University of Delaware Athletics
No. 13 Field Hockey Faces Crucial Weekend Versus Hofstra and Liberty
10/8/2015 3:42:00 PM | Field Hockey
NEWARK, Del. – More than halfway through the season and entering the second weekend of Colonial Athletic Association play, the No. 13 Blue Hens will take on the hot-streaking Hofstra Pride and No. 12 Liberty Flames.
Delaware first travels to Hempstead, N.Y. to face Hofstra, who is amidst an eight-game winning streak, Friday for a 3 p.m. contest.
The Hens then return home to host No. 12 Liberty at 1 p.m. Sunday.
SUNDAY ADMISSION
Admission is free and open to the public for all home regular season Delaware field hockey games held at Fred P. Rullo Stadium.
SUNDAY PEE WEE HOCKEY
Following Sunday's game against Liberty, the Blue Hens will host their second PeeWee Hockey experience, which introduces kids to the sport of field hockey. The event is free and open to all first through fifth graders. Sticks and balls will be provided for those in attendance and no advance registration is required.
Friday's contest at Hofstra will be broadcast with an audio only stream via Hofstra Productions.
LIVE STATS
· Friday at Hofstra
· Sunday vs. No. 12 Liberty
ONLINE
Follow Delaware field hockey online at facebook.com/DelawareFieldHockey and on Twitter at @DelawareFH.
LAST TIME OUT
In typical fashion of a matchup between Delaware and James Madison, the two teams did not disappoint for an exciting, tough-fought and close contest Sunday afternoon at Fred P. Rullo Stadium. In the end, the No. 19 Dukes topped the No. 13 Blue Hens, 2-1, in overtime. With the loss, Delaware drops to 10-2 on the year and 1-1 in CAA play while JMU improves to 8-4 overall and 2-0 in the CAA. The first half featured a defensive battle, which resulted in a 0-0 halftime score. JMU's Adrienne le Vatte collected the first goal of the game off a penalty corner tip-in in the 44th minute. Delaware freshman Kiki Bink tied the game at 1-apiece in the 54th minute with her first career tally. The Blue Hens posted four shots, included two on goal, in the final 10 minutes of regulation, but were unable to get the go-ahead score. Miranda Rigg just barely missed the game-winning goal for the Dukes from the right side as regulation time expired. The 7v7 overtime format appeared to benefit JMU as the Dukes posted four shots to Delaware's zero, including the Taylor West's tip-in game-winner in the 83rd minute. Emmeline Oltmans notched two saves for the Blue Hens while Sara Kraeutler was credited with the win with three saves.
HEN SCRATCHINGS
· Delaware has reached the 10-win mark for the 29th time since the program's inception in 1971.
· UD collected 313 points to hold on to the No. 13 spot in this week's Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll.
· The Blue Hens are 50-49 (.505) all-time in CAA regular season play.
· Delaware is currently ranked fourth nationally in scoring average (3.94), sixth in points per game (11.0) and assists per game (3.0), seventh in scoring margin (1.97) and 15th in shutouts (0.25).
· Sophomore Emmeline Oltmans celebrated her 20th birthday Thursday.
· With a goal against William & Mary, Esmée Peet now has 75 career points (31g, 13a) and is 14th in program history. Jodi Byrd (1995-98) is 13th all-time with 79 points on 35 goals and nine assists.
· After a goal versus the Tribe, Michaela Patzner now has 110 career points (42g, 26a) and is fourth in program history behind Casey Howard (2005-09), who has 115 points (51g, 13a).
· Patzner's 42 career goals tie her for seventh in Delaware record books with Missy Mehard (1981-84). Melissa Hefner (1993-96) is sixth with 43 goals while Anne Wilkinson (1982-85) is fifth with 44.
· Patzner and Lisa Giezeman lead the Blue Hens with 20 points apiece. Giezeman has tallied nine goals and two assists while Patzner has seven goals and six assists.
· This season is the 45th overall in program history. Delaware has tallied a composite record of 489-314-39 (.604) with 28 10-plus-win seasons.
SERIES INFORMATION
· Delaware is 23-7 all-time against this weekend's opponents.
· The Blue Hens hold a 22-7 advantage over the Pride since the first meeting in 1985. Delaware has won four of the last six against Hofstra, but most recently fell, 5-2, last season at Fred P. Rullo Stadium. The last time UD visited Hempstead, N.Y., the Hens came away with a 2-1 win on Oct. 7, 2012.
· Delaware and Liberty have matched up only once previously with the Hens taking the 1-0 victory at Rullo Stadium in the NCAA Tournament Play-In Game on Nov. 13, 2013.
· A former player and current coach for the United States National Field Hockey program, Kathy De Angelis (UMass '92) is in her 18th year as the head coach at Hofstra. De Angelis has led the Pride to winning records in 10 of the past 14 seasons and currently holds a career mark of 175-172 (.504).
· The 2014 NFHCA South Region Coach of the Year, Jodi Murphy (Richmond '07) is in her fifth season with the Flames. She is the lone head coach in program history and has posted a career record of 60-33 (.645).
ABOUT HOFSTRA
The Pride are riding an eight-game winning streak that sets them at 10-3 on the year while this weekend will mark the first CAA play for Hofstra this season. HU is coming off of a weekend in which it outscored opponents, 13-4, with wins over Sacred Heart and Columbia. Junior Claudia Marin Samper recorded a career-high eight points against the Pioneers while the Pride outshot SHU, 36-3. Marin Samper was named the CAA Player of the Week for her efforts and currently leads the team with 15 goals and 10 assists. Stella Schoen has added 10 goals and four assists while Simca Schoen has collected seven goals and seven assists on the year. Carys Swan has allowed 2.14 goals per game with 55 saves and a .679 save percentage.
ABOUT NO. 12 LIBERTY
The Flames are 7-3 heading into the weekend, having competed in back-to-back double overtime contests. Most recently, Liberty picked up a 3-2 double overtime win Sunday at Temple. The Flames travel first to Lehigh Friday before arriving in Newark for Sunday's game. Liberty has displayed its offensive power and has outscored opponents 35-19 so far this season. Natalie Barr ranks 12th in the NCAA with 0.9 goals per game and leads the Flames with 19 points (9g, 1a). Mallory Cuccio has started all 10 games in the net and has posted 2.25 goals allowed with a .727 save percentage in 720 minutes of action.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Please contact Maggie Hayon | mhayon@udel.edu | O: 302-831-6389 | C: 920-912-6635
