WHO: #2 George Mason vs. #3 Richmond in Atlantic 10 Semifinal
WHEN: Friday, 4 p.m.
WHERE: George Mason Stadium, Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: Mason (11-6, 7-2 Atlantic 10); Richmond (15-3, 7-2 Atlantic 10)
SERIES RECORD: Mason leads 9-7
LAST MEETING:  Mason defeated Richmond 9-8 (OT) in the A-10 opener on March 21, 2019 in Fairfax.
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Fairfax, Va.—George Mason lacrosse will play defending A-10 champion Richmond in the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 Championships Friday at 4 p.m. The Spiders, the No. 3 seed, knocked off No 6 seed Duquesne, 20-8, today at George Mason Stadium to advance to play the Patriots. 
 
The Patriots are the No. 2 seed and had a bye the first round. They earned the second seed, winning the head-to-head tiebreaker against Richmond with their regular-season victory over the Spiders. 
 
Mason is led by conference Rookie of the Year Deanna Balsama. She is the third-highest goal scorer in the A-10 this year (48). Balsama is joined on the leaderboard by Erin Donoghue (30 goals, 6 Assists) and Chachi Kelehan (35 goals, 17 assists). Defensively, the Patriots are led by sophomore Natalya Moodywith 30 ground balls and 19 caused turnovers, and junior goal-keeper Melissa Semkiw.
 
Series History: Mason won the A-10 opener against Richmond and holds a 9-7 edge in the all-time series. In that game, A-10 Rookie of the Year Deanna Balsama scored her first collegiate game-winner to lift George Mason to a huge win in overtime. She scored just a minute into sudden-death overtime on an assist by junior Hailey Johnson in the 9-8 win played at George Mason Stadium. Sophomore Erin Donoghue also scored four goals and junior Melissa Semkiw made 13 saves while allowing just eight goals on 34 shots faced. 
 
Scouting Richmond: The Spiders were picked to repeat as A-10 Champs in the preseason coaches' poll. In the match against Duquesne today, Richmond scored five goals straight goals and never gave up the lead, and A-10 Defensive Player of the Year Julie Ball led a defense that held the Dukes to only eight points. First Team All-Conference member Sam Geiersbach led the way for the Spiders with four goals and five assists to tie the conference record for points (9) that Saint Joseph's Francesca Donato also tied earlier in the day. Mia Castagnero added six goals to tie a conference record for goals scored in a game. 
 
Atlantic 10 Honors:  Earlier this week, the conference announced its postseason award-winners. Mason freshman Deanna Balsama was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year and earned A-10 All-Conference Second Team honors. Junior Melissa Semkiw and sophomore Erin Donoghue earned Atlantic 10 All-Conference First Team awards. Senior Chachi Kelehan was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Conference Second Team. Senior Rachel Woods, sophomore Abby Folker, and junior Hailey Johnson received All-Academic Team honors.

All five games of the 2019 A-10 Women's Lacrosse Championship, which will be played at George Mason Stadium in Fairfax, Va., will be streamed on ESPN+. For watch links, ticket info, and all other coverage of the championship, go to The Women's Lacrosse championship page at atlantic10.com or the Mason Tournament page on GoMason.com.