College Games to Watch: October 17 - 23

Each week, USA Field Hockey highlights upcoming college games to watch. This edition covers the week of October 17 - 23.

Five corners, three goals; that was all it took for Saint Joseph’s to send a message early to Virginia last week. After falling 3-0, the Cavaliers were unable to come back, despite goals from Emma Watchilla and Mia Abello. It was just the second loss for Virginia (10-2, 4-1 ACC), who is currently tied for second in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) with Duke. This Cavaliers squad has been very consistent and tough to score on, conceding an average of 1.4 goals per game.

Meanwhile, Syracuse comes in with an almost identical record of 10-3 overall and 4-2 in ACC play. Their three losses have come from No. 3 Ohio State, No. 1 North Carolina,  and No. 11 Duke. Graduate student Bo van Kempen has been a standout on offense for the Orange, which includes scoring both goals in the most recent 2-1 OT win over No. 18 California.

Louisville (5-9, 1-5 ACC) looks to bounce back after falling in their last six games by one goal. Despite their record, this is a strong Cardinals squad that can compete with the top teams in the country. Five of their past six losses have come from top 15 teams, including No. 1 North Carolina, No. 3 Ohio State, and No. 4 Virginia. Head Coach Justine Sowry has been splitting the starting position of goalkeeper between graduate student Brandelynn Heinbaugh and sophomore Emily Young. The two have both been solid in the cage for the Cardinals. 

Meanwhile, the Duke Blue Devils (8-4, 4-1 ACC) look to improve upon their four game winning streak, most recently defeating Wake Forest 2-0. After losing their first ACC game of the year 1-0 to No. 4 Virginia, a shootout victory over Syracuse gave the Blue Devils a boost to go on and win their next three ACC matches. In their current win streak, they have outscored opponents 10-0, in large part due to the solid defensive line and goalkeeper Frederique Wollaert, who has a .840 save percentage, and has only conceded four goals the entire season. Meanwhile, Aliana McVeigh has been a big contributor to this Duke offense so far this season.

No. 5 Christopher Newport and No. 18 SUNY New Paltz will clash for the very first time this Saturday in Newport News, Va.

In their single regular season conference game against Salisbury on Wednesday, Christopher Newport (9-1, 0-1 C2C) fell for the first time this season. Up until the 3-1 loss, the Captains had not given up more than a single goal in a game, and racked up five shutouts. Two staples of that backline have been senior defender Brooke Billhimer, who earned NFHCA Division III Defensive Player of the Week after shutouts against Centre and Catholic, and goalkeeper Lily Kerr.

Another team with just a single loss so far, SUNY New Paltz (12-1, 3-0 SUNYAC) comes in hot off of six wins. Rachel Tama continues to impress after picking up 12 points in the two most recent wins over FDU Florham and Oswego. Tama earned her third consecutive SUNYAC Offensive Player of the Week award, in addition to earning NFHCA Division III Offensive Player of the Week Honorable Mention.

It’s a top ten Centennial Conference matchup this Saturday between the Bryn Mawr Owls and the visiting Johns Hopkins Blue Jays.

The Owls (10-3, 3-2 CC) were upset by Franklin & Marshall, 1-0, a few weeks ago, but followed it up with a pair of conference wins over Muhlenberg and Dickinson. Goalkeeper Charlene Basque was named the Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Week after the two shutouts, while senior Sophie Vagts notched a goal in each. It was a familar feeling this past Wednesday when Bryn Mawr suffered another 1-0 upset, this time from Centennial foe Haverford.

Johns Hopkins, who is undefeated in Centennial Conference play, (12-2, 6-0 CC) is coming off of a big 5-1 midweek win against Washington College The Blue Jays are an offensive threat, outscoring opponents 44-11. Lila Slattery and Emily Amsden lead the scoring efforts, with seven goals each, and will be looking to add to their season stats this weekend.

Bryn Mawr hopes to make program history this Saturday by defeating the Blue Jays for the first time. The Owls have been very close in recent years – falling 2-0 in last season’s Centennial Conference semifinals after a 2-1 regular season loss. The year prior, they lost to Johns Hopkins in the conference final – 2-1 in double overtime.

Another week, another Ivy League rivalry. No. 10 Harvard will host No. 15 Princeton in Cambridge, Mass. this weekend.

After eight consecutive wins, Harvard was felled by No. 2 Northwestern. The Crimson put up a fight against the Wildcats, falling 3-2 with goals from Sage Piekarski and Lara Beekhius. Piekarski, who had tallied a hat trick against Columbia on Friday, was named Ivy League Co-Offensive Player of the Week.

Princeton also picked up Ivy League honors this week, with Ottilie Sykes earning Defensive Player of the Week after a two-win weekend. Sykes scored the overtime gamewinner against Delaware after also picking up a goal in the 4-2 victory over Brown.

Last season, the Crimson defeated the Tigers, 2-1, in the inaugural Ivy League championship match.

New England College will host Simmons in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) showdown this Saturday.

Simmons (13-2, 7-1 GNAC) suffered their first conference loss of the season to reigning GNAC champion Johnson & Wales. It was a tight match that ended 3-2 in shootouts, with junior Zoe Schmaling tallying both goals in the defeat. In the previous match, the Sharks picked up an explosive 14-0 win over Elms. NFHCA Division III Offensive Player of the Week Sydney Gonyea tallied five goals and became the first player in program history to reach 200 career points.

After also falling to Johnson & Wales by one goal, New England College (11-3, 6-2 GNAC) bounced back with three straight conference wins, most recently taking down Rivier, 4-3. The win was a whole team effort, with Christina Manzi tallying the winning goal with time expired on a penalty corner. Meagan McCamish, who leads the Pilgrims offensively with 27 points, has now scored in three consecutive games and notched five total gamewinners.

As the season winds down, this pair is gearing up to return to the GNAC postseason, where they met in the quarterfinals in 2023. New England College took a 2-1 victory, only to be snuffed out in the semifinal.

Salisbury and Williams are two schools who have been talked about consistently throughout this season. They will finally face off this Saturday in which only the winning team will come out on top, but neither one of these teams likes to lose, nor are they that familiar with it. 

Salisbury (12-1, 1-0 C2C) comes into this game on a six game win streak, outscoring opponents 53-10 and most recently taking down previously undefeated Christopher Newport. Key offensive weapons Arden Hunteman, Kaitlyn DeMonda, and McKenna Horner combine for 30 of the 53 goals. Meanwhile, goalkeeper Abbey McIlvain has only allowed five goals against this season, and is a big factor in the Gulls’ success alongside defenders like Isabel Larrabee and Hannah Johnson, who both picked up defensive saves in Wednesday’s win over the Captains.

Williams remains undefeated, boasting an 11-0 overall record and going 8-0 in NESCAC play. The Ephs have only allowed a total of four goals this season, giving them the best goals against average (0.36) in the nation across all divisions. First year Ellie Smith has been a brick wall all season, and been critical in securing the undefeated record. In the wins over No. 12 Wesleyan and No. 22 Hamilton this past week, Kiki Higgins tallied two goals and an assist, and leads Division III in assists per game (1.18).

Last time these two teams faced off was the Second Round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. Salisbury came away with the win in an overtime thriller, after Ramsey Coffman scored on a penalty stroke.

A top-ten Big Ten (B1G) matchup goes down this Sunday between No. 7 Maryland and No. 8 Michigan. 

After wins against Michigan State and American last week, the Maryland Terps (8-3, 4-1) have now won six of their last seven games. Hope Rose has been a key component on offense, generating plays and tallying goals, while sophomore defender Josie Hollamon leads in assists (4). The single B1G loss was a heartbreaking 1-0 defeat to No. 2 Northwestern.

The Michigan Wolverines (10-1, 3-0) are still yet to lose since their season opener against No. 1 North Carolina. Last weekend was a pair of 4-0 shutouts over Rutgers and Ball State, after which junior Abby Tamer picked up her first B1G weekly award - Offensive Player of the Week - for her two goals and three assists.

UConn continues to rise in the national rankings, showcasing a 12-1 overall record and not allowing a single goal in their four Big East victories. Most recently it was a 6-0 shutout over Quinnipiac, where Big East Freshman of the Week Sophie Pershk added two goals to her total of 11 so far this season.

UMass (11-3, 4-0 A10) also remains 4-0 in conference play, putting on an impressive performance against No. 6 Saint Joseph’s a few weeks ago to take a 2-1 overtime win. It was another big dub for the Minutewomen the next weekend after taking down No. 12 Boston College, 1-0. Last weekend a trip to Pennsylvania garnered another two victories, with sophomore Neva Eisenga tallying a goal in both the 2-1 win over La Salle and 1-0 win over Lafayette. 

Last fall, Umass defeated UConn 3-1 at home.

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No. 6 Wester (7-4, 1-2 PSAC) will take a break from conference play to face Limestone. The match is sandwiched between crucial matches against IUP on Saturday and Kutztown on Wednesday. The Golden Rams will need to heat back up after back-to-back PSAC losses, to No. 1 Shippensburg and No. 4 Bloomsburg.

Limestone (8-3, 7-3 SAC) is taking their own non-conference break, traveling to play PSAC opponents Millersville and West Chester before returning to South Atlantic Conference (SAC) action against Mount Olive next weekend. After losing to Converse, 2-1, earlier in the season, the Saints flipped the script this past Tuesday with their own 2-1 victory. Zoe Bergmann, who leads the Limestone offense with 31 points, tallied both goals – the second in the final minute of play.

Two teams undefeated in the Northeast 10 (NE10) will rematch on Wednesday in Worcester, Mass.

The So. New Hampshire Penmen (11-1, 8-0 NE10) garned more national attention after a thrilling 1-0 OT win over No. 10 Saint Anselm last week. The match went scoreless through regulation, with SNHU goalkeeper Emma Peeters making 11 saves. Finally, in a second overtime period, Annemartine Christis broke through with a penalty corner goal, assisted by Eliza Bates. Christis went on to notch two goals and an assist in a 6-1 victory over New Haven last Saturday. The Penmen swept the NFHCA Division II weekly awards, with Peeters named Defensive Player of the Week and Christis the Offensive Player of the Week.

Assumption (10-3, 8-0 NE10) continues to cruise through the NE10 - winning eight straight - most recently taking down Adelphi and Franklin Pierce. Sophomore Daisy Stone, who had been relatively quiet on the stat sheet up until now, notched both gamewinners. Senior Mia Salah contributed an assist in each win, bringing her to nine on the season.

Back on September 16, an unranked SNHU defeated then-No. 4 Assumption, 3-0. Christis tallied twice in the victory.