Utica, NY (11/6/14) – The nationally ranked No. 20 Utica College field hockey team will host the Empire 8 Conference Tournament this weekend.  The top-seeded Pioneers face No. 4 seed Stevens Institute of Technology on Saturday at 11 a.m.  The winner will advance to the Championship on Sunday (1 p.m.) to face the winner of the other semifinal match up between St. John Fisher and Washington & Jefferson (2 p.m. Saturday).  All games will be played at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium on the campus of Utica College. 
 
STATE OF THE PROGRAM: This season the field hockey program reached new heights … The Pioneers saw a program best 13-game winning streak and went 8-0 in conference play for the first time ever … As a team they broke several season records including the single-season records for goals (83) and points (207) … The Pioneers (16-2) are also one win shy of tying the program's single-season record for wins (17), that they set last season… Utica has defeated two ranked opponents this season, including No. 12 Skidmore College (4-1), which was ranked No. 3 at the time, and most recently, the University of Rochester (2-1 OT) … The Pioneers are currently ranked No. 20 nationally, just six points behind DePauw University.
 
UTICA'S LAST TIME OUT: The Pioneers downed St. John Fisher 3-1 at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium last Saturday… With the win, UC moved to an undefeated mark of 8-0 in conference play, marking the third time in program history that UC has clinched the E8 regular season title … Senior Hannah Mackey (Locke, NY/Moravia Central) racked up two goals, while classmate Chasity Eckert (Afton, NY/Afton Central) added one goal and one assist … Senior Olivia Cunningham (Bethlehem, NH/Profile) and junior Kells Casey (Sandwich, MA/Kimball Union Academy) combined four five saves in net. 
 
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: Utica is 8-0 on its home turf this season and the Pioneers have won 14 of their last 15 games at Gaetano Stadium dating back to last season… UC has outscored opponents 39-7 at home this year. 
 
RECORD BREAKERS: Senior Hannah Mackey (Locke, NY/Moravia Central) has had a season for the ages … Mackey set new single-season conference records for goals (34) and points (73)… She is also first all-time at UC in goals (82), points (192), and game winning goals (23) … Mackey is currently second in the nation with 1.89 goals per game… Junior goalie Kells Casey (Sandwich, MA/Kimball Union Academy) has 38 career wins, breaking the previous record of 33.
 
DISHING IT OUT: The Pioneers have five players with five or more assists on the season … Nikki Kieffer (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) leads the pack with ten, which ties her for second in the Empire 8 … Chasity Eckert (Afton, NY/Afton Central) and Colleen Dowling (Fairport, NY/Fairport) are tied for second on the team with eight assists each and Hannah Mackey (Locke, NY/Moravia Central) and Louise Steele-Norton (Avondale, PA/Millbrook School) round out the top five with five assists apiece.
 
TWO IS BETTER THAN ONE: Utica has mainly relied on junior Kells Casey (Sandwich, MA/Kimball Union Academy) and freshman Samantha Whitehouse (Greenwich, NY/Greenwich) between the pipes this season … Both goalies are playing phenomenal for the Pioneers with each of them posting a shutout win … Whitehouse is second in the E8 with a .811 save percentage, while Casey is third in the conference in goals against average (2.07).
 
SCOUTING FISHER: St. John Fisher picked up the No. 2 seed after compiling a 7-1 record in Empire 8 play... The Cardinals' only conference loss came by way of a 3-1 defeat to Utica on the last day of the regular season... Fisher is led by freshman Emily Markarian who has 19 goals and 40 points on the year... Junior Danielle Famolaro is fourth in the E8 with a 3.00 goals against average... This is the third straight E8 tournament appearance by Fisher in just its fourth season in existence... Last year the Cardinals upset No. 1 seed Stevens in the semifinals before falling to Utica in the championship.
 
SCOUTING W&J: Washington & Jefferson locked up the third seed after going 10-8 overall and 5-3 in the conference... Stevens also finished 5-3 on the year, but W&J defeated the Ducks 4-3 during the regular season, so the Presidents were awarded the No. 3 seed... The Presidents are led by sophomores Amanda Steffey and Lauren Brown, who each have 12 goals and 26 points... Junior Morgan Brozena leads the conference with a 1.69 goals against average... This is W&J's sixth Empire 8 Tournament appearance in the last seven years... The Presidents last won the E8 title at Utica in 2011 by defeating Nazareth 2-1.
 
SCOUTING STEVENS: Stevens took the fourth and final seed in the tournament after finishing 5-3 in E8 play... The Ducks tied with W&J, however the Presidents held the tiebreaker as they defeated Stevens 4-3 in head-to-head play... The Ducks enter the tournament on a four-game winning streak... They have held the top seed in the last two E8 tournaments... The last time Stevens won an Empire 8 Conference Championship was in 2010 when it captured its third straight title... Stevens is led by junior Dailyn Brook, who ranks second in the conference with 46 points... Brook and freshman Victoria Alvarez have each netted 16 goals on the season.
 
LOOKING AHEAD: The winner of the Empire 8 Tournament will receive an auto bid into the NCAA Tournament. 
 


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