Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Field Hockey Hosts Cornell This Weekend
9/11/2008 8:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Sept. 11, 2008
LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Bucknell field hockey team returns to Graham Field this weekend, hosting Cornell on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Bison enter the game with a 2-2 record, after splitting a pair of games against Ball State (W, 4-2) and Towson (L, 2-1) in Owings Mills, Md., last weekend.
Cornell (1-1) will travel to Lock Haven for a game on Friday, before coming to Lewisburg on Saturday. The Big Red lost their season opener 1-0 to No. 19 Albany on Sept. 6, but rebounded against Siena the following day, winning 3-0. Belen Martinez, Sara Sanders and Kelly Kantarian accounted for the team's goals against Seina.
Junior goalkeeper Melanie Jue, has been impressive in her first career action, making 19 saves against Albany. She received credit for a shutout against Siena, but did not face any shots on goal. For her efforts, Jue was named Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Tuesday.
Cornell returns seven starters and 15 letterwinners from its 2007 squad, which went 10-7 last year, and finished tied for second in the Ivy League with a 5-2 record. One of Cornell's losses last season came against the Bison, 1-0, in Ithaca, N.Y. Bucknell senior Trina Boyer scored the game's lone goal off of an assist from Amanda Faust. Bison goalkeeper Jessie Atieh recorded two saves for her first career shutout. Bucknell has an 11-9-1 all-time record against the Big Red.
Bison Bits
- Faust set a new program record for career assists by recording two helpers against Ball State. Faust now has 27 career assists, one more than Jen Zimmerman, who had 26 from 1996-1999. With one goal and three assists this year, Faust now has 65 career points, ranking sixth in University history.
- Morgan Kauffman leads the Bison, and is tied for the Patriot League lead in scoring this season with seven points. Earlier this season against Longwood, Kauffman tied a program record with three assists in a single game. It was the seventh time it has been done, and the first since Faust completed the feat against Colgate in 2006.
- Kauffman and Faust are tied for the Patriot League lead with three assists each.
- Kauffman has twice been an honorable mention selection in this season's Patriot League weekly awards.
- Katie Ruiz entered the season with two career points (two assists), but the senior has already tallied two goals and two assists through the first four games of 2008.
- Atieh has the top save percentage among Patriot League goalkeepers so far this season, keeping 73.9 percent of opponents' shots on goal out of the Bison net.
- Bucknell leads the Patriot League in assists (11) and assists per game (2.75). Colgate ranks second in both categories.
- The Bison are only averaging nine shots per game, but they are making them count, scoring exactly 25 percent of the time. Part of the reason for Bucknell's success is that 63.9 percent of its shots have been on goal.
- Bucknell's seniors have combined to score 15 of the team's 28 total points this season, including five of the squad's nine goals.
Up Next
The Bison's next games will be at La Salle on Friday, Sept 19, and Lock Haven on Sunday, Sept. 21. Bucknell then returns to Graham Field for two games, first on Wednesday, Sept. 24, hosing Saint Francis (Pa.) at 7 p.m. The Orange and Blue will then host Siena on Saturday, Sept. 27, starting at 12 p.m. That game can be viewed live on Bison Vision. It is also an Orange Crush contest, where fans are encouraged to wear orange in support of the Bison.
