DETROIT (2/17/2017) -- Head coach Laurie Merian and the University of Detroit Mercy women's lacrosse program opens its home schedule Saturday afternoon, hosting Butler University at Ultimate Soccer Arenas in Butler for a 1 p.m. contest. Admission is FREE for all fans. Detroit Mercy water bottles and the 2017 team posters will be given away to fans attending the contest.

The Titans (0-1) are coming off a defeat to No. 8-ranked Notre Dame in their 2017 season opener last weekend. Detroit Mercy scored seven first-half goals and led five times in the first half against the Fighting Irish, but the Titans ultimately fell on the road last Saturday.

It's the first home game for the Titans under Merian, who is in her first season as the head coach of the program. She's in her third year overall with the Titans.
 

Game 2  |  Detroit Mercy (0-1) vs. Butler (0-1)
Date / Time	Saturday, Feb. 18  |  1:00 PM ET
Location	Pontiac, Mich. (Ultimate Soccer Arenas)
Live Stats	DetroitTitans.com
Live Stream / TV	No live stream
Social Media	Twitter (In-game tweets): @DetroitTitans  |  @DetroitWL  |  Facebook     Instagram  |  Tweet #DetroitsCollegeTeam
All-Time Series	First Meeting

Last Time Out
Detroit Mercy held five first-half leads and scored seven goals in the first half at No. 8-ranked Notre Dame in the 2017 opener. The Titans would ultimately fall to one of the top teams in the nation, 24-9. The nine goals were the most scored against a ranked opponent in the program's history.

The Titans and Fighting Irish played scoreless for the first 12 minutes of the game, until senior Kelsi Pritchard found the back of the net for the first goal. The Titans would go on to hold four more leads in the first half with sophomore Morgan Girardi scoring two goals in the opening 30 minutes.

Girardi completed the hat trick in the second half and finished the game with three goals. Classmate Lexie Kinmond led Detroit Mercy with four points (two goals, two assists), while Pritchard (two goals) and junior Jordyn Beam (one goal, one assist) each tallied two points. Junior Brittany Fenney had three ground balls and two draw controls for the Titans, while junior defender Lauren Webley added three ground balls.

In net, sophomore Allison McDonough made a career-best 15 saves for the Titans, 10 of them coming in the second half. Detroit Mercy had 12 draw controls in the game, eight of them in the first half and went 15-for-20 on clear attempts.

Scouting Butler
The Bulldogs are in their first season of women's lacrosse and fell in their first-ever game at home against Liberty, 16-9. Madison Christian and Haley Hallenbeck each recorded three goals in their first games of collegiate lacrosse for Butler. The Bulldogs are a member of the Big East conference and face three ASUN Conference opponents this season in Mercer, Central Michigan and the Titans.

Allie Storke started the first game in net for the Bulldogs, turning away 11 shots and posting a 40.7 save percentage. Journey Fischbeck notched a three-point game (two goals, one assist) for Butler, while Ashley Lizzi had five of the team's nine draw controls in the opener.

Butler is coached by Cecil C. Pilson, who spent 11 successful seasons at Division II Mercyhurst, where he recorded 133 wins and a .700 winning percentage. His teams were consistently ranked in the Top 15 in the nation in the IWLCA Divison II coaches poll.

New Year, New Us
The Titans opened their ninth season of women's lacrosse last fall with a new head coach and assistant coach, but neither are new to the Titan sidelines. First-year head coach Laurie Merian is in her third year on the coaching staff having spent the past two seasons as the assistant coach for Detroit Mercy. Her assistant, Megan Callahan '13, was a four-year letter-winner for the Titans, having played from 2010-13.

Merian helped coach the Titans to new heights in her two seasons on the staff -- with Detroit Mercy notching its first two winning seasons in program history, setting school records with 10 wins in 2015 and 12 triumphs last year. The Titans made the ASUN Championship game in both seasons and upset No. 1 Jacksonville in last year's tournament semifinals, handing the Dolphins their first women's lacrosse loss in conference history. It's Merian's second gig as a head coach after she started the program at Division III Alma College and led the Scots to 34 wins over three seasons, including an MIAA Championship game appearance.

A longtime Titan, Callahan started all 73 games at midfield during her Detroit Mercy career from 2010-13. She finished her career sixth all-time in draw controls in school history. Prior to her appointment as a Titan assistant coach, Callahan spent three seasons as the varsity girls lacrosse coach at nearby West Bloomfield High School, while also serving as the school's Student-Athlete Welfare Assistant within the athletic department.

Wandelt Named Preseason Player of the Year
Sophomore midfielder Kaitlyn Wandelt was voted the ASUN Women's Lacrosse Preseason Player of the Year and classmate Lexie Kinmond also earned Preseason All-League honors with the league office releasing the preseason awards on Jan. 27.

The Titans were picked to finish fifth out of 11 teams in the preseason poll, voted on by the league's head coaches. Detroit Mercy, the only ASUN team to reach all four championship games in the history of ASUN women's lacrosse, earned 82 total points, just two points out of third place. Jacksonville was selected to finish first in the poll with 111 points.

Team Co-Captains
The squad recently announced three co-captains for the season with senior midfielder Kelsi Pritchard and junior defenders Emma Mucci and Lauren Webley filling the leadership roles this season. All are first-time captains.

Pritchard is a veteran presence on offense and in the midfield. The Orillia, Ont. native had a career-best 27 points during the 2016 season, tallying 19 goals and eight assists for the Titans. Pritchard has played in 53 career games for Detroit Mercy, scoring 55 goals and assisting on 15 goals for 70 points.

A staple on defense last year and a force in the draw circle, Mucci ranked second on the Titans and seventh in the ASUN in draw controls with 40 last season. She was named to the ASUN All-Tournament Team following Detroit Mercy's run in the championships. She started 19 of 20 games last season and has played in 36 career contests for the Titans, totaling 54 draw controls, 39 ground balls, 12 caused turnovers and nine goals.

A two-year starter on defense for Detroit Mercy, Webley has been an important part of the Titan defense that has recorded the two lowest goals against averages in the past two seasons. She started all 20 games for the Titans in 2016 and finished second on the team and 11th in the ASUN with 21 caused turnovers, while adding 36 ground balls.

On Tap
Detroit Mercy plays two-straight at home, hosting San Diego State on Sunday, Feb. 26 for a Noon game from Ultimate Soccer Arenas in Pontiac. It'll be the second of eight home games this season, with the final six coming from Titan Field in March and April.

Six Games on ESPN3
Like last season, all of Detroit Mercy's home games from Titan Field will be broadcast on ESPN3.com and the WatchESPN Applications. Starting with Detroit Mercy's home game against Cincinnati on March 10, each contest will be streamed live.