Oct. 22, 2009

AMHERST, Mass. - The No. 16 UMass field hockey team will play two games this weekend, first hosting Richmond at Garber Field on Friday at 3 p.m. and then traveling to St. Louis to take on the Billikens on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET. The Minutewomen will be looking to snap their three game skid when they take on the Spiders in a match up of the winners of the last 13 A-10 Championships.

Last Week
Last weekend, Anne Shreuders netted a hat trick, including two goals in the first eight minutes of the first half, to help St. Joseph's down the Minutewomen 3-0. UMass dominated statistically in the opening half, outshooting the Hawks 11-2. The loss was UMass' first to an A-10 opponent in 15 games, and just the second under head coach Justine Sowry, dating back to a 2-1 loss at Temple on Oct. 12, 2007.

Massachusetts then suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to Temple two days later in double overtime. Makaela Potts scored the lone goal for the Minutewomen off a pass from Christine Cutry. UMass held the advantage statistically as it outshot Temple, 21-16, and drew more penalty corners, 10-7, but Owls goalkeeper Sara Dalrymple made 10 saves to carry her team. The two losses dropped UMass in the national polls to No. 16, but they are still the only A-10 team in the NFHCA poll.

Series Vs. Richmond & Saint Louis
UMass is 7-8 all-time against the Spiders, but have won the last three meetings. Last season, the Minutewomen defeated Richmond on the road 3-1 before knocking off the Spiders again in the Atlantic 10 Championship game 2-0. The last time Richmond traveled to Amherst, in 2007, Nicole Phelan scored on a penalty stroke to give UMass the 1-0 lead and snap a five-year win drought against the Spiders.

Massachusetts is an undefeated 6-0 against Saint Louis all-time. The Minutewomen downed the Billikens, 5-0, last season in Amherst. UMass' last trip to the Gateway City was in 2007, a 1-0 win for the Minutewomen.

Last Season Vs. Richmond
Two goals by Katelyn Orlando and another by Katie Kelly led No. 17 UMass as the Minutewomen won their A-10 Conference opener, 3-1, over Richmond on Oct. 10. UMass scored all its goals early in each half.

Senior captain Mary Shea scored a first half goal, Cher King scored one in the second half, and the defense did the rest as top-seeded UMass defeated second-seeded Richmond, 2-0, to win the Atlantic 10 Championship at Temple's Geasey Field on Nov. 8.

Last Season Vs. Saint Louis
Led by a two-goal effort by Jill Powers and a one-goal two-assist day from Mary Shea, No. 17 UMass dominated SLU, 5-0, on Oct. 12, 2008 at Garber Field. Katie Kelly added a goal and an assist, while Katelyn Orlando scored as well. Sarah Williams earned the shutout in goal and ran her record to 3-0. The Minutewomen controlled the game throughout, outshooting the Billikens, 23-8, and drew 10 penalty corners to Saint Louis' five.

Scouting Richmond
The Spiders are fresh off a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Virginia Commonwealth on Tuesday. Megan Thompson scored two goals for Richmond, including the game-winner in double overtime. Thompson's four-point performance Tuesday moved her into eighth on Richmond's all-time scoring list with 77 points.

Richmond is led this season by Sarah Blythe-Wood, who has 16 goals and 7 assists. The Spiders have a player leading in every offensive statistical category among Atlantic 10 athletes, with Blythe-Wood leading in shots, points, and goals.

Scouting Saint Louis
St. Louis has struggled this season, going 1-13 with a 0-2 record early in conference play. Sunday's game against UMass will be the Billikens' first since October 1; dating back to last season, St. Louis is 1-8 at home.

St. Louis is in the midst of 11 straight losses; their lone victory of the year came against Robert Morris on September 6. In their last six games, the Billikens have been outscored 42-2, and have been shutout in 11 of their 13 losses. St. Louis' leading scorer is Nicole Kent, who has three goals and an assist to go along with a team-high 19 shots.

Looking Ahead
UMass plays its last non-conference game of the season on Wednesday when it hosts Dartmouth at Garber Field at 6 p.m. The three-game homestand to close the regular season continues next weekend when the Minutewomen host La Salle on Friday at 3 p.m. and West Chester on Sunday at noon on Senior Day.