Going into the final round of league match-ups this weekend, Notre Dame and Syracuse stood with the Hoyas at the top of the league with 3-1 conference records, but with Rutgers pulling off an 8-7 upset of the Fighting Irish on a last-second score Saturday, the Hoyas joined Syracuse, who beat Loyola on Saturday to finish at 4-1, atop the league standings. By virtue of a 9-8 win over the Orange on March 10, Georgetown will receive the No. 1 seed in next weekend’s Big East championships in Syracuse, N.Y.

Sunday, Georgetown sprung out to a 3-0 lead and tallied nine first half goals, but gave up six to the Huskies before halftime and left the field with a three-score lead heading into the break.

Georgetown was able to maintain possession on key draw controls, and with the extra time of possession, levied a barrage of shots against the Connecticut defense. The Hoyas took an astounding 42 shots to the Huskies’ 19.

“The big key for us was draw controls, 19-7, allowed us to get possession, especially in the first half,” Georgetown Head Coach Ricky Fried said. “We got off very well offensively and we were able to maintain that lead for the entire time.”

Still, despite the offensive efficiency, the Hoyas first-half defense left something to be desired.

“In the first half, we knew again what they were going to do, [Husky midfielder Shannon Burke] wanted to feed topside cuts and they got a bunch of them, we weren’t playing ball-side,” senior goalie Maggie Koch said. “But then in the second half, we adjusted that and I’m pretty sure they didn’t get any [cuts].”

Renewed focus on both ends of the field showed itself in the second half, as the Hoyas outscored the Huskies 6-3.

Senior attackers Coco Stanwick and Brittany Baschuk finished what may have been their last game at the Multi-Sport Facility with five and three goals, respectively.

With the victory, the senior class ran its four-year record to an astounding 50-20.

Stanwick, though, maintains that, for the class of 2007, the end of the road is still a long ways away.

“It’s great just to recognize the whole senior class, but I don’t want this to be my last game, so it’s sad that it’s the last home game but we’ve still got plenty left,” Stanwick said.

Friday: Georgetown 18, GWU 7

Finally, Georgetown was able to breathe easily.

Peter Tully/The Hoya

After a five-game stretch that included four losses and one blowout victory, the Hoyas scored early and often against the Colonials of George Washington (7-6), en route to a resounding 18-7 victory in front of 411 fans at the Multi-Sport Facility.

“Our focus was looking forward as opposed to looking back,” Fried said. “I’m very pleased with our effort today and our execution.”

Stanwick nearly defeated GWU on her own, leading the Georgetown attack with six goals and an assist. Sutton added five scores, while freshman midfielder Ashby Kaestner recorded her second hat trick in as many games.

“Personally, I think I did fine,” Sutton said, “[but] that collectively we played awesome, and that’s the biggest thing. That’s when we’re going to win games, when we play together. We really came together today and we picked up our passing and catching and that’s something that’s so small but it makes such a big difference.”

Indeed, thanks to what may have been their best demonstration of stick skills this year, and to the fact that they controlled 19-of-26 draws (10 alone by Stanwick), the Hoyas shot an impressive 18-for-36, including 5-of-8 on free-position tries.

“If we’re shooting 50 percent, I’m going to be pretty pleased,” Fried said.

Most of the 18 goals came on shots that bounced past GWU junior goalie Caitlin Garman, which, according to Sutton, was no accident.

“We scout all the teams we play against and we scouted this goalie pretty well,” she said. “I think and we definitely knew where her weakest spots were, and we definitely capitalized on that.”

Trailing 2-1 eight minutes into the contest, Sutton was fouled in front of the net, and on the ensuing free position opportunity, rocketed her 21st goal of the year into the back of the net, tying the game at a deuce. The Hoyas reeled off four more unanswered scores – two by Stanwick – to take a comfortable 6-2 lead.

With a chance to breathe a bit easier, Georgetown relaxed and ran its offense to perfection, finding the net five more times in the first half and taking an 11-5 lead into the break.

The second half was no different. Sutton scored twice more, both within 3:01 of the opening draw, and Stanwick put the finishing touches on her virtuoso performance, tallying goals at the 12:08 and 9:34 marks.

With the big lead, Georgetown was able to clear its bench, getting nearly all healthy members of the team, including both backup goalies, onto the field.

“It’s a great day when you can come out and get the clock running and get everyone whose working so hard in the game,” said Stanwick, who, along with Sutton, was honored by Fried with a game ball when the contest ended.

The top-seeded Hoyas will face the fourth-seeded Fighting Irish in the Big East tournament on Friday at 5:30 p.m. in Syracuse, N.Y., while No. 2 Syracuse faces No. 3 Rutgers in the other game. Georgetown’s only loss during the Big East regular season came at the hands of Notre Dame. The two teams also hooked up in South Bend, Ind., for last year’s NCAA tournament quarterfinals, where the Irish beat the Hoyas 12-9.