Third-Ranked UVa Opens ACC Play Friday

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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The third-ranked Virginia field hockey team (7-0) opens Atlantic Coast Conference play at 4 p.m. Friday against No. 12 Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Mass. The Cavaliers, in the midst of a five-game road swing, conclude the trip Sunday with a noon game at Cornell. Live stats for both contests will be available at VirginiaSports.com.

Virginia is coming off a 4-0 win at Lafayette last Saturday, in which all four goals came in the second half. Junior Paige Selenski notched two goals and an assist against the Leopards while teammates Elly Buckley and Michelle Vittese also scored.

Selenski paces the UVa offense with 11 goals on the year, while sophomore Tara Puffenberger has scored five times. Buckley has made immediate contributions as she leads the team with six assists. Senior Kim Kastuk has been solid in the cage with 28 saves and a .903 save percentage.

Boston College is 6-2 on the year and enters the weekend following a 5-1 road victory over Towson. BC lost its conference opener last weekend to second-ranked Maryland, 4-2. Janna Anctil leads the Eagles with four goals and two assists and Kristine Stigas has 14 saves and a .824 save percentage in the cage.

The Cavaliers hold a 7-5 all-time advantage against Boston College and have won the last three meetings. Last year, UVa downed BC 2-0 in Charlottesville. The last Eagle victory came in 2007 in Virginia’s ACC opener.

Cornell is 4-1 entering the weekend. The Big Red opened its season with wins over Lock Haven (1-0) and Delaware (4-3 in OT) before dropping a decision to Bucknell (3-0). Cornell has since rebounded with wins over Saint Joseph’s (3-2) and Penn (4-0). Catie De Stio paces the offense with three goals and three assists while Alex Botte holds down the defense with 29 saves and a .784 save percentage.

Virginia is 2-1 all-time against Cornell and earned a 3-0 victory in Charlottesville a year ago.