No. 12 USC Opens Four-Game Home Stand This Week

LOS ANGELES – The 12th-ranked USC lacrosse team (2-2) opens a four-game home stretch with a match-up against No. 4 Boston College (7-0) on Wednesday, March 7, at 3 p.m. PT. The game is the Trojans' fourth straight against a ranked opponent and their second against a foe ranked in the top five.

On Saturday (March 10), USC will play its first-ever Pac-12 conference game as host to first-year program Arizona State (5-1). The Women of Troy have won 22 straight games on McAlister Field and have not lost a home contest—including games played at the LA Memorial Coliseum—in their last 25 outings.

While USC has never faced the Sun Devils, the Trojans have never beaten the Eagles in three previous tries. It was Boston College that eliminated USC from the 2017 NCAA tournament quarterfinals last May. The game was played in Chestnut Hill, Mass., so the Trojans will take the field with revenge as an outlying motivating factor. No single team has ever beaten USC more than three times in a row. BC, Denver, and Northwestern are the only programs to have won three straight with only the Eagles' streak still intact.

Senior All-American defender Lydia Sutton (8gb, 6ct) and All-Region senior goalie Gussie Johns (9.00 gaa, .500) lead the Trojans. Midfielder Kerrigan Miller's (8g, 2a, 9dc, 6ct, 3gb) all-around game leads the attack. After graduating over 200 goals from 2017, USC turns to midfielder Kaeli Huff (4g, 2a), attacker Gabbi Klein (4a, 2gb, 2ct), and a host of underclassmen and transfers to power the offense. Kelsey Huff (9g, 1a) and Maeve McMahon (7g, 2a, 10dc) have made immediate impacts. Defender Jackie Gilbert runs the center circle (18dc) for the Trojans. Sixth-year head coach Lindsey Munday owns a 71-32 overall record.

GAME #5 • Wednesday, March 7 • 3 p.m. PT
No. 12 USC (2-2) vs. No. 4 Boston College (7-0)
McAlister Field • Los Angeles, Calif.
Series History: USC trails, 0-3 (.000) • Streak: L3
Last Meeting: L, 20-14 (May 20, 2017 • Boston, Mass.)
Web Stream: Pac-12+ (Stuart Gill)
Opponent Web: BCEagles.com

GAME #6 • Saturday, March 10 • 12 p.m. PT
No. 12 USC (2-2, 0-0) vs. Arizona State (5-1, 0-0)
McAlister Field • Los Angeles, Calif.
Series History: First meeting
Last Meeting: N/A
Web Stream: Pac-12+
Opponent Web: TheSunDevils.com

CROSSExamination

USC is ranked No. 12 in the IWLCA coaches poll. The Trojans will face their fourth straight ranked opponent when they play No. 4 Boston College (their second foe in the top five).
The Trojans are 40-7 in their last 47 contests.
USC is 14-21 all-time against IWLCA ranked opponents; 9-11 against teams ranked in the top 10 and 2-8 against top 5.
The Trojans are 30-8 all-time on McAlister Field and have not lost there since April 18, 2014 (10-8 vs. Oregon) for a 22-game streak. Including games played at the LA Memorial Coliseum, USC has won 25 straight home contests.
USC was picked to finish first in its inaugural Pac-12 season.
The Eagles eliminated USC from the 2017 NCAA quarterfinals (20-14) in a game played in Chestnut Hill, Mass.
USC is 0-3 against BC, but has never lost more than three straight to any single opponent (BC, Denver, Northwestern).
The Trojans will face Arizona State for the first time in program history.

SCOUTING REPORT - NO. 4 BOSTON COLLEGE: The Eagles (7-0) are undefeated in seven outings and were only really challenged in a 13-11 win over Notre Dame in South Bend (Feb. 9). USC is 0-3 in all-time meetings with BC and it was the Eagles who ended the Trojans' NCAA run in the quarterfinals last season. BC won in Boston in 2015 and claimed a 13-10 win (2014) in their only visit to McAlister Field. Sam Apuzzo leads BC with 47 points (34g, 13a) and 37 draw controls. Dempsey Arsenault (21g, 10a) and Kalleen Hart (14g, 14a) also help power the BC offense. Arsenault is second on the team with 30 draw wins and leads the team with 17 ground balls. In goal, Lauren Daly has a .476 save percentage with 8.26 saves per game.

SCOUTING REPORT - ARIZONA STATE: The Sun Devils (5-1) are in their inaugural season and suffered their only loss on the road at San Diego State (14-13). ASU is coming off a 23-5 win over Presbyterian (March 3). Kerri Clayton leads the Pac-12 in goals (4.50 gpg) with 27 through six contests. Graci Fulkerson is second in the league with 11 assists (1.83 apg). Maddy Hunter shares top honors in the Pac-12 with 5.00 ground balls per game and leads the league with 16 caused turnovers. Berkeley Bonneau has a .463 save percentage with a 10.05 goals-against average in the cage. The Trojans and the Devils will meet on the lacrosse field for the first time.

TRACK THE TROJANS: Fans of USC lacrosse can follow the Trojans on Twitter and Instagram. For a behind-the-scenes look at the program, scores, and news updates, follow @USCTrojansLax. USC is scheduled to appear in three Pac-12 Networks broadcasts this spring. Home games against Colorado (Mar. 16), California (Mar. 30), and Stanford (Apr. 1) will be on the networks' national and regional channels. Games at the inaugural Pac-12 championship tournament will also be televised on the Networks. The Trojans faced Virginia Tech (Feb. 10) and Notre Dame (Feb. 23) on ACC Network Extra and was on FloSports for their game at Northwestern (Feb. 25). USC's non-broadcast league games are shown on the Pac-12+ platform.

LAST TIME OUT: The Women of Troy split road games in the Midwest against ranked foes. USC came back from a 4-3 deficit against No. 18 Notre Dame to pull out an 11-8 win over the Irish. Kerrigan Miller matched her career high with five goals and Kelsey Huff logged her second-career hat trick with three goals. Gussie Johns put up 11 saves and had six ground balls in the win. USC also faced a 4-3 deficit at the half at No. 15 Northwestern, but took a 5-4 lead to complete a 4-0 run. The Wildcats responded in grand fashion with a 5-0 run of their own and topped the Trojans, 9-5. The five USC goals equaled the Trojans' lowest final output since USC recorded a 5-4 win over Notre Dame on April 18, 2016. Five different Trojans scored goals against the Wildcats, but hat tricks by Danita Stroup and Selena Lasota were the catalyst NU needed to win.

PAC IT UP: USC won the 2016 and 2017 MPSF (Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) championships but will play under the banner of the Pac-12 Conference in 2018. Women's lacrosse became the 13th women's sport sponsored by the Pac-12 when it was added for 2018. With the addition of Arizona State, the Pac-12 reached the minimum of six teams to receive an automatic qualifier bid into the NCAA championship. The first-ever Pac-12 Lacrosse Championship will be held April 26-29 at Prentup Field at University of Colorado. USC has won 18 consecutive conference games dating back to the end of 2015. The Trojans were undefeated in the MPSF in 2016 (9-0) and 2017 (8-0).

POLL POSITION: The Trojans opened the season ranked No. 8 in the IWLCA Coaches' preseason poll. USC has spent 33 consecutive weeks ranked in the IWLCA poll dating back to a No. 19 ranking in the 2016 preseason poll. USC spent a school-record 26 straight weeks in the top 10 from March 21, 2016 through Feb. 19, 2018. The Trojans are 9-11 against teams ranked in the top 10 of the poll and 2-8 against teams ranked among the top five.

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Players Mentioned

Jackie Gilbert

Kaeli Huff

Kelsey Huff

Gussie Johns

Gabbi Klein

Maeve McMahon

Kerrigan Miller

Lydia Sutton