HICKORY, N.C. -- The Lady Railsplitters (3-10, 0-6 SAC) play their final road match of the 2016 campaign on Saturday at 1 p.m., when they head to Hickory, North Carolina to take on the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (8-6, 5-1 SAC) in South Atlantic Conference action.
 
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Last Time Out
 
Lincoln Memorial suffered its fifth straight loss on Wednesday night by dropping a 15-2 decision at Virginia-Wise in this season's second meeting between the two programs. The Cavaliers completely shut out the Lady Railsplitters in the first half, building an 8-0 halftime advantage with a steady barrage of goals. Abby Hoskins (Louisville, Ky.) finally put Lincoln Memorial on the board at the 28:10 mark of the second half, but the Lady Railsplitters wouldn't score again until Bre'Asia James (Vero Beach, Fla.) tallied their final goal of the match at the 14-minute mark. In terms of shots, there wasn't much of a disparity, with Lincoln Memorial accumulating 21 shots and 16 shots on goal as compared to 29 shots and 20 shots on goal for UVA-Wise. However, Cavalier keeper Melanie Reilly made 14 saves, including 11 in the second half, to stonewall the Lady Railsplitters.
 
Creating More Offense
 
In order to pick up the program's first-ever SAC win as well as the first-ever win over an NCAA Division II opponent, the Lady Railsplitters must find a way to score with consistency. Aside from 10-goal performances against Tusculum and Brevard, Lincoln Memorial has been limited to four goals or less in three of its last five matches. Entering the second-to-last match of the regular season, the Lady Railsplitters are ranked last in the South Atlantic Conference in scoring (8.85 goals per game) and shots per game (21.5). Turnovers have played a big role in LMU's offensive struggles, as the Lady Railsplitters have committed the second-most turnovers in the SAC this season with 293.
 
Road Weary
 
Saturday's game ends a stretch that has seen the Lady Railsplitters play seven of their last eight games outside of Harrogate. Lincoln Memorial is 1-6 over this road-heavy section of the schedule, with the only win coming on March 21 in a 14-4 triumph at Pikeville. The Lady Railsplitters wrap up the 2016 season on Saturday, April 23, when they host Coker in SAC action at 4 p.m.
 
Last Meeting Against Lenoir-Rhyne
 
The LMU women's lacrosse program made its debut against Lenoir-Rhyne - the eventual SAC regular season and tournament runners-up - on February 28 of last season at the LMU Lacrosse Complex. James notched the program's first-ever goal five minutes into that match, but the Bears went on to capture a convincing 21-2 victory. Autumn Beddington (Newburg, Ind.) accounted for the Lady Railsplitters' only other goal at the 18:35 mark of the first half. Lenoir-Rhyne fired off 44 shots and 35 shots on goal, while LMU produced just five shots and four shots on goal.
 
Bears Looking for Bounce Back
 
Lenoir-Rhyne welcomes the Lady Railsplitters to Hickory looking to rebound from its first SAC loss of the season, as the Bears were beaten badly by the Queens Royals last Saturday by a final of 17-7. Prior to that, the Bears had absolutely sprinted through their SAC schedule with easy-breezy wins over Coker (13-2), Wingate (18-9), Tusculum (16-14), Brevard (19-7) and Newberry (20-2).
 
Weak at Draw
 
If the Bears have a chink in their armor, it's in draw control, where they rank eighth in the SAC in draw controls per game with 10.93. The Lady Railsplitters can exploit that with the steady Amara Moss (Woodbridge, Va.) in the circle, as Lincoln Memorial is averaging 13.46 draw controls per match.
 
Defensive Juggernaut
 
The Lady Railsplitters will have a hard time getting their offense back on track against Lenoir-Rhyne, which is among the best defensive teams in the South Atlantic Conference, ranking second in goals against average (10.14), third in total goals against (142), first in saves (158) and first in save percentage (52.7). The Bears have given up double-digit goals only four times this season, while holding three different opponents to four goals or less.
 
Players to Watch
 
Three different players have produced at least 40 points this season, as Aubriana Benedetto, Claire Welch and Torrey Schwitkis are each among the top 17 in the SAC in points. Benedetto leads the Bears with 49 points on 33 goals and 16 assists, while Welch has racked up 45 points on 26 goals and a team-leading 19 assists. Schwitkis holds the team lead in goals with 36 to go along with five assists. Christine Faircloth (16 goals, 5 assists) and Brooke Ouderkirk (15 goals, 4 assists) are also hovering around the 20-point mark. Lenoir-Rhyne's sophomore keeper Ines Flueck is arguably the best at her position in the league, ranking first in saves and save percentage while sporting a 10.58 goals against average.