Field Hockey Begins Homestand with Games vs. Penn State and Richmond

Bucknell (4-8, 3-1 PL) vs. Penn State (11-2, 5-1 Big Ten)
When: Friday, Oct. 14 at 6 p.m.
Where: Graham Field – Lewisburg, Pa.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: BucknellBison.com

Bucknell (4-8, 3-1 PL) vs. Richmond (5-8, 2-2 A10)
When: Sunday, Oct. 16 at 12 p.m.
Where: Graham Field – Lewisburg, Pa.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: BucknellBison.com

Pride Game: Sunday's game against Richmond will be the field hockey team's second annual Pride Game, presented by Bucknell's Athlete Ally Chapter. Athlete Ally works to end homophobia and transphobia in sport, and it activates the athletic community to exercise their leadership to champion LGBTQIA+ equality.

About Bucknell

Bucknell has no Patriot League games this weekend but hosts two challenging opponents in Penn State and Richmond. The Bison have played Penn State annually since 2000 with the exception of the 2006 season and the 2020-21 COVID-19 spring season. Bucknell has played Richmond just three times in program history, but two of the matchups were as recent as 2018 and 2019.
Bucknell suffered a 3-2 overtime loss at Lehigh on Saturday in its only game of the weekend. It was the team's first Patriot League defeat of the season to this point. The Bison trailed 2-0 until late in the third quarter when Kira Leclercq scored to cut the deficit in half. Rachel Apa then found the back of the cage with under three minutes remaining to force the extra period. Lehigh scored 43 seconds into overtime to move Bucknell to 3-1 in league play.
The Bison remain in second place in the league, trailing only Boston U. (7-5, 4-0 PL). Bucknell could clinch a berth in the 2022 Patriot League tournament with a Holy Cross loss to Colgate on Friday. It would be Bucknell's 15th consecutive season making an appearance in the tournament.
Friday begins a five-game homestand to wrap up the regular season. The Bison are 2-2 in games at Graham Field this fall.
Senior Mackenzie Kile continues to inch closer to Bucknell's all-time career assists record. Kile added two more in Saturday's game, bringing her season total to 10 and her career total to 29. The Mountain Top, Pa. native is one of just three Bucknell field hockey players to record 29 or more career assists. Sitting above her is Hall-of-Famer Amanda Faust '08 and Corinne Raczek '10, who both ended their careers with 34.
Leclercq, who's tied for second in the Patriot League with four defensive saves this season, posted a goal and an assist in the Lehigh game to add to her season points total (5). For her efforts, Leclercq was named an honorable mention for Patriot League Rookie of the Week on Monday.
Apa's goal against the Mountain Hawks was her second of the season and the eighth of her career.
Sophomore Lily Neilson remains the Patriot League leader in goals despite not scoring over the past two games. She's at 10 goals on the season and leads the league in shots per game (5.67).
Isabella Pavlides added an assist in Saturday's game, giving her 11 points on the season. She sits second on the roster in points behind only Neilson. Pavlides has posted three goals and added five assists in 2022.
Goalkeeper Clara McCormick has started 10 of 12 games this season, including Saturday's contest at Lehigh. She has a 2.98 goals against average and a .580 save percentage.
Bucknell was picked third in the 2022 Patriot League Field Hockey Preseason Poll. American finished first in the poll and was followed by Lafayette, which is how the standings ended up last fall.
Bucknell is under the direction of first-year head coach Kelsey Kolojejchick. Kolojejchick, a former four-time All-American out of the University of North Carolina and a Junior Pan American Games gold medalist, arrived at Bucknell after spending the past four years as an assistant at Harvard.

Scouting Penn State

The Nittany Lions are currently second in the Big Ten with an 11-2 overall record and a 5-1 mark in conference play. They've rattled off three straight victories, including an overtime win against Iowa State and a double-overtime win over Lafayette last time out. Three of Penn State's last four games have gone beyond regulation.
Penn State is averaging 3.0 goals per game, which is good enough for 10th in the country. It's also posting 15.2 shots per game and allowing 1.31 goal per game.
Junior forward Sophia Gladieux, who was named the NFHCA Mideast Region Player of the Year last season, currently ranks third in the country with 1.15 goals per game and is third with 2.54 points per game. She's posted six goals over the past four outings and has two hat-tricks this season.
2021 Second Team All-Region goalkeeper Brie Barraco has started all 13 games and has a 1.32 goals against average as well as a .761 save percentage. The junior has one shutout this season and 10 total in her career.
The Nittany Lions are led by head coach Charlene Morett-Curtiss, who in 36 seasons has guided the program to a 535-221-9 record. Over the last 10 seasons, she's led the Nittany Lions to three Big Ten regular season titles, three Big Ten Tournament championships and eight NCAA Tournament appearances.

Series History with the Nittany Lions

Bucknell is taking on Penn State for the 39th time in program history and seeking its first win over the Pennsylvania power. It's the 17th time the Nittany Lions have visited Lewisburg.
Bucknell fell 4-1 on the road to then-fourth ranked Penn State in last year's matchup. The Bison grabbed an early 1-0 lead with a goal seven minutes in and maintained the advantage until the 28th minute when Penn State tied things up. The Nittany Lions added two more goals in the third quarter and one in the fourth to seal the victory. Kayla Kisthardt and Mackenzie Kile both provided assists in the game, and Clara McCormick made a career-high 13 saves.
The two teams did not meet during the 2020-21 spring season, but Bucknell maintained a 0-0 tie for 46 minutes in 2019 before the Nittany Lions scored three fourth-quarter goals.

Scouting Richmond

The Spiders are 5-8 overall and 2-2 in Atlantic 10 play. Most recently, Richmond fell 8-1 to No. 25 Duke and has lost five games in a row. The Spiders have faced five ranked teams in total this fall.
Richmond averages 2.31 goals per game and allows 2.92 goals.
Senior Regan McCrossan leads the team with seven goals on 21 shots (.333 shot%), including two game-winning scores. Fellow senior Lindsey Frank is first on the team with 17 points on six goals and five assists. Frank was a 2021 NFHCA All-South Region Second Team selection.
Senior Erika Latta has started all 13 games at goalkeeper and sports a 2.92 goals against average as well as a .604 save percentage. She was a 2021 Second Team All-Atlantic 10 selection.
Richmond head coach Jamie Montgomery joined the program in 2018 and has an overall record of 32-47.
Former Bucknell assistant coach Alexa Ostoich is in her first season on the Spiders staff. Ostoich was with the Bison for two seasons, including the 2020-21 Patriot League championship campaign.

Series History with the Spiders

Bucknell is 2-1 in all-time meetings with Richmond. The Bison won 4-0 in a 1979 AIAW DII National Tournament game, won 2-1 in double overtime at home in 2018, and fell 3-2 in overtime on the road in 2019.
Then-freshman Maddie Rehak scored the first goal of her career in the 2019 contest, tying the game at 1-1 in the third quarter. Mackenzie Kile then provided an assist on a goal that gave the Bison a 2-1 lead in the fourth. The Spiders, however, scored two more goals in the final quarter to hold on for the 3-2 victory.

Up Next
Bucknell faces American and Lock Haven in its second-to-last weekend of the regular season. The Bison host the Eagles in a pivotal Patriot League matchup at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 22.

Field Hockey Begins Homestand with Games vs. Penn State and Richmond

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Rachel Apa

Mackenzie Kile

Kayla Kisthardt

Kira Leclercq

Clara McCormick

Lily Neilson

Isabella Pavlides

Maddie Rehak

Field Hockey Begins Homestand with Games vs. Penn State and Richmond

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Rachel Apa

Mackenzie Kile

Kayla Kisthardt

Kira Leclercq

Clara McCormick

Lily Neilson

Isabella Pavlides

Maddie Rehak

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