HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The Lady Railsplitters (0-5, 0-3 SAC) will make their LMU Lacrosse Complex debut on Wednesday afternoon, welcoming the surprising Tusculum Pioneers (6-2, 2-1 SAC) to Harrogate, Tenn. for a 4 p.m. South Atlantic Conference battle.
 
Lincoln Memorial is still searching for the program's first ever victory, but they put forth one of their best offensive performances of the season in Saturday's 18-4 loss at Catawba. The Lady Railsplitters trailed 15-1 at the half, but used three second-half goals from Bre'Asia James (Vero Beach, Fla.) to turn in the second-highest scoring output of the 2015 campaign, falling one goal shy of matching a five-goal outing against Lawrence Tech.  The Lady Railsplitters fired off double-digit shots for the second time, finishing the match with 10 attempts.
 
James was responsible for all four goals in that loss to the Indians, resetting her career-high and driving her season total to 10 goals. The Vero Beach, Fla. native has tallied at least one point in all five matches of her freshman campaign, accumulating a team-best 11 points.
 
The Lady Railsplitters were supposed to make their official home debut on February 21, but near record snowfall forced a bevy of postponements and schedule shifting. Lincoln Memorial's first two "home" matches were played at the Rocky Top Sports World in Gatlinburg, Tenn. to let the snow subside. 
 
Tusculum is also in its first season of women's lacrosse, but the Pioneers have been the surprise team of the South Atlantic Conference, matching Queens and Wingate with a league-best six wins. Tusculum is off to a 2-1 start in SAC play with wins at Newberry (15-7) and Wingate (16-11). The Pioneers' only SAC loss was a 17-4 pounding at the hands of the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears.
 
Tusculum boasts one of the more balanced attacks in the SAC this season, ranking third in goals per game (13.63) and goals against average (10.14). The Pioneers have outscored their opponents by a combined 28 goals this season, piling up a league-best 55 assists in the process. Tusculum has scored 109 goals on 173 shots on goal, ranking second in the SAC with an 84.4 shots on goal percentage. While the offensive numbers are impressive, the Pioneers have committed a league-worst 181 turnovers.
 
Senior Kelsey Crow and junior Cheyenne Bray are tied for the SAC lead with 36 points, as Crow has piled up a league-leading 31 goals, while Bray is tied for second in that department with 23 scores. Bray has 13 assists, while Madison Malone has racked up 13 goals and 14 assists in her freshman campaign. Sophomore Calyn Kelly has scored eight goals and handed out seven helpers.
 
Tusculum's Brooke Wagner is likely to oppose LMU netminder Shannon Novak (Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich.), as Wagner has played 356 of the Pioneers' 479 goalkeeper minutes. Wagner has allowed 64 goals and made 68 stops over that span. Wagner leads the SAC in saves, while Novak is ranked second in that category with 60 stonewalls.
 
First draw control is set for 4 p.m. at the LMU Lacrosse Complex. Admission is free to all home lacrosse matches. Live stats will be available via www.LMURailsplitters.com.

Live Stats