Rutgers Field Hockey Hosts Two Games on Homecoming Weekend
Oct 13 | Field Hockey
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (October 13, 2011) – Rutgers field hockey returns to Piscataway for homecoming weekend, when it hosts Providence on Friday, Oct. 14 at 4 p.m. and Lafayette on Sunday, Oct. 16 at 2 p.m. in the confines of the Bauer Track and Field Complex.
Sunday’s contest marks the Scarlet Knights annual “Play 4 the Cure,” contest. The annual “Pink Game” initiative supports breast cancer awareness and research. Rutgers will sport pink uniforms for the match and will be selling t-shirts during the event. All proceeds and donations will go directly to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
RU (3-9, 1-3 BIG EAST) is coming off a 4-2 loss to No. 20 Louisville on Saturday. Rutgers held the Cardinals to one goal, three shots and zero penalty corners in the opening stanza. Gia Nappi (Fairfield, N.J.) and Carlie Rouh (Berlin, N.J.) each tallied a goal and an assist in the first half to give the Scarlet Knights a 2-1 advantage at the break. UofL responded with three goals on nine shots and six corners in the second half.
“This week at practice has been great for us, everyone has been making each other better and it was really a great atmosphere,” head coach Liz Tchou said. “Providence is a tough and skilled team, but we have a chance to keep ourselves in the BIG EAST race so we’ll try to do that on Friday. ”
Providence (3-10, 1-2 BIG EAST) has dropped six of its last seven contests following a 3-1 loss to Dartmouth on Monday. Freshman Danielle Bernasconi was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll after tabbing the game-winning goal in a 3-2 overtime victory against conference foe Villanova, helping the Friars to their first league win of the season. Bernasconi connected on her team-leading fifth goal of the year in loss to the Big Green.
Goalkeeper Shannon DiStefano entered the week ranked 12th in the nation in saves per game (7.78) and 18th in save percentage (.753).
Despite the Friars holding a 12-5 all-time advantage, RU snapped a five-game skid against PC with a 1-0 road victory last season and has earned three of its five victories versus Providence on its home turf.
Lafayette (6-6, 2-0 Patriot League) was defeated for the first time in four contests with a 6-0 loss to No. 6 Penn State on Tuesday. The Leopards present an interesting challenge for the Scarlet Knights, as each squad is ranked in the top-10 in the nation in penalty corners – Lafayette in third (10.09) and Rutgers in 10th (8.83).
Deanna DiCroce leads the team with seven goals and three assists on the year. Kelsey Mead has added 14 points thus far on six goals and two assists. In the cage, Mara Kish entered the week ranked 22nd in goals against average (1.78).
The Scarlet Knights maintain an 18-13-1 series lead over Lafayette, including last year’s 2-1 win at home. Rutgers has won six of the last seven meetings versus the Leopards.
For live stats and more information on the Rutgers field hockey, log on to ScarletKnights.com. Also follow the program on Twitter at Twitter.com/RUFieldHockey and Facebook at Facebook.com/Rutgers Field Hockey.
