| 2018 NORTHWESTERN FIELD HOCKEY | ||||||
| DATE | OPPONENT | TIME (CT) | LOCATION | WATCH | LIVE STATS | |
| Friday, Oct. 12 |
No. 14 Rutgers | 3 p.m. | Evanston, Ill. | BTN2GO | Sidearm | |
| Sunday, Oct. 14 |
No. 6 Penn State | Noon | Evanston, Ill | BTN2GO | Sidearm | |
| Social: Twitter (@NUFHCats) | Instagram (@NUFHCats) | Facebook | ||||||
EVANSTON, Ill. – No. 15 Northwestern continues Big Ten play with a crucial homestand this weekend, facing No. 14 Rutgers on Friday and No. 6 Penn State on Sunday.
The Wildcats are 8-6 and 3-2 in the Big Ten with three conference games left to play. They sit tied for fourth place with Iowa, who they previously defeated this season 2-0. The top four teams host quarterfinals matchups in the Big Ten Tournament.
The 'Cats have not played since last Friday, when they suffered a 2-1 defeat to No. 25 Ohio State at Lakeside Field. Senior Puck Pentenga scored the lone goal for the Wildcats to raise her point total to 27, the best on the team and tied for second-best in the Big Ten.
Pentenga and junior Kirsten Mansfield each have nine assists on the season and are tied for the third-most in the conference this year. Mansfield's 17 points are also tied for the ninth-most in the Big Ten as well.
Junior Annie Kalfas has started 11 games in goal this season, and has posted three shutouts while maintaining a goals-against-average of 1.52 and a save percentage of .685. Her three shutouts are the second most in the conference.
Northwestern owns a 5-0 mark all-time against Rutgers since it joined the Big Ten. Last season, the 'Cats defeated the Scarlet Knights twice, with both wins coming in Evanston. In the Big Ten Tournament, NU won 4-3 with a goal each from Mansfield and Pentenga. In a 3-2 win earlier in the regular season Pentenga and junior Saar de Breij found the back of the net.
The last time the Nittany Lions visited Evanston in 2016, Northwestern won 5-3 against a then-No. 4 team with goals from Pentenga and de Breij. Last year, the 'Cats narrowly lost 4-3 on the road to a No. 3 ranked Penn State in State College, Pa. despite goals from Pentenga and senior Eva van Agt.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
No. 14 Rutgers
The Scarlet Knights are 9-4 this season but just 1-4 in Big Ten play, with their lone conference win coming against Michigan State. They have ranked wins over Delaware and now-No. 3 Princeton.
Daphne Groothuis leads Rutgers with eight goals and 11 assists this season, and is tied with Pentenga for second in the conference on 27 points. Austyn Cuneo and Linde van Schaik each have six goals as well.
Goalkeeper Gianna Glatz has started every game in goal this season and owns a 1.35 goals-against-average and a .778 save percentage.
No. 6 Penn State
The Nittany Lions are 9-3 overall and boast a 4-1 record in conference, with a lone loss coming at the hands of Michigan. Penn State has wins over Rutgers, now-No. 2 Maryland, Michigan State, and Ohio State in conference.
Penn State has a balanced offense led by Anna Simon with eight goals, but Emma Klingler and Alexis Horst each have six while Moira Putsch and Aurelia Meijer both have five.
Jenny Rizza has all 12 starts in goal this season for the Nittany Lions and has a strong 1.11 goals-against-average along with a stellar .815 save percentage.