For the fourth consecutive season, the Vikings have qualified for the Midwest Conference Tournament. Lawrence travels to Lake Forest College for the tournament, which begins Friday. The Vikings (10-5-1, 8-1 MWC) face Grinnell College (8-4-1, 7-1-1) in the first semifinal at 11 a.m. Lake Forest (13-2, 8-1) takes on St. Norbert College (8-6-1, 5-3-1) in the other semifinal at 2 p.m. The winners meet in Saturday's championship game at 2 p.m. The tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championships.
Lake Forest captured the conference championship Saturday with a 1-0 win over Lawrence, the defending MWC champs. It was Lawrence's first loss to a conference opponent in 12 matches. The Vikings take on a familiar league tournament foe in Grinnell. Lawrence and the Pioneers played for the tournament championship the last two years. Lawrence defeated Grinnell 2-1 in triple overtime in the title game a season ago.
Lawrence is led by three-time first-team All-Midwest Conference performer Megan Tiemann. The forward from Kent, Wash., leads the team with nine goals, five assists, and 23 points. The Vikings have a balanced attack, with ten different players finding the back of the net this season. Offensive-minded defender Kiana Neal (Eugene, Ore./South) is second on the squad with five goals and 11 points. Super sup Greta Raaen, a freshman forward from Byron, Minn., has come off the bench to score four goals and get two assists for ten points.
The Vikings' defense is paced by junior goalkeeper Katie Wilkin (Oregon, Wis./Oregon), an all-conference pick last season. Wilkin has a 6-4-1 record with a 0.82 goals against average and a .924 save percentage. Defenders Sandi Blick (Port Washington, Wis./Port Washington) and Molly Johannessen (Northfield, Minn./Northfield) provide strength and stability to the Lawrence defense.
The Pioneers' only loss in conference play was a 2-0 defeat at Lawrence back on Sept. 22. Grinnell won at Lake Forest and tied with St. Norbert. The Pioneers are led by Sarah Evans, who paces the squad in goals, and Dana Price, the team's playmaker. Anne Howard and Abby Arnold have split time in net. Howard has a 1.43 goals against average and Arnold is at 1.60. Lake Forest enters the tournament on an eight-match winning streak. The Foresters haven't lost since a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Grinnell back on Sept. 29. Lake Forest is paced by forwards Sandi Coutts and Aviva Landin, who have 13 and 11 goals, respectively. Coutts also paces the team with nine assists and 35 points. Rachel LaFin has a 12-2 record in goal for Lake Forest, with a 0.74 goals against average and a .859 save percentage.
St. Norbert is the only team in the field that hasn't beaten one of the other tournament participants. The Green Knights lost 2-1 to both Lawrence and Lake Forest but they have a 1-1 tie with Grinnell. The Green Knights have dropped two straight matches, including a 1-0 loss at Beloit, and haven't scored a goal since Oct. 14. Sara Gross leads a balanced attack that has seen 12 different players score. Gross has team highs in goals (8), assists (7), and points (23). Pam Mathes has played every minute in goal for St. Norbert and has a 1.23 goals against average and an .849 save percentage.