NORTHAMPTON, Mass.--The first appearance for the Smith College lacrosse team in the NEWMAC tournament in four years gets underway at 4:30 p.m. when the No. 5 seeded Pioneers (9-7) travel to No. 4 seed Wellesley College (5-10) in the quarterfinal round on Wednesday. 


Last Meeting:  The Blue topped the Pioneers 21-8 in a meeting on April 14 of this year.  Wellesley scored six straight goals over a nine minute span of the first half to pull away. Mckenzie Hessel (Portland, Ore./Wilson) scored four goals for Smith.  Despite the loss, Smith still earned a playoff spot.

Last Smith Win: Smith has not beaten Wellesley since a 10-8 triumph over the Blue in the semifinals of the NEW8 tournament on April 28, 1994.

Smith Overview: The Pioneers capped off their most successful regular season in 13 years with a 15-12 win over St. Joseph's College (L.I.) on Saturday afternoon.  Hessel and Meaghan Fileti (Palos Verdes Estates, Calif./Palos Verdes) each scored four goals for the Pioneers, who won their second straight game.

Wellesley Overview:  The Blue lost in a tough 13-11 game to Babson College to fall into the No. 4 slot.  Babson broke an 11-all tie with 10 minutes left in the game, and dominated possession down the stretch, allowing Wellesley only two shots on goal in the final eight minutes,

Smith Players to Watch: The three headed monster of Fileti, Hessel, and Becky Bracken (Barrington, R.I./Barrington) have all surpassed the 50 goal mark, and a real offensive outburst could see them all go over 60.  Fileti needs two, Hessel seven, and Bracken is four away from the 60 goal plateau.

Wellesley Player to Watch: Sophomore Brit Mscisz is tied for the team lead with 38 goals, scoring on 47% of her shots.

Did you know? Smith has three of the league's top five point scorers in Fileti, Hessel, and Bracken - Wellesley's Claire Canty is the only member of the Blue in the top 10.