No. 4 Wildcats Ready for Pair of Top-10 Road Matchups

NORTHWESTERN FIELD HOCKEY: GAMEDAY INFORMATION
DATE	Opponent	TIME	LOCATION	Stream	Live Stats
Thursday, Sept. 30	#7 Maryland	5 pm CT	College Park, Md.	B1G+	Live Stats
Sunday, Oct. 3	#8 Penn State	11 am CT	University Park, Pa.	B1G+	Live Stats
Social: Twitter: @NUFHCats Instagram: @NUFHCats

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Northwestern Field Hockey hits the road this weekend for the first time during its Big Ten season with a pair of Top-10 challenges. The No. 4 Wildcats will face off at No. 7 Maryland on Thursday evening before traveling to No. 8 Penn State for a Sunday matinee.

In their last time out, the Wildcats opened their Big Ten season with a 2-1 setback to No. 10 Rutgers at Lakeside Field. Kayla Blas scored the first goal of the game to give the 'Cats a 1-0 lead at halftime, but a pair of second half goals from the Scarlet Knights proved to be the difference.

Annabel Skubisz turned in a phenomenal effort in goal vs. Rutgers, notching six saves in the first half alone while finishing the game with a season-high seven saves.

Northwestern was slotted No. 4 in this week's latest NFHCA poll, making the Wildcats one of six Big Ten teams ranked among the Top-8 teams in the country. Additionally, the Big Ten currently makes up the entire Top-5 of the most recent NCAA RPI rankings, a crucial factor in determining teams' postseason fate for the 18-team NCAA Tournament field beginning in November.

As a team, Northwestern currently ranks in the Top-5 in the country in both scoring (4.20 goals per game, fourth in nation) and margin of victory (3.00, third in nation). Bente Baekers leads the team with eight goals on the year to go along with six assists. Aside from Baekers, a number of Wildcats have stepped up offensively at different points in the season, with 10 different Wildcats netting multiple goals throughout the season.

Last season, the Wildcats claimed 2-1 victories in both meetings vs. Maryland–both of which took place in Virginia Beach. The 'Cats are seeking their first victory over Penn State since 2016; each of the teams' last two matchups have gone to at least double overtime, with the Nittany Lions taking a dramatic shootout victory last season in Virginia Beach.

No. 4 Wildcats Ready for Pair of Top-10 Road Matchups

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Players Mentioned

Bente Baekers

Kayla Blas

Annabel Skubisz

Northwestern University Athletics