Aug. 24, 2017
Field Hockey Complex | University Park, Pa.
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Aug. 24, 2016
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -The Penn State field hockey team officially opens the 2017 season on the road against traditional season opening opponents Old Dominion and Virginia. Friday the Nittany Lions travel to No. 23 Old Dominion at 6 p.m., followed by a noon match against the No. 10 Virginia Cavaliers on Sunday afternoon in Charlottesville, Va.
OPENING WEEKEND VS RANKED OPPONENTS
Penn State is 9-5 in their season openers with ODU and UVA dating back to 2010. Old Dominion and Virginia have also been ranked on opening weekends during that span with Penn State claiming wins over both Top-10 squads UVA (No.8) and ODU (No.3) during the 2012 season that saw the Nittany Lions finish the season 18-4. Last season Penn State upset then-No. 5 Virginia at Field Hockey Complex by a score of 3-0.
OLD DOMINION SERIES HISTORY
Penn State is 15-16 all-time in their series with the Monarchs dating back to 1982. Penn State defeated to Old Dominion 6-2 in its last meeting on Aug. 26, 2016, during the season opening weekend.
SCOUTING OLD DOMINION
• Returning 17 players from last season's roster, the Lady Monarchs welcome back two all-conference honorees in Chrissy Horn and Danielle Grega.
• The team's leading-scorer in 2015 & 2016, Danielle Grega returns for the Lady Monarchs to begin her senior season after netting seven goals and adding one assist last year.
• The ODU field hockey team welcomes eight freshmen to the squad for the 2017 season.
• ODU's Danielle Grega was named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team, earning the accolade as a unanimous selection.
VIRGINIA SERIES HISTORY
Penn State is 17-7 all-time against the Cavaliers in their series dating back to 1980. Penn State upset then-No. 5 Virginia 3-0 in its last meeting on Aug. 28, 2016, during the season opening weekend in University Park.
SCOUTING VIRGINIA
• The Cavaliers finished the 2016 campaign with a 16-8 record, advancing to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament before falling to Princeton. The squad enters the season ranked No. 10 in the NFHCA preseason poll and selected to finish fifth in the ACC in a vote by the league's head coaches.
• Virginia has a veteran leader on the field in senior midfielder Tara Vittese. Vittese comes into the season as the returning leader in goals and assists totaling 15 and 11, respectively, in 2016.
• Virginia also returns the goalkeeper Carrera Lucas who started the final 20 games of the season in 2016, posting a 14-6 record and finished second in the ACC in saves per games (5.20).
CHEERING ON THE BLUE & WHITE
Penn State finished the 2016 season ranked No. 1 in average attendance in the nation. Penn State broke the Field Hockey Complex record with a total of 967 in attendance for a conference game against Maryland and was a part of the most attended game during the 2016 season as the Nittany Lions captured the Big Ten Tournament title against the very same Terrapins in College Park that was played in front of 969 fans.
B1G PLAYERS TO WATCH
The Big Ten Conference announced its 2017 field hockey preseason honors highlighted by seven All-Big Ten selections from last season, including Penn State's Aurelia Meijer, Skyler Fretz and Gini Bramley.
CHALLENGING SLATE
Penn State has again put together a top-tier schedule, facing nine teams that were ranked in the 2017 NFHCA Preseason Poll, including conference-foes Maryland (6), Michigan (11), Northwestern (14), and Iowa (17). Along with the conference opponents, the squad also has matchups against Delaware (3), Princeton (8), Virginia (10), Wake Forest (15), and Old Dominion (23). Six teams (Kent State, Princeton, Virginia, Michigan, Delaware, Maryland) each made the 2016 NCAA Tournament.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT ON BTN
Penn State will play on BTN live Sunday, Oct. 15 starting at 3:00 p.m. as the Nittany Lions take on Maryland in College Park, Md. The crucial contest will be the Nittany Lion's third to last before the Big Ten tournament and is a re-match of last year's Big Ten Tournament Championship game that saw Penn State win its conference record seventh Big Ten tournament title. Penn State's game at Ohio State (Oct. 6) will also be streamed on BTN.
LEADERS OF THE PACK
Seniors Shay Cannon and Skyler Fretz were named the captains for the 2017 season.
NFHCA PRESEASON RANKINGS
The Penn State field hockey team opens the 2017 season ranked No. 7 in the nation as announced by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) preseason poll.
North Carolina earned the No. 1 spot in the preseason poll with 1,137 points and 14 first-place votes, while Duke was right behind with 1,081 points and 15 first-place votes.
Defending national champion Delaware checks in at No. 3 in the preseason ranking with 1,003 points and seven first-place votes and was followed closely by Connecticut with 993 points and four first-place votes and Syracuse with 978 points to round out the top five.
The Nittany Lions at No. 7 are the second highest Big Ten team in the ranking right behind Maryland who checks in at No. 6.
Penn State is slated to compete against nine of the teams that are listed in the preseason poll, including the defending National Champion Delaware Blue Hens.
The Big Ten is represented by five teams in the poll including No. 6 Maryland, No. 7 Penn State, No. 11 Michigan, No. 14 Northwestern and No. 17 Iowa.
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Penn State enters the 2017 season with four new faces in the Blue & White for the Nittany Lions. Freshman additions include Syd Dreisigmeyer, Clayre Smith, and Emma Spisak while Bree Bednarski is a transfer from Michigan.
POSTSEASON TRADITION
The Nittany Lions return after making the NCAA Tournament field six of the last seven seasons. Penn State has been at the top of the Big Ten in those seasons as well, being named co-conference regular season champions in 2013 and the outright winner in 2012. The squad won the Big Ten Tournament in 2011, 2012 and 2016.
ON THE TURF AND IN THE CLASSROOM
The Penn State field hockey program had six student-athletes recognized by Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award. The list includes students from every institution and 38 different sports who have recorded a minimum grade-point average (GPA) of 3.7 or higher for the previous academic year.
Shay Cannon Jr. Biobehavioral Health
Carly Celkos Sr. Rehabilitation and Human Services
Colleen Conway So. Mathematics
Kirsten Gochnauer Sr. Biobehavioral Health
Cassa Kline So. Biobehavioral Health
Lisa Winters Jr. Business Administration