Lady Jackets Play in HLC Tournament (11/2/05)

AUSTIN, TX – Playing in their first-ever Heartland Conference Tournament, the Jackets will travel to Austin, Texas to test their skills against St. Mary’s (TX) (11-5-1).  The game is scheduled to kick off Thursday at 11 a.m.

The Lady Jackets enter post-season play 11-4-2.  Currently ranked second in the Heartland Conference, the Jackets are also regionally ranked by the NSCAA and stand ninth in the Midwest Region.  The Jackets won 1-0 over the Rattlers early in the season and will be looking for a repeat performance.

Leading the Yellowjackets offensively are Ally Stroup (Jr., MF, Ojai, CA) and Brittney Sandau (So., F, Billings, MT) with nine goals apiece.  Stroup also leads the team in points and is ranked second in the conference with 25.  Three Yellowjacket freshman, Chelsea Libby (Fr., MF, Puyallup, WA), Melissa Carlson (Fr., D, Renton, WA) and Mandy Ploskonka (Fr., MF, Federal Way, WA) each have three assists on the season.  Defensively, the Jackets have collectively put together a .91 goals against average ranking them first in the Heartland Conference in shutouts with five.

The Rattlers are ranked third in the Heartland Conference and sixth in the NSCAA Midwest Region poll.  Kyle Hyslop has recorded a team leading 11 goals, six assists and has earned 28 points.  Hyslop is tied for third in conference goals with Yellowjackets Sandau and Stroup.  Goalkeeper Lily Cano has posted four shutouts, ranking her third in the conference standings with an average 2.65 saves per game.

Given a win over St. Mary’s (TX), the Yellowjackets will play in the Heartland Conference Championship game, Saturday at 1 p.m.