Women's Lacrosse | 4/27/2017 11:57:00 AM

Charlotte, N.C.----The number two seed Wingate University Bulldogs commence their postseason journey versus the third seeded Coker College Cobras in the semi-final round of the South Atlantic Conference women's lacrosse tournament Friday evening (championship central; live video; live statistics). First face-off is slated for a 6:30 p.m. start from the Queens Sports Complex. The Bulldogs defeated Coker 13-10 in the regular season meeting from Graham Gill Field on March 25.
 
Wingate finished the regular season at 12-4 overall and 6-2 in league play. Coker is 14-4 overall with an identical record in league play. The winner of the Wingate-Coker contest will face either Queens University of Charlotte or Lenoir-Rhyne in the SAC Championship on Saturday at 5 p.m.
 
"We are excited to be playing in the SAC semi-finals tomorrow," Wingate head women's lacrosse coach Caline McHenry Olmsted says. "We have worked hard and prepared for this opportunity all season. Coker is a tough, well-coached opponent and we will need our best effort to be successful."
 
The Bulldogs placed five student-athletes on All-SAC teams this past week with three earning first team accolades. WU senior attack Brittany Andrews (Bel Air, Md.), redshirt junior attack Shannon O'Neal (Severna Park, Md.) and sophomore goalkeeper Arion Pierre (Haymarket, Va.) are the squad's first team honorees.
 
Andrews leads the 'Dogs with 74 total points this year (59 goals, 15 assists). Andrews is second in the SAC with her goal total and fifth in points. She ranks second in the league (and eighth nationally) with 3.93 goals per contest. O'Neal ranks second on the WU scoring charts with 49 total scores and six assists. She tallied a season-high seven goals versus Tusculum in the season finale this past Saturday, April 22.
 
Pierre has started every game in the cage in 2017, posting 139 total saves which is fifth overall in the SAC. Pierre leads the league and ranks seventh in the nation with a 50.5 save percentage. She is third in the conference with 9.51 goals-against average and fourth with 136 goals allowed on the season. Her dominant campaign earned Pierre SAC Defensive Player of the Week honors in four straight weeks (March 20-April 10).
 
WU senior midfielder Paulena Dempsey (Jarrettsville, Md.) was awarded second team accolades for the second consecutive season, tallying 61 total points (41 goals, 20 assists). Freshman attack/midfielder Kendall Wells (Elkridge, Md.) and freshman midfielder Casey Roux (Rochester, N.Y.) have contributed 19 and 12 goals each, respectively. Senior midfielder Laura Swanson (Plantation, Fla.) reached double-digit tallies with 11 scores, while freshman attack Joanna King (Lancaster, Pa.) is third in assists with 11 helpers.
 
The Coker Cobras are led by sophomore attack and 2017 SAC Player of the Year Faith Kent (Winter Springs, Fla.), who finished first in the league with 103 total points (53 goals, 50 assists) and 5.38 points per contest. Junior attack and second team All-SAC honoree Haley McCusker (Warwick, R.I.) led the conference with 73 goals.
 
Coker senior midfielder Mackenzie Baker (Orlando, Fla) is a second team All-SAC member with 27 tallies and seven assists. Junior midfielder Claudia Jenkins (Keedysville, Md.) picked up All-SAC honorable mention laurels, finishing the 2017 campaign with 56 points (43 goals, 13 assists. Coker head coach Kate Keagins was awarded SAC Coach of the Year honors.
 
The Cobras finished first in the SAC with 265 total goals as a team, while Wingate placed fourth with 217 team tallies. Coker ranked second with 102 team assists compared to Wingate's 82 total helpers. The Bulldogs were second in the league standings, posting a 50.8 shot percentage.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
Wingate University, consistently ranked as a top 10 "best value" in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves more than 3,200 students on three campuses in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 35 undergraduate majors, 35 minors, 12 career concentrations, nine pre-professional programs, master's degrees in accounting, business, education, physician assistant studies and sport management and doctorates in education, pharmacy and physical therapy.
 
With a 14 to 1 student/teacher ratio, Wingate students gain the tools and support needed to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life. To view current news, video and story ideas, visit www.youtube.com/wingateuniversity. 
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past 10 years. For more information, go to www.wingate.edu.
 
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing colleges in the 2000's with 88 selections. Among North Carolina's colleges and universities, Wingate is number one in this millennium with 88 Academic All-America® honorees. Wingate is tops among all SAC schools with 97 lifetime Academic All-America® picks. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.
 
(Wingate University athletic media relations/sports network student assistant Jackson Kaplan contributed this article. A sophomore from Raleigh, Kaplan is a Communication Studies major at Wingate. He is the son of Harrison and Dona Kaplan.)