Oct. 6, 2011
CENTER VALLEY, Pa. - Patriot League action rolls on for the sports of field hockey, volleyball, men's and women's soccer during the month of October. The upcoming weekend marks the four-week mark before the field hockey and women's soccer championships are decided. Below is a preview of League play in all four sports this weekend.
Women's Soccer
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Composite Schedule/Results
Army (8-2-2, 1-0-0 PL) hosts Colgate (8-4-0, 1-0-0) at West Point for the teams' first meeting since the Black Knights posted a 1-0 win over the Raiders in overtime in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals a year ago. The two played to a scoreless draw in Hamilton, N.Y. when the teams met during the 2010 regular season. Colgate was held to just one shot on goal in that contest, but the Raiders offense has been much more productive this season with their goal output having already exceeded last year's total.
Two teams who have played very consistently since the start of the season will meet in Easton, Pa., when Lafayette (6-3-1, 1-0-0) hosts Navy (8-3-2, 1-0-0). The Leopards are enjoying their best start since 2001, when they began the season 7-3-0 and last qualified for the League Tournament. Navy earned three points on the road the hard way last weekend at American, tying the match in the final minute of regulation and winning in the 110th minute.
Lehigh (4-5-1, 0-1-0) snapped its three-match skid with Monday's 1-0 overtime victory over Columbia. The Mountain Hawks will get back into League play with Friday's contest against visiting American (4-8-1, 0-1-0), who is trying to rebound from last week's double-overtime loss to Navy. The two clubs played to a 1-1 tie in their meeting last season, and the point was enough to clinch a spot in the League Tournament for Lehigh. The Mountain Hawks, who were the No. 3 seed, eventually won the League crown and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
A pair of teams seeking their first League victory of the season will do battle when Bucknell (2-7-1, 0-1-0) travels to Holy Cross (2-7-2, 0-1-0). The Bison own a 14-5-2 edge in the series and have won six in a row between the two. The Crusaders last victory at home against Bucknell was a 1-0 win in 1999. Both clubs will look to build some kind of momentum heading into their matches on Sunday against teams currently tied for first in the League standings.
All four of Friday's matches are set for 7 p.m. All eight teams return to action Sunday to complete the second half of this weekend's contests. Lafayette will host American, Navy visits Lehigh, Colgate goes to Holy Cross and Army entertains Bucknell. All matches are scheduled for 1 p.m.
Men's Soccer
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Composite Schedule/Results
American (4-7-1, 2-0-0), which gave No. 13 Georgetown all it could handle before falling 2-1 on Tuesday, looks to step on the gas pedal in League play when it hosts Army (5-6-0, 1-1-0) at Reeves Field in Washington, D.C., Saturday at 1 p.m. The Black Knights orchestrated a stellar comeback Wednesday night, erasing a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 in double overtime over visiting Hartford. A win for the Eagles would give them nine points on the season and maintain their position in the driver's seat for the regular-season title and hosting duties for the Patriot League Tournament.
Preseason favorite Colgate (6-2-2, 0-1-1) looks for its first League win of the season when it visits Holy Cross (1-7-2, 0-2-0) in Worcester, Mass., at 1 p.m. The Raiders have yet to score a goal against a League team this season, settling for a scoreless draw last week versus Lehigh and losing 3-0 the week before to American. The Crusaders were held at bay by a very tough Lafayette defense in last week's 2-0 loss. Both teams might take more chances offensively as they seek critical points near the midway point of the League season.
After a break in the middle of the day, League play resumes at 7 p.m. when Lehigh (4-1-4, 1-0-1) takes the short trip to Easton, Pa., to visit archrival Lafayette (5-2-3, 1-0-1). The two, who are separated by only 15 miles in distance, have zero daylight between them in the League standings, with both tied for second with Navy at four points. The showdown will pit two of the nation's top defenses against one another, as both the clubs and their respective goalkeepers rank in the NCAA's top five in goals-against average and save percentage as of Monday.
After dropping its first two League matches, two-time defending League champion Bucknell (5-5-1, 0-2-0) faces a crucial game at Navy (4-4-3, 1-0-1). The Bison offense has slowed suddenly over its last three contests, going 0-2-1 over that span including Tuesday's scoreless draw against a very tough UMBC team. The Mids have accumulated four points through its first two League matches for the first time since joining the League 20 years ago and will try to keep the upward momentum moving.
Field Hockey
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The second weekend of the Patriot League field hockey season features two of last week's winners facing off with Lafayette visiting Bucknell in a series that has been very competitive in recent years.
The teams have played in both the regular season and Patriot League Tournament in each of the past three years, with Lafayette winning two of three at both venues. The winner of the matchup has gone on to grab the No. 2 seed in the Patriot League Tournament in each of the last three years.
In other action, American visits Holy Cross and Colgate takes on Lehigh. The Eagles are trying to move to 2-0 after shutting out Lehigh last week, while the Raiders and Mountain Hawks each seek their first League win in Bethlehem. The winner of that matchup has gone on to claim the No. 4 seed in the Patriot League Tournament in each of the past three years.
Volleyball
Weekly Release
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Composite Schedule/Results
After two weeks in which each League team played a pair of League opponents, the third weekend of League play features only four contests as the travel partners get reacquainted with one another.
The four contest are spread out over three days, with American (11-9, 4-0 PL) taking the short trip to Annapolis, Md., to battle Navy (6-13, 1-3) Thursday at 7 p.m. The Eagles boast the League's best team hitting percentage (.243), thanks in part to the stellar play of Molten Player of the Week Sara Rishell, who averages 3.30 kills per set and converts over 31 percent of her swings. Navy's Holly Berger is tied for second in the League with 274 digs and sits fifth averaging nearly four per set. American has won 26 straight regular-season League contests dating back to the 2009 campaign.
Lafayette (7-9, 0-4) has the shortest trip of all this weekend, taking the 15-mile trek to visit rival Lehigh (10-7, 2-2) Friday at 7 p.m. The Leopards are looking for their first win of League play in 2011 and will try to snap a six-match skid when they battle the Mountain Hawks at Grace Hall. Lehigh sits in a fourth-place tie with Holy Cross at 2-2 in the League standings. Angelika Kopacz and Paige Kruse sit in the League's top 10 in kills per set, and three Mountain Hawks rank in the top five in service aces per set. One of those two remaining slots is occupied by Lafayette freshman Danielle Towslee (second, 0.42).
The first of Saturday's two matches pits Army (12-6, 3-1) against Holy Cross (6-14, 2-2) in Worcester, Mass., for a 2 p.m. start. Both clubs are coming in off losses Wednesday. The Black Knights fell in three sets against visiting Sacred Heart, while the Crusaders dropped a five-set match at Bryant. Holy Cross pushed Army to five sets in their final meeting of the regular season a year ago, but the Black Knights have won 10 in a row in the series dating back to 2005.
The day wraps up with Colgate (6-11, 3-1) hosting Bucknell (4-9, 1-3) at 4 p.m. The Bison have been idle since last weekend's League action in which they captured a split at home, while the Raiders swept a pair of League contests before falling in a tough three-set match at Syracuse Wednesday in non-League play. The Raiders fell in each set by a score of 26-24. The Raiders are tied for second with Army at 3-1 while sitting a game behind first-place American.