Blue Devils Receive NCAA Tournament Bid For Seventh Consecutive Season

May 9, 2004

The Duke University women's lacrosse team, 13-5 on the season, received one of 16 NCAA Tournament bids on Sunday evening. The Blue Devils, ranked fifth in the latest IWLCA poll, will host No. 8 Georgetown (11-4) on Thursday, May 13 at 4:00 p.m. at Koskinen Stadium.

"We are really excited with our draw," said head coach Kerstin Kimel. "The opportunity to play Georgetown again is something we are looking forward to and I think it will be a great game on Thursday."

Thursday's contest will also mark the sixth consecutive season that Duke has hosted an NCAA Tournament opening round game. The Duke-Georgetown winner will face the winner of Maryland-Temple on Sunday, May 16, with the highest remaining seed hosting the second round contest. Maryland received the third overall seed in the tournament with Princeton and Virginia earning the top two seeds. Loyola is the four-seed in the 2004 tournament.

Duke closed the regular season with 13 wins, including eight victories over nationally ranked opponents and a 6-1 mark at home. The lone loss at Koskinen Stadium was a 9-8 decision against then second-ranked Georgetown on March 21. Sophomore Katie Chrest and freshman Leigh Jester each netted a pair of goals in the loss, while senior Corinne Broesler added a goal and an assist.

The all-time series between Duke and Georgetown is currently tied 5-5, with both teams winning a pair of games in Durham, N.C. Georgetown hosted and won the only previous meeting in the NCAA Tournament in 2002.

The official 2004 NCAA Women's Lacrosse Tournament bracket can be found at http://www.ncaasports.com/lacrosse/womens.