The 10th-ranked Misericordia University women's soccer team will continue the greatest season in school history when the Cougars travel to sixth-ranked Ithaca for the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Championships, Saturday.



Misericordia, 19-2-1, will face Ithaca, 19-1-2, Saturday at 11:00 a.m. while Cortland will face Brandeis at 1:30.  The winners will meet Sunday at 1:00 for the right to advance to the Final Four in San Antonio, TX.



This is the sixth meeting between Misericordia and Ithaca and their second NCAA Tournament match-up.  Ithaca defeated Misericordia earlier this season, 1-0, while Misericordia won at Ithaca, 4-3, a year ago.



The Bombers beat MU in the first round of the 2004 NCAA Tournament.



The Cougars are led by the most prolific scoring duo in the program's history – senior forwards Sam Helmstetter and Laura Roney.



Helmstetter, a two-time Freedom Conference Player of the Year, has a team-high 45 points and 18 goals, both the second-highest single-season total in school history.  She is second in school history with 122 career points and sits third with 44 career goals and is the all-time leader with 34 assists.



Roney, an academic All-District selection and three-time All-Freedom honoree, is second on the team with 37 points (13g, 11a).  She is fourth in career points (101) and is just one behind Helmstetter with 33 assists.



Megan Lannigan (9g, 7a), Meghan Antrim (10g, 1a) and Erin McGreal (8g) provide added scoring depth while Nikki Hensel shares the team lead with Roney with 11 assists.



Sophomore midfielder Erin Roberts joined Helmstetter, Roney and Hensel as first-team All-Freedom selections.



The Cougars enjoyed as much success in their defensive third as they did on the attack as freshman goalkeeper Maureen Ciccosanti posted a 0.35 goals against average, including 10 shutouts.



Rachael Palladino (16g, 4a) leads Ithaca in scoring with 36 points while Ellyn Grant-Keane (8g, 11a) adds 27 points.



Julie Winn (4g, 12a) leads the team in assists and has 12 points while Amanda Callanan and Jackie Rodabaugh add seven and six goals, respectively.



In goal, Becca Salant has a 90.1 save percentage while allowing just 0.39 goals per game.