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Utica, NY (9/13/12)- The Utica College field hockey team opens up league play Saturday, looking to remain unbeaten in the 2012 season.  The Pioneers welcome Empire 8 rival, Stevens Institute of Technology to Gaetano Stadium for a 1 p.m. game.

Watch It Live: Live stats and video for all home field hockey contests are available at www.ucpioneers.com … Live video will be available at www.empire8.tv and fans can watch the game on their Iphone or Droid mobile phone at m.empire8.tv.

Last Time Out: Utica is coming off a huge 7-0 win over perennial power Hamilton College… Sophomore Hannah Mackey (Locke, NY/Moravia Central) totaled seven points (two goals, three assists), while classmate Louise Steele-Norton (Avondale, PA/Millbrook School) netted three goals of her own… Alaina Stojkovski (Liverpool, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) and Angela Charles (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) each added a goal for the Pioneers.

Home Sweet Home: Charles A. Gaetano Stadium has given Utica quite the home field advantage as of late… UC went 6-3 at home last year, and is already off to a 4-0 home start this season… So far, the Pioneers have outscored opponents 19-3 on their home turf. 

No Sophomore Slump: The sophomore class has proven to be Utica's biggest threat as they have accounted for 17 of the Pioneers' 19 goals.… Mackey (six) and Steele-Norton (five) are tied for first and second, respectively, in goals in the conference… Mackey also leads the E8 in points (16), and is second in assists (4), while Steele-Norton has a league-leading 32 shots on goal… Classmate Olivia Cunningham (Bethlehem, NH/Profile) tops the Empire 8 with a .846 save percentage and .62 goals against average to go along with her two shutouts… Alaina Stojkovski (Liverpool, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) is third on the team with nine points on three goals and three assists, while Chasity Eckert (Afton, NY/Afton Central) and Angela Charles (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) have also scored for UC.

Big D: The Pioneer defensive unit has allowed just 17 shots through four games and has shutout opponents on two occasions… Utica is currently averaging 4.75 goals per game, while allowing just .75 goals per game.

Scouting Stevens: The Ducks are currently 2-3 overall and are coming off a 3-1 loss at Wesley College… They are led by senior Mary Nikish, and junior Marguerite Chavez… Nikish has four goals and four assists, while Chavez has netted five goals… UC is 2-4 against Stevens dating back to 2006… Last year, the Pioneers topped the Ducks 5-3.

Looking Ahead: Utica wraps up its six-game home stretch Wednesday as it hosts SUNY Geneseo… Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m.


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