After splitting its first two away games of the season, the Georgetown field hockey team returns to Cooper Field to play Quinnipiac for its Big East conference opener Sept. 15.
Georgetown then takes on Towson University away on Sunday.
The Hoyas (4-2, Big East) lost 2-4 against UMass Lowell (4-2, America East) in an exhausting triple overtime game this past weekend. However, Georgetown came back to beat Holy Cross (2-3, Patriot League) 4-3 in its next game. After falling behind 2-3 at the 15:18 minute mark, the Hoyas came back to score two goals in the final 10 minutes to win. The Blue and Gray dominated offensively, earning 12 penalty corners to the Crusaders’ six.
Carrying that momentum, Georgetown hopes to continue its offensive dominance Friday against Quinnipiac (1-6, Big East).
Georgetown Head Coach Shannon Soares said the players are now focusing on their next opponent after an intense weekend.
“We came back to practice today to focus on striker movement and leading and free-hits inside of the 25 and some overtime play,” Soares said. “But, for us, it’s going to be leading to our Big East opener against Quinnipiac. It is just going to be preparing set pieces, repping, pressing and outleting.”
The two teams met for the first time last season at Quinnipiac for the Bobcats’ first Big East conference game ever. Quinnipiac put early pressure on Georgetown offensively, taking 15 shots to Georgetown’s three in the first half. The Bobcats put four of their 21 shots in the back of the cage, beating the Hoyas 4-2.
In that game, Quinnipiac senior forward and captain Michelle Federico scored the final two goals for Quinnipiac to win the game. So far this season, Federico has one goal and two assists.
In preparation for their match against the Bobcats, the Hoyas are focusing on creating opportunities and pressing early.
“It’s taken us a little while to get into the flow of the match and to really start to use our press as our best form of attack,” Soares said. “A big focus of moving into this weekend’s match is going to be starting the match off with our foot on the gas pedal from a pressing perspective.”
Quinnipiac has been struggling to find its footing, starting off the season with five straight losses. However, Georgetown should not count out senior midfielder Dayna Barlow and sophomore forward Valerie Perkins, who lead the team with two goals each. Last weekend Quinnipiac earned its first win of the season, beating Yale 4-2 at home, a game in which Barlow scored two goals.
Georgetown will continue to look to its freshmen to make an impact offensively. Freshman midfielder Cami Osborne leads the team with four goals. After scoring two goals and contributing two assists last weekend, freshman back Anna Farley was named Big East Rookie of the Week. Farley is Georgetown’s fourth player on the weekly honor roll this season.
“It just goes to show that we’ve got some depth this year,” Soares said. “We have kids that are stepping up to the plate and playing like upperclassmen and that has been a really fun and positive thing to see.”
After taking on Quinnipiac at home on Friday, Georgetown travels to Baltimore to play Towson (0-6, Coastal Conference) on Sunday. The two teams played last season for Georgetown’s Senior Day on Oct. 23. The Hoyas came out on top, winning 4-0 and taking 25 shots. All four of Georgetown’s goals came off penalty corners.
For this matchup, the Hoyas look to penalty corners as an effective way of breaking through the Tigers’ defense and getting open opportunities.
Although the Tigers have only scored three goals this season, senior goalie Emilee Woodall has kept the team alive, making 90 saves thus far.
Only seven players have taken shots for the Tigers, while 10 different Hoyas have scored. Offensively, the Hoyas look to take advantage of their depth and get more players shooting opportunities, as they did on Sunday against Holy Cross.
The Hoyas begin their Big East season Friday against Quinnipiac at 2 p.m. on Cooper Field. Sunday’s game against Towson is scheduled for 12 p.m. in Towson, Md.
