PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers field hockey hosts its first two home Big Ten conference games this weekend. After opening league play last weekend at Iowa, the Scarlet Knights welcome No. 14 Northwestern and No. 18 Michigan to the Bauer Track & Field Complex.

Sunday's game against the Wolverines will be live-steamed by BTN Plus. Fans attending Friday's game will receive a season t-shirt, while Sunday will be Alumni Day and NJ Field Hockey Day for youth and high school teams.

"Both of these games were really tight last season," head coach Meredith Civico said. "We are going to be in position to really compete. Everybody has to step it up. Our key players need to have really solid performances in order to get the result. We're excited to host both of these teams. The team is hungry to face them."

Despite dropping their first Big Ten game to the No. 16 Hawkeyes last weekend, Rutgers outscored its opponents 9-4 on a two-game trip. After dropping a tightly contested 4-3 decision at Iowa, RU came back the next afternoon and trounced Missouri State by a 6-0 margin.

Nicole Imbriaco continued her breakout senior season with four goals in two games last weekend. The Clark, N.J. native now has three straight multi-goal games. She leads the conference and is 4th in the NCAA in both points per game (1.29) and goals per game (2.86). She has scored at least one goal in six of seven games this year and has set new career-highs this season with nine goals, two assists, and 20 points. Katie Champion is second on the squad with 10 points, and Alyssa Bull follows her with 10 points on three goals and a team-high four assists. Shevaun Hayes contributed her second shutout of the season in goal against the Bears, and now has a .622 save percentage and 2.65 goals-against average this season.

Northwestern comes into Friday's game at 7-3 on the year. They have won six of their past seven games, and all three losses have come against top-ten foes (No. 1 UConn, No. 5 Duke and No. 10 Maryland). Isael Flens leads the squad with nine goals and 21 points, while Dominique Masters trails just behind her with eight goals and 20 points. Lindsay von der Luft has a 1.40 goals-against-average and .689 save percentage between the pipes.

Last season was the first-ever meeting between the two teams. That contest in Evanston went into overtime, with the Wildcats' Flens scoring the lone goal of the game 84 minutes into the contest.

Michigan enters the weekend 6-2, and 1-0 in the Big Ten. They are currently on a six-game winning streak. In goal, Sam Swenson boasts career bests with a 1.03 goals-against average and .771 save percentage through eight games this season. Shannon Scavelli leads the Wolverines in scoring with five goals, including four over the last four games.

The Wolverines have beaten the Scarlet Knights all four times lifetime. Last season, the squads matched up twice. Rutgers fell 2-1 on the road last September, with a Rachel Yaney goal the lone tally, while the Maize and Blue won 3-0 in last year's Big Ten Tournament.

"I expect two really good games of field hockey," Civico said. "The team is in a really good place right now as a group, with a good understanding of what they need to do to prepare and be successful. We have really good team chemistry on the field and we're just looking to build on that. It's a group that's willing to work for each other, and we need to continue to work going forward."

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