ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College women's soccer team will look to earn its 11th Empire 8 title beginning at 3 p.m. on Saturday when the Bombers, who earned the tournament's third seed, take on second-seeded Nazareth College in the semifinal round of the 2016 Empire 8 Championship in Hoboken, N.J.  Stevens Institute of Technology earned the top seed in the four-team field and will face fourth-seeded Hartwick College in the afternoon's other semifinal.  The winner of each will then play for the conference's automatic bid into the 2016 NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Championship at 1 p.m. on Sunday.  

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Check out some interesting notes about the teams and the matchups.

FAMILIAR FOES: Ithaca will face an extremely familiar opponent in the semifinal as the Bombers and Golden Flyers duke it out to for the right to play for the conference crown.  Since the formation of the Empire 8 in 1999, the two teams have combined to win 20 conference titles with the Bombers and Golden Flyers sharing the top spot from 2002-2005 and again in 2012 and 2014.  They've faced one another 13 times in that span with the Bombers holding a 5-2-6 edge in the conference tournament.  Looking at the bigger picture, Ithaca has played Nazareth 24 times since 2004 and has tallied a 12-3-9 mark.

ITHACA'S LEADERS: Head coach Mindy Quigg's team has received contributions on both ends of the field from some familiar names and some new faces as well.  Jocelyn Ravesi leads the team entering the weekend with 32 points.  Her 13 goals is fourth-most in the conference while her 66 shots ranks third among all conference players.  Megan Nash and Holly Niemiec have each contributed 13 points while Taylor Baranowsky and Shoshana Bedrosian have each chipped in with 10.  In all, 18 players have tallied at least one point.  The Bombers' offense ranks second in the conference in scoring at nearly 2.63 goals per game on 364 shots.

On the defensive end of the field, Ithaca, led by Aimee Chimera, Lindsey Parkins, Caroline Matos and Kendall Cirella, have done its part to keep the ball out of the back of the net as the Bombers own a 1.06 goals against average through 16 games.

SPEAKING OF GOAL…: Stacey DiGiorgio has made a significant impact after taking over the starting job as a sophomore.  DiGiorgio has played in all 16 games this season and has earned 10 wins with three shutouts.  The Utica native ranks fifth among all Empire 8 keepers with a 1.02 goals against average and has amassed 70 saves in nearly 1500 minutes of action.

MAY I HAVE THIS DANCE?: Few teams can claim the success that Ithaca has had since the program's inception in 1981.  To date, Ithaca has earned 26 appearances in the NCAA Championship including 13 straight trips dating back to 2003. As a team, the Bombers own a program record of 490-154-79 with Quigg earning 319 of those wins over the last 23 seasons.   

SCOUTING STEVENS: This year's top-seed, the Stevens Ducks boast a 16-1-0 overall record including an 8-0-0 record in conference play and enter the weekend as the No. 9-ranked team in the nation according to the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll.  Stevens leads the Empire 8 in scoring offense at 4.06 goals per game on 448 total shots.  Raba Nassif leads the team and is among the nation's leaders with 52 points on 21 goals and 10 assists while Zisi Komar has added 36 points in all.  Julia Panko has contributed 26 points to Stevens' cause and Gabby Mathelier has 21 points.

In goal, Lindsey Mahnken has posted a 13-1-0 record with a 0.46 goals against average and a .886 save percentage.  In all, the Ducks have allowed just 10 goals through 17 games this season.   
  
SCOUTING NAZARETH: Nazareth features perhaps the best goaltender in the country in Allison Dobles.  The senior is 14-2-2 on the year with 12 shutouts and leads the conference in goals against average (0.23), save percentage (.952) and is fourth in total saves with 79.

On the offensive end of the pitch, the Golden Flyers produced 1.94 goals per match, which ranked third among all conference teams.  Julia Delgatti leads the way with 30 points on 14 goals and two helpers.  Laura Herman and Michaela Soules combined to add 18 and 15 points, respectively while Jessica Byrnes contributed 10 points in total.   
 
SCOUTING HARTWICK: Hartwick earned the fourth and final seed with a 4-2-2 record against conference competition and a 10-4-3 overall mark.  The Hawks enter the weekend ranked fourth in scoring at 1.91 goals per game this season and have the third-lowest goals against average at 0.88.  Hartwick features five players to have scored at least 10 points this season led by Sierra Bentley's 16 points on two goals and a conference-best 12 assists.  Allie Ricci and Rachel Weir have 14 points apiece while Madison Miller and Ashley Connolly have combined for 23 points on 11 goals and 1 assist.

Megan McGillycuddy has started all 17 games in net for the Hawks and is 9-4-3 overall with three shutouts.  Her .851 save percentage and .74 goals against average ranks fourth among all conference goalies. 

As always, stay up-to-date with all the scores, news and highlights by following the Bombers on Twitter - @BomberSports.