| #8 Northwestern vs. #7 Stanford |
|
| Date | Friday, Oct. 10 | 6 p.m. CT |
| Location | Ocker Field | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| Live Stats | GameTracker |
| Social Media | @NUFHCats | Facebook |
| #8 Northwestern at Central Michigan |
|
| Date | Sunday, Oct. 12 | 11 a.m. CT |
| Location | CMU Field Hockey Complex | Mount Pleasant, Mich. |
| Live Updates | @CMUFieldhockey |
| Social Media | @NUFHCats | Facebook |
EVANSTON, Ill. -- No. 8 Northwestern makes its first of two consecutive trips to the state of Michigan as it takes on No. 7 Stanford and Central Michigan.
The top-10 matchup against the Cardinal takes place at 6 p.m. Central time Friday in Ann Arbor while the 'Cats take on the Chippewas at 11 a.m. CT Sunday.
NU returns to the Great Lakes State next weekend as well as it travels to Michigan and Michigan State. Coupled with the Big Ten tournament Nov. 6-9, this week's trip is the first of three trips to Ann Arbor for the 'Cats this season which certainly sits well with Ann Arbor natives Kelsey Gradwohl, Kelsey Thompson and Katie Yeatts.
Northwestern jumped up three spots to No. 8 in this week's Penn Monto/NFHCA poll following last Sunday's 3-1 win at then-No. 7 Iowa. It marks the third straight season that the Wildcats have earned a top-10 national ranking. Meanwhile, and more importantly, NU surged to a No. 4 ranking in the RPI.
The 'Cats took control of the Big Ten race with the win over the Hawkeyes as NU improved to 4-0 in league play. Every other Big Ten team has at least one conference loss this season. Lisa McCarthy and Caroline Troncelliti scored early goals in the win over Iowa while Dominique Masters added an insurance goal late in the contest to help the Wildcats earn the key victory.
Northwestern enters play this weekend having won six consecutive contests, out-scoring its opponents 17-5 over that span. The Wildcats have been dominant in the first half of their games this season, scoring 20 goals while allowing only five.
Sophomore Isabel Flens leads NU in scoring, having tallied nine goals to go along with seven assists for 25 points. Troncelliti (8 goals) and Masters (7 goals) also have contributed well to the Northwestern attack. Midfielder Charlotte Martin paces the 'Cats with 10 assists.
In goal, senior Maddy Carpenter has won a pair of Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors and sports a 1.66 goals-against average with a .722 save percentage.
Scouting Stanford
The Cardinal (12-1, 2-0 NorPac West) sports one of the top defenses in the nation, ranking first with a .860 save percentage and second with a 0.60 goals-against average behind goalkeeper Dulcie Davies. Alex McCawley leads Stanford offensively with 24 points on 10 goals and four assists. In the last meeting between the teams Aug. 29, 2012 in Stanford, Calif., NU posted a 4-1 win behind a hat trick by Troncelliti. The teams have two common opponents this season. Stanford beat Iowa 2-1 in overtime while NU defeated Iowa 3-1. The Cardinal defeated Connecticut 3-1 while the Wildcats lost 3-2 to the Huskies in overtime. Northwestern leads the all-time series with Stanford 11-4.
Scouting Central Michigan
The Chippewas (3-8, 2-0 MAC) host Miami University on Friday prior to Sunday's matchup with NU. CMU has won its last two contests since starting the season 1-7. Cayleigh Immelman (5g, 1a) and Kaysie Gregory (4g, 3a) are tied for the team lead with 11 points. Sadie Reynolds has played the entire season in goal for Central Michigan and has 4.59 goals-against average with a .688 save percentage. Northwestern posted a 2-0 win over CMU in Mount Pleasant Oct. 27 of last season as Masters notched both goals. NU is 11-3 all-time against Central Michigan.
Follow the 'Cats
Northwestern has a brand-new Facebook page. Be sure to keep up with the team by giving a "Like" of their page which can be found at facebook.com/NUFHCats. The 'Cats are also on Twitter at @NUFHCats.