#14 Field Hockey Set for Maine, Colgate

ALBANY, NY – The #14 UAlbany field hockey team splits the weekend with a road game at Maine and a home game against Colgate.

After clinching a spot in the America East Tournament, the Great Danes will clinch the top seed and hosting duties if they win on Friday.

On Sunday, UAlbany returns home to host their Senior Day. Twelve student-athletes will be present during the annual ceremony.

GAME INFORMATION

#14 UAlbany in Maine
DATE: Friday October 25
TIME: 3:00 PM
SITE: UMaine Field Hockey Complex – Orono, Maine
RECORDS: UAlbany 12-3, 4-0 America East; New Hampshire 9-7, 2-2 America East
SERIES RECORD: 20-16, UAlbany leads
STREAM (US): ESPN+

STREAM (Int'l): AE.TV

STATISTICS: GoBlackBears.com

Colgate at #14 UAlbany
DATE: Sunday October 27
TIME: 12:00 PM
SITE: Alumni Turf – Albany, NY
RECORDS: UAlbany 12-3, 4-0 America East; Colgate 3-11, 0-4 Patriot League
SERIES RECORD: 11-2, UAlbany leads
CURRENT: AE.TV

STATS: UAlbanySports.com

*records as of 10.24

LAST WEEK REVIEW

• In a full weekend on the road, the Great Danes went 1-1 with a conference win over New Hampshire (10.18) and a non-conference loss to #8 Boston College (10.20).
• Trailing 2–0 early in the third quarter, UAlbany scored two goals, one in each quarter of the second half, to tie the game before the end of regulation. After almost five minutes of extra time Floor de Ruiter got a pass from Alison Smith to score the winning goal.
• Two days later, Boston College took an early lead with two goals in six minutes of action. Charlotte Triggs closed the scoring gap with a goal in the second quarter. Despite their ability to hold the Eagles to one late goal in the fourth, the Great Danes were unable to score any additional goals and fell 3–1.

REWINDING GREAT DANE

• UAlbany has been nationally ranked in the NFHCA Coaches Poll all season and is currently ranked 14th.
• Overall, the Great Danes' only losses this season have come against three teams ranked in the top 10 of the NCAA RPI rankings: #7 Ohio State, #8 UConn and #6 Boston College. They have defeated every other opponent for a total of 12 wins. The rankings wins come from #7 Harvard (9.13) on the road and #14 Liberty (9.29) at home.
• UAlbany has three wins beyond regulation. Both non-conference games were against Ivy League foes: Cornell in shootouts and Harvard in the first overtime. The most recent overtime win came in a conference game against New Hampshire.
• Alison Smith leads the team with 18 goals and 41 points. Her 1.20 goals per game and 2.73 points per game rank in the top five in the country. On defense, she is tied for seventh with four defensive saves.
• On the assist, senior Floor de Ruiter leads the conference with 0.67 assists per game. She is currently ranked in the top 15 in the country (T13th).
• A Great Dane currently leads the conference in all field player statistics – Smisdom (shots, shots on goal, goals, points, winning goals and defensive saves) and de Ruiter (assists).
• Senior Lara Behn is UAlbany's starting goalie. She has played nearly 34 minutes this season, including helping the Great Danes to a win over Cornell with two saves in three shootout attempts against the Big Red.

WORK AS A TEAM, WIN AS A TEAM

(From October 24)

• Nationally, UAlbany scores:
  • T6th – 8 defensive saves
  • 8th – .800 winning percentage
  • 11th – 2.47 assists per game
  • 11th – 7.93 points per game
  • 13th – 2.73 goals per game
  • 15th – 2.64 scoring average
  • 17th – 1.22 scoring margin
  • T18th – .33 shutouts per game
• The rank of the Great Danes at the conference:
  • 1st – 7.93 points per game
  • 1st – 2.47 assists per game
  • 1st – 1.47 goals conceded per game
  • 2nd – 2.73 goals per match
  • 3rd – 8.93 shots on target per match

ON THE NATIONAL STAGE

(From October 24)

• The Great Danes have four student-athletes currently ranked in the national (NCAA Division I) statistics:
  • Alison Smith
    • 3rd – 1.20 goals per game
    • 4th – 2.73 points per game
    • T7th – 4 defensive saves
  • Floor de Ruiter
    • T13th – .67 assists per game
  • Lara Behn
    • 9th – .800 Goaltender Win-Loss Percentage
    • 27th – 1,487 goals against average
  • Mara Kyskes
    • T43rd – .47 assists per game

IN EAST AMERICA

(From October 24)

• The Great Danes have leaders in each of the seven offensive and two of the four goal stat categories:
  • Shots/game
  • Shots on goal/match
  • Goals/game
  • Assists/game
  • Game winning goals/game
  • Points/game
  • Defensive saves

ABOUT MAINE

• The Black Bears are just above .500 with nine wins in 16 games.
• The Black Bears opened the season with a loss to #1 Northwestern (8.30) and followed with four straight wins over UMass (8.31), Indiana (9.2), Hofstra (9.6) and CMU (9. 8).
• After falling to #17 BC (9.13) and BU (9.15), Maine added three wins, including their first conference game of 2024 against Vermont (9.27).
• Since the start of competition, the Black Bears have added a win over UC Davis (10.6) and two losses to UMass Lowell (10.11) and Bryant (10.18) for a 2-2 conference record.
• Maine is currently coming off two straight losses.
• Olivia Geniti and Poppy Lambert lead the team with 20 points each.
• Five Black Bears have achieved at least 10 points. In addition to Geniti and Lambert, Kate Richardson (14), Victoria Tinghitella (13) and Alexandra Sacker (10) all have double figures.
• Rozárie Mrázová is Maine's starting goalkeeper. She has played all 16 games with 14 starts. In just under 860 minutes of action, she has a 1.89 goals against average and a .730 save percentage.

SERIES AGAINST THE BLACK BEARS

• UAlbany leads the all-time series, 20-16.
• The Great Danes faced Maine twice in the 2023 season, breaking several records in an 8-1 win in the AE semifinals.
• Earlier in 2023, UAlbany defeated the Black Bears 3-1, with three different scorers.

ABOUT COLGATE

• The Raiders are 3-11 with four conference losses this season.
• Colgate earned its first win over Central Michigan in overtime (9.13).
• Including a win over Mercyhurst (9.22), the Raiders' most recent match was their third win – a 4-2 victory over Bryant (10.20).
• Facing common opponents in Cornell, Lehigh, Ohio State and Bryant, Colgate fell in shutouts to #14 Ohio State (9.6) and Cornell (9.29), while earning one goal in a 5-1 loss at Lehigh (9 ,21).
• Dani Palmer and Grace Schmelzinger lead the team with eight points from three goals and two assists each.
• Lily Schoonmaker and Morgan Willis follow with seven points from two goals and three assists.
• Claire van Kempen leads three Raider goalies with 624 minutes for a 3.75 goals against average and a 0.649 save percentage.

SERIES AGAINST THE RAIDERS

AROUND EAST AMERICA

• At the top of the conference, UAlbany and New Hampshire have clinched a spot in the America East Tournament.
• The Great Danes lead with four wins in four games. The Wildcats are close behind with three wins in four games.
• UMass Lowell, Maine and Vermont are battling to round out the top four as they each have a 2-2 league record.
• Bryant and UC Davis are battling for the final spot in the tournament. Bryant recently earned his first conference victory over Maine in double overtime.

AMERICA EAST MATCHES THIS WEEK

• Friday
  • UMass Lowell at New Hampshire, 2 p.m
  • UAlbany at Maine, 3 p.m
  • Bryant in Vermont, 3 p.m
• Sunday
  • Colgate at UAlbany, noon
  • Bryant at Holy Cross, 1 p.m
  • Merrimack in New Hampshire, 1 p.m
  • Louisville at UC Davis, 2 p.m

NEXT

The Great Danes prepare for their final regular season game against Vermont on Friday, November 1.

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