May 5, 2011
2011 American Lacrosse Conference Championship
No. 3 Northwestern (15-2, 3-2 ALC) vs. No. 17 Penn State (9-7, 3-2 ALC)
Friday, May 6
Vanderbilt Lacrosse Complex
Nashville, Tenn. 5:30 p.m. CT
Streaming Video: VUCommodores.com
In-Game Updates: Twitter
Gametracker:
Northwestern Weekly Release -- May 5 
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern, the only champion in the four-year history of the ALC Tournament and winner of six straight ALC championships overall, looks for No. 7 this weekend when it travels to Vanderbilt for the annual event. NU, the No. 2 seed, hits the field in the Music City at 5:30 p.m. Friday in the tournament semifinal against third-seeded Penn State..
Should Northwestern advance to the ALC Championship game, that match will take place at 1 p.m. CT Saturday.
Wildcats on the Web
Vanderbilt will be streaming all five games of the ALC Tournament on its website, VUCommodores.com, at no cost to fans. You may also log on to Twitter and follow the username @NU_SportsLIVE to receive live in-game updates.
Leonard Voted Top ALC Rookie
Northwestern midfielder Alyssa Leonard has been voted the Rookie of the Year in the American Lacrosse Conference, past NU greats Kristen Kjellman (2004) and Meredith Frank (2006) in becoming the third Wildcat to claim the award. A native of Bay Shore, N.Y., She has been among the nation's leaders in draw controls all season and currently ranks sixth in Division I with 4.06 per game. Against Navy, Leonard posted the third 10-draw control effort in a single game in NU history. Leonard also has chipped in seven goals and 11 ground balls.
NU Lands Four on First-Team All-ALC
Northwestern featured prominently on the 12-player list of first-team All-ALC honorees as the only school with four selections. Junior Shannon Smith, the nation's leader in points and points per game, was voted to the first team for the second straight year while senior Colleen Magarity, junior Alex Frank and sophomore Taylor Thornton each made their debuts on the first team. Click here to view the complete all-conference release.
DeRonda Garners First Weekly Laurel from ALC
After posting the first multi-goal game of her career in her first-ever start, Northwestern's Kat DeRonda received Rookie of the Week honors from the American Lacrosse Conference. DeRonda scored two goals on two shots at Virginia, the first of which came with NU nursing a 5-4 lead in the late stages of the second half. The Carthage, N.Y., native, who also picked up two ground balls against the Cavs, now has nine points on the year.
Northwestern Against the ALC
Few teams in any sport have had as much success against their conference opponents as Northwestern has had against American Lacrosse Conference foes over the past seven seasons. Prior to a pair of defeats this season, the Wildcats had won 38 consecutive regular-season ALC games dating back to an overtime loss against Vanderbilt on May 6, 2004, in Evanston. Northwestern has won six consecutive ALC titles and has won all four ALC tournaments since the event's inception in 2007. The following is a look at NU's outcomes in those four conference gatherings:
2007 ALC Championship (Baltimore, Md.): Semifinals: Northwestern 19, Penn State 7 Final: Northwestern 22, Johns Hopkins 6
2008 ALC Championship (Evanston, Ill.):
Semifinals: Northwestern 15, Penn State 7 Final: Northwestern 14, Vanderbilt 3
2009 ALC Championship (University Park, Pa.):
Semifinals: Northwestern 15, Vanderbilt 10 Final: Northwestern 13, Penn State 3
2010 ALC Championship (Columbus, Ohio):
Semifinals: Northwestern 17, Penn State 9 Final: Northwestern 23, Vanderbilt 14
Getting Defensive
With NU's offense struggling to find the back of the net against a tough Virginia defense, the Wildcat 'D' turned up the intensity in an 8-4 victory over the Cavs on April 30. Virginia netted three goals in the opening 10:46 but tallied only one more time over the final 49 minutes. Northwestern caused eight turnovers, its highest team total since April 8 against Penn State.
Magarity Featured on ESPNChicago.com
ESPNChicago.com features writer Scott Powers recently caught up with NU senior captain Colleen Magarity, a first-team All-ALC selection. Magarity discusses the team's ability to bounce back from consecutive losses, her shift to the offensive side of the field and the influence of John Stockton and Karl Malone on her lacrosse game. Visit ESPNChicago.com to read the complete story.
First Through 30
Northwestern owns a commanding 118-73 advantage in first-half goals scored against its opponents through 17 games this season. NU has brought a lead into the locker rooms on 13 occasions and has closed out wins in 12 of those contests. The Wildcats also are 2-1 in games where they trailed at the break -- overcoming deficits against Duke on April 7 and at Virginia on April 30 -- and 1-0 when the score was tied after 30 minutes.
Giving Teams Fitz
Sophomore Erin Fitzgerald has found her way into the scoresheet in all but one game this year, with her career-best outing coming on March 26 at UMass when she netted five goals. Coming off a one-goal, one-assist effort at Virginia, Fitzgerald is second on the team with 30 goals and 36 points after scoring 35 goals as a freshman in 2010.
Spreading the Wealth
Northwestern's scoring attack, ranked No. 7 in the nation, has been fueled by a host of contributors -- 10 different Wildcats have reached double digits in goals with a minimum of two games still to play in the year. Through 22 games last season and 23 in 2009, only nine different players reached the 10-goal plateau.
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