Utica N.Y. - The Utica College women's soccer team hosts local rival Hamilton College on Wednesday. The match will kick off at 4 p.m. at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium.

Follow Along: Live video and stats will be available at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/utica/. The broadcast of Saturday's match will also be on the Empire 8 apps available through Roku, Amazon Fire TV, and AppleTV platforms. The apps make watching even easier for fans who have those devices connected to their television, and will also routinely carry Utica's away matches against Empire 8 opponents. The apps are available free of charge.

Where We Sit: The Pioneers have opened the season at 5-1. After becoming the first team since 1998 to open up at 5-0, Utica took its first loss of the season on Saturday as it split a North Country double dip with a 3-1 win over Potsdam on Friday, and a 2-1 loss to Clarkson on Saturday. 

Last Time Out: The Pioneers took their first loss in their most recent match against Clarkson by a 2-1 score. Utica's lone goal came off the foot of junior midfielder Kierra Caissey (Gardner, MA/Gardner) as she tallied her sixth goal of the season. Senior goalkeeper Allison Wagner (Canandaigua, NY/Canandaigua Academy) added ten saves on the night, increasing her season total to 49. 

All In: Kierra Caissey (Gardner, MA/Gardner) currently is second in goals scored in the Empire 8 with six goals. Teammate Mikayla Blumenstock (Poland, NY/Poland) is fourth with five goals. In the assists department, Summer Gagnon (Manchester, NH/Manchester) is tied for first in the E8 with three assists on the year.

All Day: Of every player on the roster to get match action this season, only Wagner, Caissey, and Amanda Thut (Carmel, NY/Carmel) have exceeded 500 minutes of elapsed time on the pitch this year.

Every Day: In addition to Wagner in goal, six field players have started every game for Utica. Kierra Caissey (Gardner, MA/Gardner), Summer Gagnon (Manchester, NH/Manchester), Eliza Ericson (Beacon, NY/Beacon), Carly Craft (Ellenville, NY/Ellenville), Amanda Thut (Carmel, NY/Carmel), and Sydney Cook (Waterville, NY/Waterville) have been in the starting eleven for all six matches. 

Wagner's Wall: In six appearances, Wagner has only allowed three goals to get past her and has done everything possible to give her team a chance to win. This season, Wagner has recorded 49 saves which has her ranked second amongst Empire 8 goalkeepers. She also boasts a .942 save percentage. Wagner is also ranked third in goals against, putting up a .512 goals against average. She had a say in four straight clean sheets to begin the season. 

Out of the Box Thinking: Utica has not surrendered a penalty kick in its first six matches, while they have also converted on their lone opportunity of the season themselves.

Green Means Go: The Pioneers have done another exceptional job of remaining out of booking trouble, as the club has accumulated just a single yellow card in six matches. Opponents have been carded twice. The tradition of strong but fair play has been an ongoing one for the program. A Pioneer has not been given a red card since 2012. 

How The E8 Is Doing: The conference is starting to take form now after the third week of action, with Utica holding the best record at 5-1 in non-conference play. Nazareth is second best with a 4-1 record, Alfred holds the third best record at 4-1-1, Sage still remains at 3-1, Hartwick is 4-2 as well. Houghton is currently on a three match win streak to sit at 3-3. St John Fisher and Elmira round out the bottom of the conference in the opening stretch with Fisher at 2-4 and Elmira at 1-3 after recently earning their first win of the season. 

Scouting Hamilton: The Continentals are currently 1-2 in NESCAC conference play and 2-2 overall this season. Hamilton is coming off a tough 1-0 loss to Amherst. This season the Continentals in four games have 104 shots overall, and twelve goals scored. They have done well to stay out of foul trouble with no cards given out. Hyla Mosher has netted three goals and tallied six points in four games for the Continentals, and stands as their leading scorer. 

Looking Ahead: On Saturday, the Pioneers will compete in their first Empire 8 matchup of the season when Houghton College comes to Utica for a 3 p.m. kickoff.