The William Smith College lacrosse team won its fifth Liberty League regular season title in the last six seasons and earned the right to host the conference tournament on Boswell Field at David J Urick Stadium this weekend, May 7-8. The Herons will take on No. 5 seed Union at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, May 7 in the semifinals. The second semifinal will feature No. 2 St. Lawrence and No. 3 Ithaca at 2:30 p.m.
 
The advancing teams will meet in the championship at 1 p.m. Sunday with the league's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament on the line. Fans who cannot make the trip to Geneva can follow all the action with Live Stats and HWS All-Access. The William Smith games will be broadcast on WHWS-FM (105.7 in Geneva).
 
The Herons are ranked eighth in the IL Women/IWLCA poll and seventh in the NIKE/USA Lacrosse Magazine Poll. William Smith is 15-1 overall this season and was 10-0 in Liberty League play. The Herons have won 11 straight games since losing to then No. 1 Salisbury. William Smith enters the weekend averaging 16.38 goals per game while surrendering a mere 6.69.  The Herons are ranked 12th in the nation in scoring defense, 15th in scoring margin (+9.69) and 24th in scoring offense. In addition, William Smith is eighth in winning percentage (.938), 19th in assists per game (8.19) and turnovers per game (14.0).
 
Allie McGinty leads the team with 80 points on 32 goals and 48 assists. She is 17th in the nation in assists and 20th in assists per game (3.00). Maddie Montgomery has a team-best 57 goals this year. She is second on the team with 71 points. Anna Murphy adds 57 points on 47 goals and 10 assists. Montgomery has a team-high 84 draw controls and Payton McMahon leads the team with 26 caused turnovers. 
 
Maura Smeader has played a majority of the minutes in goal. She is 15-1 with a 6.72 goals against average and a .467 save percentage. She is ninth in the nation in GAA.
 
Union is 7-9 overall. The Dutchwomen went 5-5 in Liberty League play, earning the fifth seed. Union advanced to the semifinals with a 19-11 victory over Rensselaer. The Dutchwomen enter the game averaging 13.12 goals per game while allowing 12.81. Grace Heiting is the catalyst for the offense. She leads Union in nearly every category. She has 59 goals, 20 assists, 79 points, 58 draw controls, and 37 caused turnovers. She is second on the team with 36 ground balls. Heiting leads the Liberty League averaging 5.27 points per game. Jenna Paszek has played a majority of the minutes in goal. She is 4-4 with a 13.51 GAA and a .399 save percentage.
 
William Smith and Union met on April 23 on Boswell Field. The Herons knocked off the Dutchwomen 14-8 powered by six goals from Murphy.
 
The Saints, who are ranked 13th in the IL Women/IWLCA poll and 10th in the Nike/USA Lacrosse Magazine poll, St. Lawrence is 16-1 overall on the season and earned the No. 2 seed with a 9-1 mark in conference play. The Saints have won nine straight games since losing to William Smith in March. St. Lawrence is averaging 16.94 goals per game (17th in the nation) while allowing 10.24 per game. Charlotte Powell leads the team with 48 goals and 58 points. Isabel Silvia is right behind her with 47 goals and 57 points. Morgan Arakelian has 29 helpers. Silvia leads the Saints in the draw circle with 64 draw controls. Raelynn Bovenzi has played a majority of the minutes in goal. She is 13-1 with a 10.52 GAA and a .458 save percentage.
 
Ithaca is ranked 10th in the IL Women/IWLCA poll and 11th in the NIKE/USA Lacrosse Magazine Poll. The Bombers are 15-2 overall this season and have won five straight games since losing to the Herons on April 13. Ithaca was 8-2 in league play.  The Bombers are averaging 16.88 goals per game while allowing 8.59. Maizy Veitch leads the team with 87 points and 60 goals. Caroline Wise has been an ace in the circle for Ithaca, winning 153 draw controls. Her 10.2 draw controls per game leads the nation. Rachel Rosberg leads the team with 32 caused turnovers and 43 ground balls. Lexy Held has played a majority of the minutes in goal. She is 14-1 with an 8.32 GAA and a .493 save percentage.
 
St. Lawrence beat Ithaca 17-16 in Canton, New York, on March 25. The Saints outscored the Bombers 10-4 in the second half to come away with the victory.