Women's Lacrosse Game Preview: Elon

Saturday, April 22

Elon, NC

4:00 p.m.

University of Delaware

Elon

Photo by: Mark Campbell

4/21/2023 2:50:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

NEWARK, Del. - University of Delaware women's lacrosse will play their final road game of the regular season when they go up against Elon on April 22. With expected thunderstorms in the area early in the day, the start of the game was moved from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Delaware is still in contention for a CAA Tournament berth, tied for the final seed with two games remaining. The Blue Hens hold the tie-breaker over Monmouth, but William & Mary holds the tie-breaker over Delaware.

2023 Highlights

Lizzie Yurchak was named IWLCA Co-Offensive Player of the Week on March 28 after scoring six goals, including five in the second half, to turn a 10-5 deficit into a 13-12 overtime win. She also earned CAA Player of the Week, while Madison Hranicka earned CAA Defensive Player of the Week, the first pair of Blue Hens to earn CAA Weekly honors in the same week since Shannon Hawley and Ali Karowski on March 30, 2015.
Riley Gillin was named CAA Defensive Player of the Week on April 10 after she had four ground balls and three caused turnovers, while recording a goal and an assist, in a 13-10 road win over Hofstra.
Madison Hranicka was named CAA Defensive Player of the Week on April 17 after she tied a Delaware single-game record with seven caused turnovers and scooped up six ground balls against Drexel. Hranicka is the only CAA player this season with two Defensive Player of the Week honors. Delaware earned Defensive Player of the Week honors for two consecutive weeks after Riley Gillin received it April 10.
Delaware has earned three Defensive Player of the Week honors so far this season, most in the CAA. This is the first time Delaware had back-to-back Player of the Week honors since Kate Brewster and Chantae Simms on March 25 and April 1, 2019, and Hranicka is the first Delaware player to earn two CAA Player of the Weeks since Kate Brewster in 2019.
Delaware's comeback against Monmouth on March 25 was their largest come-from-behind win since defeating George Mason 16-8 after trailing 7-2 on March 13, 2019. The six goals scored by Yurchak were the most by a Delaware player since Sydney Rausa had six against Drexel on April 19, 2019.
Delaware won four of their first five games of the season, their best five-game start since 2016 when they also started 4-1, and eventually won eight of their first nine games.
Mercy McCarthy recorded her 200th save of her career in Delaware's game against Stony Brook, the 15th player in program history to reach the mark.
Morgan Gore scored a goal in six consecutive games to begin her career, the longest streak by a Blue Hen in over 14 years. She was the first UD freshman to score a goal in six consecutive games since McKenzie Rafferty in 2013. Gore has scored in 10 of 13 career games, while fellow freshman McKenzie Didio has scored in seven games played.
Megan Bozzi had a breakout game against UMBC, as the Coastal Carolina transfer scored her first three-career goals as a Blue Hen. Her hat trick was the ninth of her collegiate career, and her first with Delaware.
Against UMBC, Mercy McCarthy became the first Delaware player to allow fewer than 10 goals and save at least 10 shots since Kate Brewster on March 4, 2020 against Duquesne.
Delaware had a player score at least three goals in a game in their first five games to start the season and in one total (Livornese and Grant vs Lehigh, Livornese, Hsu, and Gore vs Lafayette, Livornese vs Temple, Livornese vs Old Dominion, Bozzi vs UMBC, Hsu vs Niagara, Yurchak vs Monmouth, Livornese vs William & Mary, Hsu and Livornese vs Hofstra)
From Feb. 22-March 1 against Temple, Old Dominion, and UMBC, Delaware allowed fewer than 10 goals in three consecutive games for the first time since March 23-31, against UConn, Oregon, and Louisville.
Against Old Dominion, an 18-9 win, Delaware had 26 draw controls, a new program record & the fourth most in an NCAA game this season. Danielle Livornese recorded 12 draw controls, tying the Delaware program record only done by Caroline Farley on March 27, 2019 against Oregon & March 16, 2019 against St. Joe's.
Delaware has six games this season with at least 20 draw controls. Entering the season, they had only five games of at least 20 draw controls recorded since 2005.
Delaney McDaniel, the reigning CAA Rookie of the Year, has two six-assist games this season. She, Mary Schumar (Marquette), Ava Yovino (Navy), Emma Ward (Syracuse), and Kathleen Sullivan (Army) are the only players in the NCAA this season with two such games. Her seven assists against Lafayette were tied for the fourth most in program history, while her six against Old Dominion were the seventh most.
Livornese started the season by scoring at least three goals in four consecutive games, the first UD player to begin the season with four-straight three-goal games since Becky Gohsler in 2017.
Madison Hranicka is one of seven players this year with at least 35 caused turnovers (37) and 30 ground balls (32). It is the 11th time in program history a Blue Hen has reached 30 caused turnovers in a season since 2001 and the first player since Chantae Simms set the season record of 39 in 2019.
Against William & Mary, Hranicka became the ninth player in program history with at least five caused turnovers in a game, and recorded the 12th such game overall. She is currently in sole possession of fifth place on the all-time Delaware career-caused turnover leaderboard with 63.

CAA/NCAA Team Rankings
Assists per game: 4th, 54th in NCAA (5.00)
Caused turnovers per game: 1st, 24th in NCAA (9.31)
Clearing percentage: 1st, 29th in NCAA (.894)
Draw control percentage: 2nd, 14th in NCAA (.578)
Draw controls per game: 2nd, 25th in NCAA (15.08)
Ground balls per game: 4th, 55th in NCAA (16.15)

CAA/NCAA Individual Rankings
Assists: Delaney McDaniel - 1st, 36th in NCAA (26)
Assists per game: Delaney McDaniel - 1st, 28th in NCAA (2.00)
Caused turnovers per game: Madison Hranicka - 1st, 4th in NCAA (2.85)
Ground balls per game: Madison Hranicka - 2nd, 45th in NCAA (2.46)
Draw controls per game: Danielle Livornese - 3rd, 41st in NCAA (5.08)

How to Follow
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Up Next: Delaware will play their final game of the regular season on April 29 against Towson at noon.

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