University of Massachusets Athletics
Minutewomen To Play Sunday At Siena
September 14, 2007 | Field Hockey
Sept. 14, 2007
AMHERST, Mass. - UMass Field Hockey (3-4) travels to Loudonville, NY this weekend to take on the Siena Saints (0-4) in a 1 p.m. contest on Sunday at Siena Field. Coach Justine Sowry's Minutewomen come into the game looking to rebound from Wednesday night's 2-0 loss to Boston University. The Saints are still looking for their first victory of 2007.
Series History:
UMass and Siena have played each other only once. That meeting came last season, with UMass winning 4-0. The Minutewomen put on a show for the home crowd that day, highlighted by Erin O'Brien's (Annandale, Va.) first career hat trick. All three of O'Brien's goals came off penalty corners. Rachael Mervine (Conway, Mass.) tallied a career-high three assists in the contest. Nicole Phelan (North Andover, Mass.) accounted for the fourth goal and Sarah Williams (Colorado Springs, Colo.) recorded her first career shutout in goal.
UMass Report:
UMass enters the weekend looking to rebound from three straight losses. After stringing together three straight wins over Sacred Heart, Rutgers, and Harvard, the Minutewomen have dropped games to Vermont, New Hampshire, and Boston University.
The offense is still led by sophomore Cher King (Christ Chruch, Barbados). She has totaled five goals, one assist, 11 points, and 26 shots. Erin Parker (South Deerfield, Mass.) has been the play-making threat, totaling two assists on game-winners and 10 shots.
Senior backs O'Brien and Kristina DoRosario (Oakville, Ontario) continue to play stellar defense for UMass. Under their leadership, the defense has allowed the fewest shots in Atlantic 10 Conference.
Freshman Jaime Bourazeris (New Hyde Park, NY) has joined O'Brien and DoRosario in anchoring the back-line. The trio has started every game and they occupy the top three spots in minutes played for UMass this season.
The goaltending duo of senior Becky Letourneau (Greenfield, Mass.) and sophomore Williams have combined for three shutouts, which is tied for tops in the conference. Williams is 2-1 with a 0.59 goals-against average while Letourneau is 1-3 with 1.35 GAA.
Siena Report
Siena started the 2007 campaign with four straight road games. The Saints have lost all four, to Holy Cross, 7-1; Villanova, 10-0; Rhode Island, 3-1; and Albany, 7-0. They played at cross-town rival Albany on Friday night.
Siena is led by first-year head coach Bill Davidson. He comes to Loudonville following head coaching stints at SUNY New Paltz and Providence. Davidson is a UMass Class of 1988 alum. It will be the second time this season the Minutewomen have faced a team coached by one their own. Harvard coach Sue Caples ('82) was an All-American at UMass and helped lead the Minutewomen to the 1981 National Championship game.
Senior midfielder Hanna LeStrange and sophomore forward Kristen McGorty have each scored a goal for the Saints this season. Senior forward Traci Baldwin (5 goals in 2006) led the team in scoring last season and is still looking for her first goal in '07.
The goaltending duties have been split between juniors Renee Clavette and Jennifer Tesak. Clavette is 0-1 with a 6.17 GAA and .607 save percentage. Tesak has a 0-2 record with a 8.00 GAA and .333 save percentage.
Siena was 2-12 in 2006 with a 2-6 record in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. So far this season, they have been outscored 20-2 and outshot 60-17.
Sunday's game will mark the first game on Siena Field's new FieldTurf surface, the same turf as McGuirk Alumni Stadium. It will be UMass' first time playing on that type of surface this year.
Live Stats:
Live stats of the game will be available by clicking on the Gametracker link at UMassAthletics.com. Also, be sure to check UMassAthletics.com for the latest news, stats, and photos for UMass Field Hockey.