University of Connecticut Athletics
No. 1 Field Hockey Begins Three-Game Road Swing
10/5/2017 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
LIVE STATS: | No. 14 Princeton
VIDEO: Villanova ($$) | No. 14 Princeton ($$)
TWITTER: @UConnFieldHocley
STORRS, Conn. - The No. 1 UConn field hockey team begins a three-game road swing this week, taking on BIG EAST rival Villanova Friday night (7 p.m.), before the team heads to No. 14 Princeton (12 p.m.) for a nonconference match up. The Huskies are set to play their seventh top-20 opponent in 14 games.
Catching Up With UConn
The Huskies tallied two more shutout wins last week, as they ran their record to 11-0 in 2017. UConn notched its 20th consecutive conference victory last Friday, topping Providence 2-0, before overpowering Massachusetts 8-0 on Sunday afternoon.
10 different players have scored for the Huskies so far this season, eight of whom have found the back of the cage multiple times this fall. Senior Charlotte Veitner is pacing the squad with 32 points and 13 goals, while junior Amanda Collins is posting a team-high 14 helpers. Goalkeeper Nina Klein is boasting a 0.70 goals against average, 25 saves and owns six shutouts in net.
Scouting the Competition
Villanova (3-7, 1-3 BIG EAST) welcomes UConn after grabbing a win in their lone contest last week. The Wildcats defeated Quinnipiac, 2-1, on Sept. 29 to notch their first conference win in 2017. Lydia Sydnor is leading the squad in points (10) and goals (5), while Francesca Bello and Emma McLaughlin are tallying three helpers apiece. In the cage, Erika Miller is posting a 3.24 goals against average, a .733 save percentage and 66 saves.
The Tigers own in a 5-5 clip in 2017, after splitting a pair of decisions last week. Princeton edged Yale, 3-2, on Sept. 29, before falling at then-No. 7 Syracuse, 1-0, on Oct. 1. Ryan McCarthy is headlining the offense in goals and points, tallying 18 and eight, respectively. Teammate Julianna Tornetta is dishing out a team-high five assists for the Tigers. Goalkeeper Grace Baylis owns a 2.06 goals against average, .667 save percentage and two shutouts in the cage.
No. 1 Across the Board
The UConn field hockey team maintained its unbeaten record last week to sustain its grip on the No. 1 ranking in the Penn Monto/National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division I Coaches Poll as announced on Oct. 3.
The Huskies tallied two more shutout wins last week, as they ran their record to 11-0 in 2017. UConn accumulated 1,222 points and 46 first-place votes to once against run away with the No. 1 ranking for the fourth straight week.
Head Coach Nancy Stevens has now led the UConn field hockey program to its fourth No. 1 ranking since taking over at the helm. Stevens and the Huskies last held the honor in 2016, after a 9-0 start to the season.
Additionally, UConn serves as No. 1 in the national RPI, after an impressive 11-0 start and 6-0 clip against top-20 opponents.
National Players of the Week
Senior Charlotte Veitner garnered back-to-back Longstreth/ NFHCA Division I Offensive Player of the Week honors on Sept. 13 and Sept. 20, respectively. Veitner recorded consecutive 10-point (5g) and 15-point (6g, 3a) performances on her way to two NFHCA weekly selections. Additionally, classmate Casey Umstead was named to the NFHCA Honorable Mention on Sept. 27 and Sept. 3.
Statistically the Best
UConn has garnered a handful of top NCAA statistics, as Charlotte Veitner sits second in the nation with 3.20 points per game and third with 1.30 goals per game. Junior Amanda Collins ranks second in DI tallying 1.27 helpers per game, while sophomore Svea Boker's .91 assists per game rank sixth.
Going Streaking
UConn is currently riding an eleven-game win streak, spanning from Aug. 25-Oct. 4. The Huskies remain the lone undefeated team in DI and are outscoring their opponents 49-6 during this time.
Defending the Wall
Goalkeeper Nina Klein and the Huskies held their opponents scoreless for 206-minutes to begin the season. During that time UConn was outscoring its opponents 11-0, after blanking then- No. 13 Stanford, 2-0, and No. 14 Northwestern, 7-0.
Klein now owns 31 career shutouts for second most in program history, trailing only Sarah Mansfield's 33 (2010-2013).
Did You Know
Forward Charlotte Veitner's 97 career goals are just one shy of breaking UConn's all-time goals record set by Lauren Henderson (2001-04). Veitner matched Henderson's record on Sept. 24 with the game-winning goal against No. 5 Delaware. The senior currently holds the program's top spot in points (247) and assists (55), claiming both distinctions during the 2016 season.
With a win against Massachusetts on Oct.1, Goalkeeper Nina Klein is knotted for first on the programs all-time wins list with 75 career victories.
Queens of the BIG EAST
The Huskies are currently riding a 20-game regular season conference win streak, dating back to the 2013 national championship season. UConn has strung together five consecutive BIG EAST Tournament Championships dating back to 2012.
Preseason Favorites
For an unparalleled eighth straight season, the University of Connecticut field hockey team was picked to finish first in the BIG EAST Preseason Poll, while four players were tabbed to the All-BIG EAST Preseason Team.
The Huskies return two of their leading scorers in Veitner and Umstead, who were selected as the BIG EAST Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively. Klein and sophomore Barbara van den Hoogen received All-BIG EAST honors as well.
