Virginia Opens 2015 Field Hockey Season on Friday
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| Drexel Dragons at No. 9 Virginia | |
| Date and Time | Friday, Aug. 28, 6 p.m. |
| Location | Charlottesville, Va. | Turf Field |
| Media | |
| Additional Information | 2014 Season Stats | 2015 Season Preview | 2015 Fact Book (.pdf) |
| Social Media | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram |
Aug. 28, 2015
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 9 Virginia field hockey team opens the 2015 season this Friday, Aug. 28, when it hosts Drexel at 6 p.m. at Turf Field in Charlottesville, Va.
Admission is free for all of Virginia’s regular-season home field hockey games.
The Cavaliers return their top-six goal scorers from last season, including 2014 NFHCA First-Team All-American and ACC Freshman of the Year Tara Vittese (Cherry Hill, NJ.), who scored 17 goals with 17 assists, as well as all-region honorees juniors Caleigh Foust (Bryn Mawr, Pa.) and Lucy Hyams (Whitstable, England). The Cavaliers, who have 16 returning letterwinners, will be bolstered by the addition of six true freshmen, all of whom could see playing time this season, including strikers Greta Ell (Plains, Pa.) and Bailey Fanikos (Lynnfield, Mass.), midfielders Nikki Freeman (Downington, Pa.) and Izzy McDonough (Kennett Square, Pa.) and backs Laura Schnatmeier (Bad Schwartau, Germany) and Emma Haupt (Virginia Beach, Va.).
Virginia, last season’s regular-season ACC co-champion, has been picked to finish fourth in the preseason ACC poll and is ranked ninth in the preseason Penn Monto/NFHCA Coaches Poll. The Cavaliers finished the 2014 campaign with a 12-8 overall record, going 4-2 in conference games.
The Dragons, 10-8 last season, have 10 freshmen joining the ranks of their ten returners, which includes preseason All-CAA junior midfielder Jessica McCarthy and senior back Jenna Knouse. Drexel has been picked to finish fifth in the conference behind Delaware, James Madison, Northeastern and William & Mary.
This is the second-ever meeting between the two teams with Virginia having earned a 2-1 overtime victory in a neutral-site game during the 2003 season.
The Cavaliers will close out the opening-weekend homestand by hosting No. 7 Penn State on Sunday, Aug. 30 at noon at Turf Field.