Greencastle, Ind. - The 14-3 DePauw University women's soccer team has earned an at-large bid to the 45-team NCAA Division III Championship and will host 11-6-1 John Carroll (Ohio) University on Wednesday, October 31, at 1 p.m. at Boswell Field.
Tickets are $4 for adults, $2 for students with identification and senior citizens and $1 for children under the age of 12. They may be purchased at the gate on Wednesday beginning at noon.
DePauw, ranked 12th in last week's National Soccer Coaches Association of America Division III poll, has won its last eight games and finished second in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference standings with an 8-1 league record.
The Tigers are led by three-time all-Great Lakes Region senior back Lizzie Ephraim. Junior Michelle Aymond is the team's leading scorer with 11 goals and 28 points followed by sophomore Corinne Scott with nine goals and 23 points. Aymond and sophomore Jocelyn Keller pace the team with six assists each. Sophomore goalkeeper Allison Glibkowski has recorded a 0.77 goals-against average and has been part of all eight of the DePauw shutouts.
Freshman Jackie Gatt and senior Jill Comerford lead the Blue Streaks with 16 points apiece with sophomore Kellie Speth next with 14. Gatt is the team's goals scored leader with seven followed by Comerford and Speth with six each. Senior goalkeeper Kelly Spitaleri has played in all 10 of the Blue Streaks' shutouts and has a goals-against average of 0.86. Senior defender Amy Marcelis is a two-time all-OAC player and was named the conference's Co-Defensive Player of the Year this season.
The Tigers are making their third appearance in the Division III Championship with a 2-2 all-time record. They dropped a first-round home game in 1997 to Denison by a 2-0 score. In 1999, DePauw opened the tournament with a 3-0 first-round home win over Capital before knocking off second-ranked Ohio Wesleyan in the Great Lakes Region semifinals, 1-0. They then lost to Wheaton (Ill.) in the regional finals by a 1-0 score.
John Carroll earned the Ohio Athletic Conference's automatic bid to the Championship by winning the OAC tournament. After finishing the regular season in a tie for second, the Blue Streaks defeated Otterbein by a 2-0 score in the semifinals and then topped regular-season champion Wilmington, 2-1, in three overtimes in Saturday's championship game. John Carroll enters the tournament on a four-game win streak. The Blue Streaks are making their first NCAA tournament appearance.
The winner of Wednesday's game advance to the Great Lakes Regional semifinals to face host Ohio Wesleyan on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Championship
Great Lakes Regional
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, October 31
Mount St. Joseph (12-4-2) at Denison (14-4), 7:30 p.m.
John Carroll (11-6-1) at DePauw (14-3), 1 p.m.
REGIONAL SEMIFINALS
Saturday at Ohio Wesleyan
Mount St. Joseph/Denison winner vs. Albion (19-0), 11 a.m.
John Carroll/DePauw winner at Ohio Wesleyan (17-1), 1:30 p.m.
REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday at Ohio Wesleyan, 1 p.m.
