No. 17 SKIDMORE (11-4, 5-0 LL) at No. 19 ROCHESTER (11-3, 5-0 LL)
Game Details: Friday, Oct. 20 | 4:00 p.m.
Location: Rochester, N.Y. – Edwin Fauver Stadium
Game Links: Stats
No. 17 SKIDMORE (11-4, 5-0 LL) vs WILLIAM SMITH (11-3, 3-2 LL)
Game Details: Sunday, Oct. 22 | 3:00 p.m.
Location: Saratoga Springs, N.Y. – Wagner Park
Game Links: Stats |
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The road to a Liberty League regular-season title and the top seed in the upcoming league tournament will be decided this weekend, as the No. 17 Skidmore College Field Hockey team wraps up league regular season play this weekend. The Thoroughbreds head west on Friday to take on No. 20 Rochester in a battle of undefeated league teams, before returning home to host William Smith in the league finale on Sunday at 3 p.m.
Skidmore (11-4, 5-0 Liberty League) can win the league regular season title outright with a victory against Rochester on Friday, and can finish no lower than third place in the final standings. The Thoroughbreds come in as one of the league's hottest teams, winning five in a row, outscoring its opponents by an 18-3 margin. Last weekend, the Thoroughbreds defeated Vassar 2-1 on Friday, then trekked to RPI on Sunday, defeating the Engineers 3-1.
On Sunday, Skidmore will honor the memory of former Skidmore professor and Skidmore field hockey fan and friend, Alexander "Sam" Aldrich. His wife, Phyllis, his daughter, Cynthia, and granddaughter, Bridget, will serve as the guest coaches in the league finale against William Smith.
Skidmore sports a balanced offense, with 11 different players scoring this season, and 10 players adding two or more goals. The Thoroughbreds are led by
Gabby Hyman, who is fourth in the conference with nine goals. Marissa Davenport is second on the team with six goals, adding five assists.
Marissa Folts leads all Liberty League defenders with seven assists, adding three goals for 13 points.
Sarah Winters is enjoying a solid start to her collegiate career, as the three-time Liberty League Rookie of the Week winner leads all rookies with six goals and 12 points.
On the defensive end,
Kayla Rose is tied for second in the conference with four defensive saves. In net,
Zoe McGuire leads the league with an .813 save percentage and three shutouts and is third with a 1.67 goals against average in 11 appearances. Fellow cageminder
Elizabeth Coughlin has been solid for the Thoroughbreds during their win streak, and sports a 0.71 goals against average with an equally impressive .800 save percentage in seven games and five starts.
SCOUTING ROCHESTER
The No. 19 Yellowjackets (11-3, 5-0 Liberty League) can win the league regular season title outright with a victory in Friday's matchup against Skidmore. Rochester also comes into the weekend on a hot streak, winning the last four games and outscoring its opponents by a 14-1 margin.
Leading Rochester in scoring is Claire Dickerson, who is second in the Liberty League with 38 points on 18 goals and two assists. Olivia Denny and Colleen Maillie share the team lead with six assists. In goal, Kiran Sundaram has started in the majority of contests for the Yellowjackets, with a 1.07 goals against average and a .696 save percentage in eight starts. Gabrielle Cantley has a solid 0.71 goals against average in five starts.
Expect a close and exciting contest whenever these two teams face each other. Skidmore and Rochester have split the last six contests of the all-time series. Last season, Skidmore defeated Rochester, 2-1 in Saratoga Springs in the regular season finale, and goals by Rose and Hyman lifted the Thoroughbreds to its seventh Liberty League title in nine seasons in the league championship contest, a 2-1 score at Wagner Park.
SCOUTING WILLIAM SMITH
William Smith (11-3, 3-2 Liberty League) sits tied for third place with Vassar in the league standings, but can move up to second and secure a first-round home contest with a pair of wins this weekend, as well as a Skidmore loss to Rochester. The Herons, receiving votes in the latest Penn Monto/NFHCA weekly polls, comes into the weekend having won the last two contests, against Union and Ithaca.
William Smith, the highest-scoring team in the Liberty League at 3.93 goals per game, gets a good amount of scoring from the tandem of Hannah Wood and Fallon Adair. Wood currently leads the league, and is fifth in the nation, with 3.36 points per game, and is fifth nationally with 20 goals. Adair currently leads the country with 0.86 assists per game, and currently has 28 points on eight goals and 12 assists. In net, Emily King has 11 starts in goal, sporting a 1.42 goals against average and a .741 save percentage.
William Smith was the last Liberty League team to defeat the Thoroughbreds, back on Oct. 23, 2016 in Geneva, N.Y. The Thoroughbreds have won seven straight conference games since, including wins in the 2016 Liberty League Tournament.
