Field Hockey Preps to Break in New Field Against Ivy Foe

The women’s field hockey team (1-3) will open Ivy play this weekend with two home matches. On Saturday at noon, the ladies will partake in pregame ceremonies as Cornell officially opens its newest sport facility, Marsha Dod­son Field, before playing host to familiar foe Penn (1-5). Then on Sunday, the team will return to non-league play for a 1 p.m. match against Georgetown (0-6).
The squad is looking to bounce back from two close matches last weekend at Lock Haven and Bucknell. Both matches witnessed the Red suffer a 3-2 defeat, with the Lock Haven match requiring overtime. Indeed, one-goal losses have plagued the Red for the last couple of seasons — 13 of the team’s last 19 defeats have come in one-goal games, seven requiring overtime.
[img_assist|nid=31926|title=If you build it, they will come|desc=Sophomore Kate Thompson controls the ball. The Red offense hopes to make a splash at the inaugural matchs on the team’s Marsha Dodson Field this weekend.|link=node|align=left|width=|height=0]
Against Penn, Cornell will seek to avenge a 3-2 loss in Philadel­phia last Sept. while simultaneously improving upon its 21-9-2 lifetime record a­gainst the Quakers. Lea­ding the way for the Red will be senior co-captain Be­len Martinez who is just one goal and one point shy from breaking into the Red’s top-10 for both goals and assists. The Red will also require a strong performance from junior goaltender Melanie Jue, whose impressive play in the first weekend led to Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors. Penn, on the other hand, is encountering an early season slump. After winning their first game, the Quakers have lost their last five. The Red defense should focus on Margaretha Ehret, who leads the Quakers with two goals, three assists and seven overall points. In goal is likely to be Alanna Butera; the Quaker netminder has posted a 2.31 goals-against average with a .714 save percentage.
On Sunday the Hoyas will likely be looking for the program’s first win of the season. Georgetown is winless in its first six contests, including an 11-0 thumping from North Carolina, and they play at No. 13 Penn St. Friday night. This will be the first matchup between the squads since 2005 when Cornell handily defeated the Hoyas 3-0. Cornell leads the lifetime series 2-0. Georgetown will need improved performance from its goaltender, Deirdre Crovo, whose .588 save percentage and 6.00 goals-against average leaves something to be desired. Up front, the Hoyas are led by Kristen Volpe and Micaela O’Toole both with two goals.