Utica, NY (4/24/13)- The Utica College women's lacrosse team looks to bounce back Wednesday as it travels to Keuka College for the final non-conference contest of the season.  Game time is set for 7 p.m.

Last Time Out: UC is coming off a 6-5 loss to Elmira College on Saturday… Freshman Courtney Wheeler (Ava, NY/Rome Free Academy) netted a team-high three goals, while sophomore Morgan DuPont (Wynantskill, NY/Averill Park) had one goal and one assist and classmate Louise Steele-Norton (Avondale, PA/Millbrook School) added a goal of her own.

Scouting Keuka: Keuka is 9-2 overall and 7-0 in the NEAC… It is coming off a 19-4 win over SUNYIT on Sunday… The Storm is led by juniors Maggie Bonafede and Taylor Smith… Bonafede has a team-high 59 points (18 goals, 41 assists), while Smith has racked up an impressive 47 goals and added nine helpers… UC is 3-0 against the Storm dating back to 2006… Last year UC won 10-9… Megan Kane (Staten Island, NY/Tottenville) had two goals, while Patricia Kane (Staten Island, NY/Tottenville) and Julia Primps (Ossining, NY/Ossining) each netted one tally.

Young Guns: The top five leading scorers on the team are freshmen or sophomores… Morgan DuPont (Wynantskill, NY/Averill Park) has a team-high 41 points on 23 goals and 18 assists… Megan Kane (Staten Island, NY/Tottenville) is second on the squad with 37 points (34 goals, three assists), followed closely by freshman Courtney Wheeler (Ava, NY/Rome Free Academy) (21 goals, 15 assists)… Sophomores Louise Steele-Norton (Avondale, PA/Millbrook School) and Patricia Kane (Staten Island, NY/Tottenville) are fourth and fifth on the team, respectively… Steele-Norton has 23 points (18 goals, five assists), while Patricia Kane (Staten Island, NY/Tottenville) has 15 goals and two assists. 

Belanger Amongst Conference Leaders: Senior Stephanie Belanger (Lewiston, ME/Lewiston) ranks in the top five in all four major goaltending categories in the conference… She leads the E8 in goals-against average (7.26) and is second in save percentage (50.5)… She also ranks fourth in saves (95) and fifth in total goals against (93).

Looking Ahead: The Pioneers return to action Saturday as they travel to Hoboken, NJ for the final Empire 8 Conference game of the season against Stevens Institute of Technology… If UC wins by four or more goals, and Elmira loses to Nazareth, the Pioneers will clinch a spot in the conference playoffs for the first time since 2006.


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