Friday, September 26
Easton, Pa.
6 p.m.
Bucknell University
at
Lafayette
Photo by: Breanna Ruppel
Field Hockey Faces Reigning PL Champion Lafayette and Big Ten Michigan State in Action Packed Weekend
9/24/2025 10:13:00 AM | Field Hockey
Bucknell (3-4, 1-0 Patriot League) at Lafayette (5-3, 1-0 Patriot League)
When: Friday, September 26 – 6 p.m.
Where: Rappolt Field – Easton, Pa.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: goleopards.com
Bucknell (3-4) vs. Michigan State (3-4)
When: Sunday, September 28 – Noon
Where: Graham Field at Holmes Stadium – Lewisburg, Pa.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: bucknellbison.com
Bucknell resumes Patriot League play when the Holy Cross Crusaders journey to Lewisburg on Oct. 4.
When: Friday, September 26 – 6 p.m.
Where: Rappolt Field – Easton, Pa.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: goleopards.com
Bucknell (3-4) vs. Michigan State (3-4)
When: Sunday, September 28 – Noon
Where: Graham Field at Holmes Stadium – Lewisburg, Pa.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: bucknellbison.com
About Bucknell
- The Bison opened Patriot League play last Friday with a 5-0 rout of Colgate. Kira Leclercq scored the first two goals in the opening four minutes. Freshman Gracie Kothari and senior captain Alexandra Shizas tallied their first career goals. Reese Czajkowski added another score on a beautiful breakaway play. Nicky Punt supplied three assists, moving her into a tie for eighth place in Bucknell history.
- Both games will be streamed on ESPN+ and the links are available in this preview and on the Bucknell field hockey schedule page. The Live Stats links are also available on the Bucknell field hockey schedule page. Live updates will be posted on the Bucknell Field Hockey X account.
- Bucknell finished 8-9 overall and 4-2 in Patriot League play during the 2024 season and earned a spot in the Patriot League Tournament for the 17th consecutive season. The Orange & Blue earned the third seed and faced second-seeded Lafayette in the Patriot League Semifinals. The Bison dueled the Leopards and dropped a 2-1 game to the eventual Patriot League champions.
- Head coach Kelsey Kolojejchick enters her fourth season in Lewisburg. Her 24 career wins are the fifth-most in Bucknell history. Bucknell has made the Patriot League Tournament every year under her direction.
- The Bison lost eight players to graduation, including seven starters, the most notable being two-time All-American and career goals leader Lily Neilson. The Bison restocked seven freshmen to blend with the 16 newcomers.
- Bucknell was projected to finish third in the Patriot League preseason poll. Reigning champion Lafayette was picked to repeat, followed by American, Bucknell, and Boston. Colgate and Holy Cross rounded out the six-team poll.
- Senior Kira Leclercq repeated as Patriot League Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, after winning the 2024 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year award. Leclercq dominated on defense in 2024, leading nationally in defensive saves (9), earning First Team All-Patriot League, All-ECAC, and NFHCA Regional honors.
- Senior midfielders Nicky Punt and Gianna Puorro joined Leclercq on the All-Patriot League Preseason Team.
- The Bison named Leclercq, Punt, and Alexandra Shizas as captains.
- Several Bison sit high in the conference leaderboards. Punt leads the circuit in assists with five. Leclercq slots tied for second with five goals.
- Punt ranks tied for 25th nationally in assists per game (.71).
Scouting Lafayette
- Bucknell and Lafayette each started conference play last Friday with shutout victories. Lafayette smashed ancient rival Lehigh 3-0.
- The Leopards enjoyed a banner 2024 season, going 14-7 overall and 5-1 in PL play. Lafayette won the conference tournament, defeating Bucknell 2-1 in the semifinals and upsetting American by the same tally in the championship game. They lost 1-0 to eventual runner-up St. Joseph's in the NCAA Tournament.
- Lafayette sits 5-3 and is coming off an upset win over No. 16 Penn State where the Leopards prevailed in a shootout.
- The Leopards cleaned up in the conference preseason honors, finishing first in the poll, placing four members on the preseason team, and winning two major preseason awards. Stella Malinowski won Preseason Offensive Player of the Year and Raffi Fragomeni earned Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year.
- Lafayette boasts a balanced and deep attack with 18 goals arriving from 11 different players.
- The Leopards' strength resides in its stingy defense which has only yielded ten goals. Five of those tallies came from No. 5 Syracuse.
- Jennifer Stone enters her 13th year as the head coach of the Leopards and owns an overall record of 109-112.
Series History with the Leopards
- Lafayette has the 43-17-2 series lead over Bucknell. Fans should expect a tight game - eight of the last nine matchups have been one-score affairs.
Scouting Michigan State
- Michigan State also launched conference operations last Friday losing 5-0 to archrival No. 5 Michigan.
- The Spartans finished 8-10 overall but went 1-7 in the brutally tough Big Ten to miss the conference tournament. Their one win came in a 2-1 upset over No. 16 Iowa.
- MSU has outscored opponents 14-2 in their three wins - blanking Ohio 5-0, routing Merrimack 7-1, and edging Bellarmine 2-1. On the flip side, Sparty has been outscored 17-4 in their four defeats.
- Three Spartans were named to the B1G Players to Watch list: Tatum Johnson, Lilian Knorr, and Maddie Lawlor. The BIG 10 abolished the traditional preseason poll and team.
- Seven Spartans lead the team with two goals.
- Helen Knull enters her 15th year as the head Spartan. She seeks her first winning record since 2014-15 and is 106-162 overall.
Series History with the Spartans
- Bucknell is 0-2 all-time against MSU. The two meetings came in 1987 and 1990.
Bucknell resumes Patriot League play when the Holy Cross Crusaders journey to Lewisburg on Oct. 4.
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