THIS WEEK'S MATCHUP
For the fifth straight post-season, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs women's lacrosse team has qualified for the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference championship tournament.  The Mountain Lions are the No. 3 seed and will face No. 2 seed Colorado Mesa University on Friday, May 3 at 7 p.m.  Top seed and host institution Regis University will take on No. 4 seed Westminster University at 4 p.m. on Friday.

 
GAME COVERAGE

• Sixth-ranked Regis University will host all three playoff games on their campus at the Regis Lacrosse Field in Denver, Colo.
• Information for the 2024 RMAC Women's Lacrosse Tournament can be found below at the following links:
  • Live Stats
  • Live Stream ($)
  • RMAC Tournament Central
  • Online Tickets

 
TICKET PRICES

• All fans will be charged admission and are encouraged to purchase tickets online through HomeTown Ticketing before Friday's semifinal match.
• Ticket Prices:
  • Adults: $15
  • Seniors (65 and over) and Children: $10
  • Children under 5: Free

 
RMAC NETWORK

• New to conference championships this year is a paywall for all RMAC championships.  Each game of the 2023-24 RMAC Women's Lacrosse Tournament will be broadcast live on the RMAC Network for the price of $9.95 per day pass. Each day pass grants access to any tournament game in competition for that given day.

LAST TIME OUT

• UCCS finished the regular season earning two road wins at Colorado State University Pueblo (16-15) and at Fort Lewis College (W, 12-7).  On Friday against the ThunderWolves, UCCS trailed by as many as eight goals in the third quarter before storming back behind Allie Schell's game-winning goal that secured a spot in the RMAC postseason.  Two day's later, Schell assisted Sarah Urbanic for the game-winning goal that helped the Mountain Lions earn a 12-7 win against the Skyhawks and the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament.
   

AWARD WINNERS

• Eight Mountain Lions were recognized by the RMAC Wednesday afternoon.  Sarah Urbanic became the third Mountain Lion to be named the RMAC Freshman of the Year, while Julia Patrick led seven All-RMAC honorees with her First Team selection.  Kendra Knutson and Erica Rivera were voted to the All-RMAC Second Team while Brielle Fannin, Kathryn Kossack, Emma Grace Martin and Madison McGriff were named RMAC Honorable Mention.
• Julia Patrick and Madison McGriff were named the RMAC Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week accolades on March 11, respectively.  Patrick earned her second weekly award when she was named the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week on April 1 while McGriff claimed the final RMAC Defensive Player of the Week selection on April 29.
• Earlier in April, Patrick received the UCCS McLaughlin Female Student-Athlete award.   The Thomas F. McLaughlin Award is presented annually to the top student-athletes who have excelled in their sport, achieved in the classroom, have been a leader on their team and served their communities.

 
ALL-TIME SERIES

• Friday's match will mark the 13^th time the Mountain Lions and Mavericks have faced off against each other.  CMU has won the first 12 meetings but only five goals separated the two regular season decisions this season.

 
SCOUTING COLORADO MESA

• Colorado Mesa enters the RMAC Tournament with a 10-5 overall record and the second-best mark in the RMAC at 8-2.  CMU is on a two-game winning streak and have won six of their last seven games.
• As a team, the Mavericks are second in the conference behind Regis in goals per game (12.0), points per game (18.4), assists per game (6.4), shots per game (30.5), shots on goal per game (21.0) and draw controls per game (17.5).
• The Mavericks are led by the 2024 RMAC Attacker of the Year Justine Anderson.  Anderson leads the league in goals per game (3.4) and shots per game (7.1) and she is second in points per game with 4.4.
• The RMAC Defensive Player of the Year, Kelsey Viger, is first in the RMAC in caused turnovers per game (2.9) and fourth in ground balls per game (3.2).   Defending the goal is Shannon Murphy who has the second-best goals against average in the RMAC (9.87) and the fourth best saves percentage (.441).

 
HOT TAKES

• Friday's game marks the fourth straight year UCCS and CMU have faced off against each other in the RMAC semifinal round.
• The closest UCCS has come to defeating the Mavericks was a 12-11 overtime setback earlier this season at home on April 19.
• UCCS is on a three-game winning streak (their longest of the season), finishing the regular season with a 7-8 overall record (5-5 RMAC).
• The Mountain Lions are ranked in the top three in the conference in several categories, including shot percentage (second, .424), goals per game (third, 11.1), assists per game (third, 4.5), points per game (third, 15.6), shots per game (26.7), and shots on goal per game (19.3).  Between the posts, UCCS leads the RMAC in saves per game (12.0) and saves percentage (.500), and they are third in goals against average (11.91).  The Mountain Lions also commit the fewest turnovers in the RMAC (17.8 per game) and they pick up the third most ground balls (23.5) per game.
• Patrick leads the Mountain Lions this season in goals (43), points (53), shots (85), shots on goal (64) and free-position shots (18), and she has served up the second most assists (10).  She is third in the RMAC in shots per game (5.7), points per game (3.5) and fourth in goals per game (2.9).  Patrick holds the all-time record in goals (139), player-down goals (three), shots (273), shots and goal (208) and free-position goals (32).  She is also second all-time in draw controls (128) and third in game-winning goals (five).
• McGriff leads the RMAC in saves percentage (.504) and is second in ground balls per game (3.7) and saves per game (11.5).  She has played 860 minutes in goal this season and made 173 saves while owning a 7-8 record in the cage. The Lakewood, Colo. native will leave her mark on the program, recording the most ground balls (199), saves (626), wins (28) and saves percentage (.479) all-time in school history.

WEATHER

• Friday's forecast will see a high of 63 degrees and clouds moving into the area during the day and gusty winds at 17mph.  By game time, the Mountain Lions will be playing under mostly cloudy skies and calmer winds with temperatures in the 50s.

 
UCCS UNDER HEAD COACH MELISSA RAUSCH

• Head Melissa Rausch is in her fifth year with the UCCS Mountain Lions women's lacrosse program, and her third as the head coach in 2024.  UCCS is 24-26 (.480) in the past three years with Rausch at the helm, and 18-14 (.563) in RMAC matches.

 
UPCOMING GAMES

• The winner of each semifinal game will face each other in the conference championship match on Sunday at 2 p.m.
   

SOCIAL
X - @GoMountainLions
Instagram - @gomountainlions 
Facebook – /GoMountainLions
 
As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.