Sept. 8, 2011
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The No. 2 Old Dominion field hockey team is set to take on No. 5 Syracuse and Ohio State this weekend in the Buckeye Classic in Columbus, Ohio. The classic will feature three teams that advanced to the 2010 NCAA Quarterfinals last season.
The Lady Monarchs (4-0) will take on Syracuse on Saturday and then face the Buckeyes on Sunday with both games scheduled to start at 2 p.m.
Old Dominion, which is off to its best start since 1999, will be taking on its fifth straight Top 10 team and third consecutive squad ranked in the Top 5 Saturday when the Lady Monarchs battle the Orange. ODU has outscored its opponents 17-4 this season and has not allowed a score in the first half of play all year.
Two-time Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Week Emma Batten leads the Lady Monarchs with 13 points and six goals, while senior Kathryn Kirk has contributed seven points on three goals and an assist. Senior goalkeeper Devon Seifert boasts a 1.29 goals against average in four games against Top 10 opponents.
Syracuse is off to a 2-1 start with its lone lost coming in a one-goal game against No. 1 North Carolina. In their last contest, the Orange defeated ACC foe Wake Forest, 4-1, on the campus of the University of North Carolina. Syracuse seniors Heather Susek and Liz McInerney were both named to the BIG EAST Weekly honor roll following their performances last weekend in the Tar Heel state.
Ohio State returns to Columbus after claiming two road wins against Richmond (Sept. 3) and James Madison (Sept. 4) in Harrisonburg, Va. The Buckeyes (2-3) posted a come-from-behind victory against the Spiders in a neutral-site matchup at JMU Field Hockey Complex. Sophomore Paula Pastor-Pitarque tied the game at 1-1 with 26 seconds left in regulation to force overtime. Following two overtimes and eight penalty stroke attempts, the native of Barcelona, Spain, clinched the victory with the game-winning stroke. The team then defeated the Dukes, 2-0, to mark the first OSU shutout of 2011. Juniors Berta Queralt and Danica Deckard scored goals for the Buckeyes, while the team outshot James Madison, 18-3.
-ODU-