No. 3 Virginia Opens the Season Friday at No. 16 Penn State
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 3 Virginia field hockey team opens the 2024 season on Friday, Aug. 30, taking on No. 16 Penn State at 4 p.m. at the Penn State Field Hockey Complex in University Park, Pa.
HOW TO WATCH
- Friday’s match will stream online on Big Ten Plus (subscription required)
- Live stats are available
MATCH NOTES
- Virginia is ranked No. 3 in the NFHCA Preseason Poll
- Virginia has been ranked in the top 10 of the NFHCA poll since the Week 1 poll of the 2022 season
- The Cavaliers posted a 14-7 record in 2023, advancing to the NCAA Semifinals, it’s sixth Final Four appearance in program history
- The team returns its top three scorers from last year, including All-American senior midfielder Noa Boterman, junior midfielder Daniela Mendez-Trendler and senior striker Taryn Tkachuk
- The Cavaliers and Nittany Lions have played one another on opening weekend of the season every year since 2009 (except the pandemic season of 2020-21)
- Virginia won last year’s meeting 2-1 in Charlottesville. UVA was ranked No. 6 and Penn State No. 5
- This will be the first game for Ole Keusgen since being named the team’s head coach
- Carrera Lucas will be making her UVA coaching debut. The UVA alum was a goalkeeper for the Cavaliers from 2014-18, and spent the last five seasons as an assistant coach at Villanova
ON THE HORIZON
- The Cavaliers will host Temple on Friday, Sept. 6 in their home opener. The match is set for a 5 pm start
- Admission is free for all regular-season contests at Turf Field