The fifth-ranked William Smith lacrosse team will be back in action Friday, May 1, when it welcomes Rochester to Boswell Field at David J Urick Stadium for a Liberty League Tournament semifinal. The game is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.
 
The Herons are 15-2 this season and enter the tournament on a three-game win streak. William Smith went 10-0 in Liberty League play and secured its 11th Liberty League regular season title. As the No. 1 seed, the Herons earned a first-round bye. William Smith closed out its regular season with a 10-5 win over then No. 6 Washington and Lee on Saturday.
 
Rochester is 12-5 on the year and went 7-3 in conference play. After tiebreakers, the Yellowjackets were awarded the fourth seed. On Tuesday, Rochester held on to defeat St. Lawrence 8-7 in the first round.
 
Second-seeded Union will host third-seeded Ithaca in the other semifinal.  That game will be played at 4 p.m. in Schenectady, New York. The winners will meet on Sunday for the conference championship. The game will be played at the highest remaining seed.
 
MEDIA COVERAGE

• HWS All-Access
• Live Stats
• WHWS-FM (105.7 in Geneva)

 
ABOUT THE HERONS

• William Smith enters the weekend first in the Liberty League in scoring (14.59). The offense features a balanced attack that has six players with 30 or more points.
• Juniors Katie Grottenthaler and Grace Rund share the team lead with 32 goals each. Senior Taryn Luzi has scored 31 times.
• Junior Mia Falco has a team-high 25 assists on the year.
• The Herons have excelled as a draw unit this season, ranking eighth in the nation in draw control percentage (.649) and 22nd in draw controls per game (15).  Rund leads the unit with 94 draw controls.
• William Smith's defense enters the weekend 20th in the nation in scoring defense (6.76) and is a big part of the reason the Herons have the nation's top-ranked clearing percentage (.932).
• Junior Janey Sypeck anchors the defensive unit with 40 caused turnovers and 37 ground balls. Senior Caitie Baker is second with 26 caused turnovers and 22 ground balls.
• Graduate student Casey Fiore has played nearly every minute in goal. She's 15-2 with a .467 save percentage and a 6.34 GAA, 18th in the nation.

 
ABOUT THE YELLOWJACKETS

• Rochester enters the game averaging 13.18 goals per game.
• Alyssa Gorny paces the Rochester offense with 63 goals and 86 points. She is second on the team with 23 assists. Her 63 goals lead the Liberty League.
• Allison Weiden has a team-leading 25 assists. She adds 26 goals and has 51 points on the year.
• Gorny's impact extends to the draw circle, where she leads the Yellowjackets with 76 draw controls. Sara Mendelson is second on the team with 49.
• Jenna Ufberg anchors Rochester's defense with 32 caused turnovers and 49 ground balls. Gorny is second with 26 caused turnovers and third with 31 ground balls.
• Isla Ablin has played the majority of the minutes in goal for Rochester. She has a 10.18 GAA and a .470 save percentage.

 
SERIES HISTORY

• Friday's game will be the 52nd meeting between William Smith and Rochester.
• The Herons lead the all-time series 48-3, including a 25-1 edge in Geneva.
• During the regular season, William Smith defeated the Yellowjackets 19-12 at Fauver Stadium. Luzi had a team-high five goals and Grottenthaler scored four times as the Herons pulled away in the middle quarters. Rund had a hat trick and won nine draws. Gorny had a game-high six goals for Rochester.