Northwestern University Athletics
Field Hockey Travels to Maryland This Weekend
9/5/2001 12:00:00β―AM | Field Hockey
Sept. 5, 2001
EVANSTON, Ill. - The Northwestern field hockey team is taking its first road trip of the young season, heading to College Park, Md., for the Maryland Invitational. The 'Cats will take on the host University of Maryland and James Madison.
"The challenge for us this weekend is to know where we are as a team and discover the progress we've made," said head coach Marisa Didio. "I'll present our team with a challenge, to see how well we can use these next two weekends to get better and these games as opportunities to grow."
NU enters the weekend on a two-game losing streak after dropping a heartbreaker to Ball State, 1-0, in overtime last Sunday at Lakeside Field. The 'Cats outshot the Cardinals, 9-6, and had a 7-5 advantage in penalty corners. Two days earlier, Hofstra downed the Wildcats 3-2.
The 'Cats only win so far came in dramatic fashion, as Diane Provencher (North Conway, N.H./ Kennett) scored with 3:42 left in the second overtime to beat Southwest Missouri State, 3-2. Michelle Cifelli (Fairfield, N.J./West Essex) was the offensive catalyst in that game, scoring two goals and recording the game-winning assist.
In the season opener, Northwestern outshot the Chippewas of Central Michigan 5-3 and had eight penalty corners compared to three for CMU. But Central Michigan took advantage of its scoring opportunities and defeated the Wildcats 2-1.
Maryland enters the weekend with a 3-1 record, outscoring its opponents 20-2. U-of-M defeated California (8-0), Pacific (8-0) and Stanford (3-0). The lone loss came against defending national champion Old Dominion, 2-1. Kerry Hearsey and Ashley Hohnstine have combined for three shutouts, and boast a 0.50 goals against average. The Maryland offense has 117 shots and 52 penalty corners on the year. Lucy Morris and Colleen Barberi lead the team with four goals apiece as nine different Terrapins have scored this season.
James Madison is 1-2 on the year, defeating Towson State 3-0 before falling to Duke (2-1 in overtime) and Wake Forest (3-1).
