Mountain Hawks host No. 14 American in PL opener Saturday
9/30/2010 6:30:00 PM | Field Hockey
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh field hockey team opens Patriot League play on Saturday when it hosts No. 14 American at Ulrich Field. Gametime is set for 11 a.m. The Mountain Hawks will be wearing special pink jerseys for their first-ever Pink Game to help promote and raise funds for breast cancer awareness.
Fans can help make a difference in the fight against breast cancer by purchasing a pink Lehigh t-shirt. They are on sale at Lehighsports.com (link below) and will be available at the merchandise table on Saturday. A portion of the proceeds will go directly to Susan G. Komen for the cure.
After more than two weeks away from home, the Mountain Hawks return to Ulrich Field for the start of their 'second season.' Saturday marks the first of five conference games (three at home and two on the road) with the top four teams advancing to the Patriot League Semifinals on Nov. 5. Lehigh is looking for its second straight PL Tournament berth after advancing as the No. 4 seed last year.
Lehigh will face its toughest test right off the bat, against seven-time defending Patriot League Champion and No. 14 nationally-ranked American. The Eagles enter the weekend with a 7-2 record, riding a six-game winning streak. The Mountain Hawks look to hand them their first loss since Sept. 5 while winning their league opener for a second consecutive year.
The Mountain Hawks bounced back from a tough losing streak with a pair of strong games last week. They started on Wednesday by shutting out Siena in dominating fashion. Not only did they outscore them, 4-0, but they outshot them by a 25-8 final as well. The win marked their largest margin of victory since 2006 while the goal output tied a season-high. It was also Lehigh's first shutout since 2008.
Two standouts from that game – junior Madison Ingal and senior Jessica Miller – earned honorable mention laurels on this week's Patriot League weekly honor roll. Ingal tied a career-high with two goals while Miller earned her first-career shutout.
The Mountain Hawks followed on Saturday with a hard-fought 3-2 loss at La Salle. The player of the game was junior Caitlin Donnelly, who continued her hot streak by scoring both goals. She now has five goals in her last four games after tallying her first-career hat trick against Saint Joseph's on Sept. 15. The Bethlehem native is tied for the team-lead with five goals and 10 points.
Lehigh has been idle since as it prepares for this Saturday's league opener. The squad will be looking for its first-ever win against American. The closest it came was a heartbreaking 6-5 double overtime loss on Oct. 21, 2006. The Mountain Hawks put together an incredible comeback, scoring four consecutive goals in the game's final 25:36 to even the score at five and force overtime. The tying score came at 70:00 off a penalty corner.
American is led by Shelly Montgomery with five goals while Christine Fingerhuth and Lotte Van de mierop each have four. Gina Hoffman has three goals and a team-leading seven assists to lead the Eagles with 13 points. Hannah Weitzman has been strong in goal, with a 0.91 GAA. Incredibly, she has only needed to make 15 saves in nine games on the season.
While American head coach Steve Jennings recently picked up his 150th career win, Lehigh's Julie Mazer stands two away from a milestone of her own – her 100th.
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness and Play 4 the Cure month, so come out and support the Mountain Hawks as they help fight breast cancer.
The game can be seen live on Lehighsports.com. Live stats will also be available through GameCentral.
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