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Mitchell Northam | NCAA.com | May 23, 2019

NCAA women's lacrosse championship: Full statistical breakdown and preview of semifinals

The 2019 women's Tewaaraton Award finalists are revealed

It doesn't always happen this way in sports, but in the 2019 NCAA Division I women's lacrosse tournament, the four top seeds entering the tournament are the four that make up the semifinals.

We'll get an All-Big Ten clash in No. 1 Maryland vs. No. 4 Northwestern, and an All-ACC battle in No. 2 Boston College vs. No. 3 North Carolina.

WLAX TOURNEY: Interactive bracket | Printable bracket | Schedule and scores

Three of these teams have each won a national championship, most recently with Maryland taking the crown in 2017, North Carolina winning it all in 2016 and Northwestern taking the title in 2012. From 2005-17, each national championship was won by either the Terps, Tar Heels or Wildcats. Boston College doesn't have any women's lacrosse titles, but have advanced to the national championship game in each of the last two seasons.

BRACKET TAKEAWAYS: ACC looks like dominant conference

Both of these games kick off on Friday in Baltimore, Maryland and can be streamed live on ESPN3.

We took a look at the numbers and broke down each semifinal matchup.

Preview: No. 1 Maryland vs. No. 4 Northwestern

No. 1 Maryland vs. No. 4 Northwestern
16.00 Goals Scored Per-Game 17.65
7.76 Goals Allowed Per-Game 12.95
.578 Draw Control Percentage .532
11.48 Turnovers Per-Game 13.40
Jen Giles
54 goals, 22 assists
Top Scorer Selena Lasota
82 goals, 18 assists
Megan Taylor
.556 save percentage
Goalkeeper Mallory Weisse
.485 save percentage

This will be the third time these two Big Ten foes have faced off this season. Maryland won the first, 17-13, and Northwestern took the second, 16-11 in the Big Ten title game. Northwestern allows much more goals per-game than Maryland does, but that hasn't stopped the Wildcats from being successful — they're just simply outscoring everyone.

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Northwestern has the second best offense in the nation, powered by Lasota, the third best scorer in the nation. Maryland is one of the most well-rounded teams in the country, with the third best defense and the sixth best offense. To get into the national championship game, the Terps will have to contain the Wildcats' attack or keep up with it.

Preview: No. 2 Boston College vs. No. 3 North Carolina

No. 2 Boston College VS. No. 3 North Carolina
17.23 Goals Scored Per-Game 15.25
9.95 Goals Allowed Per-Game 8.30
.631 Draw Control Percentage .554
14.18 Turnovers Per-Game 10.85
Sam Apuzzo
89 goals, 28 assists
Top Scorer Jamie Ortega
76 goals, 29 assists
Abbey Ngai
.484 save percentage
Goalkeeper Taylor Moreno
.534 save percentage

Like our other semifinal, this will be the third time this season the Tar Heels and Eagles meet. Boston College won the first game, 14-8, and UNC won the second, 15-13 in the ACC tournament. In that second game, the Eagles started with a five-goal lead that was diminished by several Tar Heel runs.

LOOK BACK AT 2018: James Madison wins it all | Appuzo wins Tewaarton

This matchup will feature two of the best scorers in the nation, as Apuzzo ranks sixth and Ortega ranks ninth in goals scored per-game. The Tar Heels have the more stout player between the pipes, as Moreno has the fourth best save percentage in the nation. Statistically, North Carolina has the better defense, but Boston College has the better offense. When the dust settles, we might point to one team's strength as the reason they're advancing to the national championship.

WLAX: Scoreboard | Past Champs | Stats

Mitchell Northam is a graduate of Salisbury University. His work has been featured at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Orlando Sentinel, SB Nation, FanSided, USA Today and the Delmarva Daily Times. He grew up on Maryland's Eastern Shore and is now based in Durham, N.C.

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