Grow the Game®

wpll womens professional lacrosse league
Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on linkedin
Share on reddit
Share on whatsapp

WPLL Week 5 Preview: Playoffs Loom

Teams have already secured their spots in this year’s playoffs, however, there is still a question of seeding in the final week of the regular season as to which WPLL teams will receive what seed in the tournament. Check out our WPLL Week 5 preview.

WPLL Week 5 Preview

Pride v. Brave (July 20 @ 1:00 p.m. ET)

This is the game of the weekend that might seem to be the most meaningful, and yet isn’t.

Both teams are tied with each other with a 2-1 record. As this is the two teams first meeting of the year, the winner of this game will secure the No. 2 seed, while the loser will be stuck with the No. 3 spot heading into the semifinals.

Here’s the catch — these two teams will have to turn right around and play each other the next week in the semifinals. That means no matter who wins on Saturday, they will both be playing in the same game and in the same location as the WPLL has adopted the traveling-league model much like the PLL.

The teams will have to use that familiarity to their advantage and make necessary adjustments heading into the semis. But first, this game has to be played in what should be an exciting showcase of the league’s talent, if nothing else.

Two of the league’s top goal scorers are on Brave — Dana Dobbie and last year’s MVP Marie McCool — which means that you’ve better get your lawn chairs and blankets ready, because there will be some offensive fireworks.

Fight v. Fire (July 20 @ 3:00 p.m. ET)

Fight has already locked-up the No. 1 seed for this year’s playoffs with its 3-0 record, and as Fight has been undefeated so far, it would appear to be the team to beat heading into the semifinals.

Fire, on the other hand, was left out of this year’s playoffs with an 0-3 record. The team was simply letting in too many goals, as it had given up 40 goals for the season with offenses registering a .504 shooting percentage against their defense.

One weakness of Fight is its goaltending. Fight has had to use three goaltenders this year, two of which are saving shots at a rate of under 50 percent. The other, Megan Taylor — who was the winner of this year’s Tewaaraton Award  — leads the league in save percentage but has largely been unavailable this year.

Watch for lacrosse stars Katrina Dowd and Kylie Ohlmiller to lead their team against Fire, as they are currently the No. 3 and No. 6 point-scorers in the WPLL, respectively.