UTICA, NY- After starting its 2018 season on a high note against SUNY Potsdam, the Utica College women's lacrosse team will host Skidmore College this Thursday at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium. The game is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m.

First Win of the Season: Utica defeated SUNY Potsdam on Saturday by a final score of 14-5... Fourteen goals in a season-opener is the most Utica has scored since 2013, when it defeated Houghton College 20-1 to start the year… UC out shot the Bears 39-17 while also outscoring them 10-2 in the second half.

Miller Leads the Way: Senior attacker Brooke Miller (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) scored four goals and added one assist in Saturday's win... She also became the 14^th player in UC women's lacrosse history to reach 100 career points... Miller now has a total of 80 goals and 20 assists in 46 games played.

Seven Different Scorers: Seven different players scored for the Pioneers, including Miller with four of 14 goals... Hailee DuMont (Wilkes-Barre, PA/James M. Coughlin), Katie McDowell (Wynantskill, NY/Averill Park), Kaitlynn Palmer (Verona, NY/VVS), and Katlyn Scarpinella (South Setauket, NY/Ward Melville) each scored two goals on the day... Scarpinella also had a team-high of eight draw controls and she caused three turnovers… Rookies Lauren Wolff (Peabody, MA/Peabody) and Stephanie Husnay (Canastota, NY/Whitesboro) each scored their first collegiate goals.

Making their Collegiate Debuts:  Three freshmen contributed in the 14-5 win... Rookie attacker Lauren Wolff (Peabody, MA/Peabody) tied Miller for a team-high five points as she scored one goal and four assists... Stephanie Husnay (Canastota, NY/Whitesboro) also scored her first collegiate goal and caused three turnovers... Sydney Scaccia (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) helped out defensively as she scooped up five groundballs on the day.

Solid Start in Goal: Sophomore Hali Vandermeulen (Walden, NY/Valley Central) was named the Empire 8 Goalie of the Week on Monday… Vandermeulen picked up her first win of the season in the Pioneers' 14-5 victory over Potsdam... She made nine saves in the victory...  After the first week of play, Vandermeulen leads the E8 with a .643 goals against average and she is tied for the lead with a 5.00 goals against average.

Scouting Skidmore: The Thoroughbreds come into Thursday's non-conference matchup 2-0 after defeating both Mount Holyoke College and Babson College... They are currently led by junior attacker Cas Szwajkowski, who has five goals in each of the last two games played, and she also has two assists to start the season with 12 points... Freshman midfielder Emily Hirsch is the team's second leading scorer with seven goals and three assists (10 points) and she also has 10 draw controls to start her collegiate season.
 
Against the Thoroughbreds: Utica is 3-2 against Skidmore over the last five years… The home team has won the last four meetings… Last year, UC fell 15-6 at Skidmore… Katlyn Scarpinella (South Setauket, NY/Ward Melville) led the Pioneers with two goals, while Brooke Miller (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) had one goal and one assist… Amanda Lupo (Auburn, NY/Skaneateles) and Hali Vandermeulen (Walden, NY/Valley Central) combined for ten saves in the loss.

Looking Ahead: After facing Skidmore on Thursday, the Pioneers will host Clarkson University on Saturday at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium. The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.