PHILADELPHIA - The La Salle lacrosse team begins its quest for a championship on Friday when the third-seeded Explorers take on No. 2 seed Richmond in the first Atlantic 10 semifinal game at 1 p.m. at Robins Stadium. With a win, the Explorers will take on the winner of the No. 1 Massachusetts/No. 4 Duquesne semifinal in the title game on Sunday at 1 p.m.

La Salle finished in a three-way tie for second place with Richmond and Duquesne. Richmond was awarded the No. 2 seed based on goal differential among all three schools. La Salle captured  the three seed based on the Explorers' regular season win over the Dukes.

No. 3 La Salle Explorers (11-5, 5-2 Atlantic 10) vs. No. 2 Richmond Spiders (10-6, 5-2 Atlantic 10)
Friday, May 2 | 1 p.m.
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Explorer Team Notes

Last Time vs. Richmond
The Explorers and Spiders met on April 6 in the second conference game of the season, with the Spiders taking a 15-6 win. Junior sharpshooter Caitlyn Brostrand netted her 100th career goal in that contest and finished the game with two goals. Rookie Toni Massetti added two goals. Richmond's Hayley Ross led all players with three goals.

Last Time In The A-10 Tourney
The Explorers last qualified for the Atlantic 10 Championship in 2010, clinching the fourth spot with a 10-9 at Massachusetts in the regular season finale. They faced the top-seeded Minutewomen the following week in the semifinal in Pittsburgh, falling 9-7 in their first-ever tournament appearance. That game featured current assistant coach Nora McGurkin.

On Fire
The Explorers are currently riding a five-game win streak dating back to a 10-9 upset over Duquesne on April 11. They went on to defeat St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph's, George Washington and George Mason to round out the regular season. The wins over the Dukes and the Colonials were by one goal each, with the win at GW coming in overtime.

Balanced Attack
A pair of Explorers lead the team in scoring this season, as 2013 All-Rookie pick Katelyn Fay and 2013 First Teamer Caitlyn Brostrand have accumulated 40 points each. Fay leads the squad with 32 goals while Brostrand has dished out a team-high nine assists.

Fabulous Freshmen
The freshman class has been spectacular this season, helping anchor both the offense and defense. Toni Massetti and Allee Ilgenfritz have combined for 41 goals to lead the Class of 2017. Ilgenfritz's 12 goals in A-10 play lead all league freshmen, and Massetti's 28 overall points is second among league freshmen in 2.5 games less. She had accumulated 28 points by the time she sustained an injury early in the St. Joe's game on April 18.

Defensively, Gabby Antonelli has been second-to-none between the pipes. The rookie stopper ranks fourth in the nation with a .500 save percentage and third in the league  among starting goalies with an 8.24 goals against average. She has also held opponents to a scant 31.1% (19-61) in free position shots.

National Honors
Both Gabby Antonelli and Allee Ilgenfritz have made waves nationally, as Antonelli snagged the WomensLax.com National Rookie of the Week award on April 14 and Ilgenfritz matched the effort in the final week of the regular season. Antonelli shut down Duquesne, the league's leading offense at the time, in the 10-9 win including stopping four free position shots while in a two-woman-down disadvantage in the final minutes. Ilgenfritz put together a seven-goal performance in the final two games of the regular season to help the squad clinch the A-10 berth.

Atlantic 10 Honors
The Explorers have been well-represented on the Atlantic 10 weekly honor roll. The following is a list of conference honors this season:

Player of the Week
Claire Andrews - 2/25
Caitlyn Brostrand - 4/28

Defensive Player of the Week
Gabby Antonelli - 4/14, 2/25

Rookie of the Week
Allee Ilgenfritz - 4/28, 3/24
Toni Massetti - 4/14, 3/31, 3/17

Program Win Record
The Explorers set a new program win mark with their defeat of George Mason in the regular season finale, breaking the old record of 10 wins matched in both 2012 and 2013. They also matched their best-ever Atlantic 10 record at 5-2.

School Marks
Gabby Antonelli is on target to record the best single-season goals against average in school history. She currently sports an 8.24 GAA, eclipsing the old record of 9.14 set by Chantelle McCormick in 2005. She is also currently 10th in school history in single-season saves.

Caitlyn Brostrand is moving up the offensive ranks. She currently ranks eighth in school history with 112 career goals and is also eighth with 124 career points. She has also led the team in draw controls the past two seasons, moving up to an eighth-place tie with 58 career draw controls.


Richmond Overview

The Spiders put together a 10-6 record, and matched the Explorers with a 5-2 overall record. Their two losses were a 9-8 setback to #10 UMass and then a 10-8 loss to Duquesne in the final weekend of the regular season.

Emily Doyle leads the Spider offense, amassing 59 points on 28 goals and a team-high 31 assists. Anna Jeszeck is second with 34 points on  23 goals and 11 assists, while Charlett Stevenson is the team's goal leader with 33 scores.

The Spiders are efficient on draw controls as Taylor Blazer has recorded 58 and Bailey Zerr has added 43. They have outdrawn their opponents 242-225 on the season. Blazer also paces the squad with 25 caused turnovers.

Emily Boyce has played the majority of minutes in goal, sporting an 8.37 goals against average and .423 save percentage. Michaela Aymong has seen 150 minutes, stopping 51.7% of her shots faced and recording a 5.60 goals against average in that time.