UTICA, NY – The Utica College women's soccer team returns to action with two games this week.  The Pioneers will conclude their three game homestand Tuesday as they host Liberty League member, Union College.  Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m.  UC then hits to road on Saturday to face E8 foe Nazareth College. Saturday's match is slated to start at 1 p.m.
 
HOW TO WATCH: Live stats and video for all home games are available at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/utica/.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Pioneers are coming off a 4-3 overtime thriller against Alfred University on Saturday… The first half featured an offensive outburst with each team scoring three goals… Ro Hernandez (Carmel, NY/Kennedy Catholic) continued her stellar season as she found the back of the net twice including a penalty kick goal... Senior Jacinta Kaminski (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) also had an outstanding day as she netted one goal and assisted on the game-winner… Sophomore Kaela Mochak (Westfield, MA/Westfield) put the game away with her strike in extra time.
 
MOCHAK'S MAGIC: Just two weeks after Kaela Mochak (Westfield, MA/Westfield) was featured on ESPN with the No. 2 spot on SportsCenter's Top-10 plays, she is back in the headlines… Just 3:05 in the overtime period, Mochak blasted in her second goal of the season from the top of the box to give the Pioneers the upper hand over Alfred... Both her goals this year have been game winners.
 
LEADING THE WAY: Senior Ro Hernandez (Carmel, NY/Kennedy Catholic) leads the team and is tied for second in the conference in both goals (seven) and points (16)… Hernandez leads the E8 with 49 shots taken this season, 12 more than the next closest player… Utica is 5-1 in the last two years when Hernandez scores at least one goal.
 
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Seven different players have tallied at least one goal so far this year… Graduate students Sydney Cook (Waterville, NY/Waterville) and Jacinta Kaminski (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) are second and third on the team in scoring with four goals and three goals, respectively… Mochak is fourth on the team in scoring, while Hope Millets (Whitehall, PA/Whitehall), Gabriela Daumont (Latham, NY/Shaker), and Katherine Migliori (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) each have one goal to their credit. 
 
SCOUTING THE DUTCHWOMEN: Union comes into this nonconference matchup 4-5-1 (2-1-0 Liberty League) after a 2-1 victory over Vassar College. The Dutchwomen are currently led by senior midfielder, Emma Schleimer with four goals and one assist. Coming into this matchup, she has scored in two straight games. This will be the first time these teams have faced off since 2011.
 
SCOUTING NAZARETH: The Golden Flyers are 3-4-3 on the year and they are coming off a 1-0 win over Elmira on Saturday… Naz will face nationally ranked No. 7 William Smith on Wednesday before hosting the Pioneers… Kristen Prohaska and Caleigh Cahoon lead the team with five points apiece… Last year, Utica dropped the regular season meeting against Naz by a score of 4-1, but the Pioneers got their revenge in the Empire 8 Semifinal as Utica won the penalty shootout 4-2 to advance to the E8 Championship. 
 
UP NEXT: Following this week's action, Utica will host St. John Fisher College next Wednesday… Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Gaetano Stadium.