Oct. 19, 2012
NORFOLK, Va. - The ninth-ranked Old Dominion University field hockey team returns to CAA action on Sunday as they face James Madison at 1 p.m. at the JMU Field Hockey Complex in Harrisonburg.
Last weekend, ODU split against a pair of ACC foes at home. The Lady Monarchs saw their seven-game win streak come to an end Friday night when No. 6 Maryland used a strong second half to pull away late, 5-2. Redshirt sophomore Nicole Goff and sophomore Rosario Villagra each scored for ODU.
On Sunday, ODU rebounded to sweep the season series with Duke as they held on late for a 3-2 win. Goff scored the lone goal in the first half while freshman Sarah Breen and senior Maartje van Rijswijk each scored to pace the Lady Monarchs in the second half.
ODU is ranked ninth in the latest Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll. The Lady Monarchs have been ranked in the top-10 for 18 consecutive weeks dating back to last season.
The Lady Monarchs continue to distribute the ball well offensively this season with 11 different players having scored a goal. Breen leads the team with 11 goals while Villagra has nine and redshirt junior co-captain Christy Longacre has added eight. Sophomore Kelsey Smither leads the team with eight assists with Breen and Villagra have tallied seven each. In goal, Marla Petriello has allowed 19 goals in 10 starts and has collected 39 saves this season while posting a goals against average of 1.82.
James Madison (8-6, 2-2) takes on William & Mary on Friday evening in Harrisonburg. The Dukes are coming off back-to-back shutout losses at home to Duke and No. 17 Richmond. Redshirt junior Rachel Wein leads the offense with six goals and three assists while redshirt freshman Taylor West has added five goals and three assists. Freshman goalkeeper Lena Wimmert has allowed just 16 goals all season for a 1.10 goals against average to go along with 71 saves and four shutouts.
Old Dominion leads the all-time series with JMU, 50-10. The Duke last defeated ODU in the CAA Tournament in 2008, 1-0. In their last meeting in Harrisonburg in 2009, ODU edged the Dukes, 2-1. The two teams met twice in 2011 with ODU winning 7-1 in the regular season and 6-1 in the CAA Tournament quarterfinals, both in Norfolk.
Live stats will be available for the game as well as a video and audio feed. Follow Old Dominion Field Hockey on Twitter at twitter.com/ODUFieldHockey and find them on Facebook at facebook.com/ODUFH.