00 PM.



The winner of Wednesday's First Round match will advance to play the winner of Susquehanna and Geneseo State at a to-be-determined location on Saturday with a regional final scheduled for Sunday.



Under the guidance of seventh-year head coach Erika Smith (91-34, .728), the Bears are making their fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance and fifth overall.  Bridgewater (17-2) earned the automatic qualifier to the national tournament by defeating Westfield State University, 13-10, in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) title game on Saturday.



Bowdoin, who earned an at-large bid to the national tournament, is currently 13-3 on the season. The Polar Bears, under the direction of 11-year head coach Elizabeth Grote (127-61, .676), are ranked eighth in the latest IWLCA Division III poll.



Bowdoin will return to the NCAA Tournament after a one-year absence. In their last tournament appearance in 2011, the Polar Bears rolled to their first-ever NCAA Final Four, reached the Division III Championship Game and ended as national runners-up. It will be Bowdoin's fifth NCAA Tournament bid overall. The Polar Bears are one of four NESCAC teams to qualify for this year's championship.



Bridgewater State is led by All-MASCAC selections Lauren Geary (Fr., Midfielder), Jill Caramello (Sr., Attack), Shelby Farland (Sr., Midfielder), Michelle Navoni (Sr., Defender), Taylor Clancy (Jr., Midfielder), Riley Cachelin (So., Attack) and Alexis Hadcock (Fr., Attack).



Geary, the MASCAC Rookie of the Year, has 44 goals and 22 assists to date as well as 86 ground balls and 38 caused turnovers.  She set the NCAA Division III single-season record for draw controls as she currently has 187 on the year.



Caramello has scored 58 goals and dished out 18 assists for 76 points, while Farland checks in with 25 goals, 24 assists, 41 ground balls, 24 draws and 23 caused turnovers.



Navoni anchors an outstanding defensive unit as she has amassed 62 ground balls, 17 draws and 24 caused turnovers.  The Bears rank among the top ten in Division III in scoring defense (6.58 ppg), ground balls (537) and draws (306).



Clancy has 59 goals and 24 assists for 83 assists to go along with 104 ground balls, 46 draws and 52 caused turnovers.  She leads the team in scoring and ranks among the top ten in Division III in ground balls and caused turnovers.



Cachelin has put together a terrific sophomore campaign as she has recorded 51 goals and 27 assists for 78 points, while Hadcock has 31 goals and 32 assists for a total of 63 points.



Offensively, the Bears rank among the top ten in Division III in both points (502) and scoring offense (16.79).  Seven players on the team have scored at least 25 goals, while six have recorded 50 or more points.



Chandler Ross (Jr. Goalie) took over the Bears' starting goaltending duties five games into the season and has produced a record of 13-2 with 88 saves.  She ranks in the top ten in Division III with a 6.81 goals against average.



Carolyn Gorajek (Sr., Attack) leads Bowdoin with 68 points on 45 goals and 23 assists, and Jordan Smith (So., Attack) enters the tournament with 36 goals and 42 points.  Lindsay Picard (Fr., New York, N.Y.) checks in with a team-leading 50 draws, while Betsy Sachs (Jr., Glenside, Pa.) has produced a team-best 28 caused turnovers as well as 36 draws. Tara Connolly (Sr., Goalie) has appeared in 15 games with 12 starts between the pipes as she is 11-3 with 123 saves and a 7.12 goals against average.