Aug. 30, 2012
NORFOLK, Va. – The No. 3 Old Dominion University field hockey team faces a tough road test this weekend against a pair of ACC opponents when they face No. 1 Maryland on Friday at 7 p.m. and No. 8 Virginia on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Old Dominion (1-1) split in their opening weekend of the season as they fell at No. 9 Penn State, 5-2, before rebounding on Sunday to double up No. 25 American, 2-1, in Washington, D.C.
Redshirt junior Christy Longacre scored a goal in each contest while sophomore Kelsey Smither recorded an assist in each game. Freshman Sarah Breen scored her first career goal in Friday’s loss while sophomore Rosario Villagra’s first career goal resulted in the game-winner on Sunday. Freshman goalkeeper Friederike Jahns saw the majority of the time in the cage over the weekend.
Maryland (2-0), the two-time defending national champions, survived a pair of close contests on the west coast last weekend as they defeated No. 16 California, 2-1, and then edged No. 11 Stanford in a double overtime thriller, 3-2. Junior Jill Whitmer has three goals thus far for the Terps while sophomore Katie Gerzabek has added two of her own.
The Terps hold the slim lead in the all-time series with the Lady Monarchs, 24-22-1. Last season, ODU won both regular season match-ups with a 4-0 win in Norfolk and a 5-2 win in College Park that snapped Maryland’s 38-game home win streak. The Terps got revenge however as they defeated Old Dominion in the Final Four in Louisville, 4-0, en route to their second straight national title.
Virginia (2-1) thrashed Richmond on Wednesday in Charlottesville, 6-1. Last weekend, they won at Temple in overtime, 4-3, before falling at No. 9 Penn State on Sunday, 3-2. Returning to this year’s squad are redshirt seniors Paige Selenski and Michelle Vittese who took last year off from college to prepare with Team USA for the 2012 London Olympics. Selenski has four goals and three assists already for UVA this season while sophomore Rachel Sumfest has added three goals and two assists and junior Elly Buckley has a pair of goals and four assists for the Cavaliers.
ODU holds a 33-13 all-time lead in the series with UVA. Last season, the Lady Monarchs defeated the Cavaliers in Norfolk, 4-1. Old Dominion will look for the first win in Charlottesville since the 2006 season.