Northeastern field hockey continues its five-game homestand with games against Delaware on Friday at 2 p.m., and against Harvard on Monday at 12 p.m. The Huskies won the first two games of the homestand, last weekend against James Madison and Virginia Commonwealth, to move to 7-5 on the year and 2-2 in CAA play.
Northeastern is 15-5 all-time against Delaware and 20-10 all-time against Harvard.
LAST TIME OUT
After starting the conference schedule at 0-2 with losses at William & Mary and no. 1 Old Dominion, the Huskies grabbed a pair of 2-1 victories last weekend at home against James Madison and Virginia Commonwealth. On Friday against JMU, junior forward
Crystal Poland potted both NU goals, including the game winner in overtime with a backhanded rocket from 8 yards out. The Huskies dominated possession throughout most of the game – NU outshot the Dukes in the first half, 20-0 – but could not close out JMU in regulation. Junior goalkeeper
Lizzie Priest kept an upset off the cards for Northeastern, registering four saves in the win.
On Sunday the Huskies needed no extra time in their 2-1 triumph over VCU. NU did all of its scoring the first half, as
Kaela Barker and
Annie Clayman both nabbed their second goals of the season. Junior
Christine Tase assisted the latter for her first points of the season. The win brought the Huskies to 2-2 and fourth place in CAA, behind Old Dominion, Hofstra and Drexel.
POL' POSITION
Crystal Poland continued her dizzying goal-scoring pace last weekend, notching her 18th and 19th goals of the season in the 2-1 win over JMU. With 19 goals and 3 assists, Poland holds the outright national lead in both goals per game (1.53) and points per game (3.42). She also has a knack for scoring against this weekend's opposition: Poland scored in her only career game against Delaware, and in two games against Harvard she has four goals and two assists, including a hat trick in 2009.
FUELING THE FIRE
Poland owes some of her nation-leading tally to senior
Carolyn Malloy and junior Nicky Graham. Despite going scoreless over the weekend, the pair still finds in the national top ten in assists; Malloy (11 assists) is tied for fifth while Graham (9) is tied for ninth entering this weekend's play.
SCOUTING THE FIGHTIN' BLUE HENS
Delaware enters Friday's contest with a record of 6-6, and 1-1 in CAA play. They have yet to lose in two road fixtures. They opened their conference schedule last weekend at home, defeating William & Mary, 3-1, before falling to no. 1 Old Dominion, 5-0.
Freshman back Kelsey McKee has stepped up to lead the Blue Hens with six goals. Senior back Kayla Schweitzer (five assists) keeps the offensive engine running from the back line, while sophomore Kasey Prettyman and junior Tory Sharpless pick up the goal-scoring duties up front.
Senior Noelle Diana has started all 12 games between the pipes for the Blue Hens, with a goals against average of 3.01. Diana allowed three goals against a dominant Old Dominion side before being lifted in favor of sophomore Sarah Scher.
SCOUTING THE CRIMSON
Harvard (6-3, 2-0 Ivy League) will hope to be riding a five-game winning streak when it comes to Sweeney Field on Monday afternoon, with only a home date against Stanford on Friday standing in its way. The Crimson have just one road victory this season, a 4-0 shutout of Holy Cross in Worcester.
Harvard also has a freshman goal-scorer in freshman Noel Painter, who leads the team five markers in just nine games. Painter is also tied with senior middie Carly Dickson for the team lead in assists, with four. The Crimson have a very balanced scoring attack; seven players have scored and assisted more than once, and Harvard got all six of its goals last weekend from different sources.
Coach Sue Caples is blessed with one of the nation's top goalkeepers in junior Cynthia Tassopoulos. Tassopoulos' .811 save percentage places her fifth in the nation, and she already has two shutouts on the season (one solo, one combined). She stopped 15 of the 16 shots she faced in last weekend's action against Brown and Vermont.
