UTICA, NY- The Utica College Women's Soccer team travels across town Wednesday evening for a showdown with local rival, SUNY Poly.  Game time is set for 7 p.m.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Pioneers are coming off a 2-1 win over Houghton this past Saturday in the opening weekend of Empire 8 Conference play… Both Jacinta Kaminski (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) and Ro Hernandez (Carmel, NY/Kennedy Catholic) had a goal and an assist… Sophomore Courtney Connolly (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) had six saves and the only goal she allowed was on a penalty kick.
 
KAMINSKI PICKS UP E8 WEEKLY AWARD: Senior Jacinta Kaminski (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) was named the Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Week on Monday after she assisted on the tying goal and then netted the game-winner with less than eight minutes remaining in regulation to down Houghton… On the season, Kaminski ranks third on the squad with two goals and one assist.
 
IN THE NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT: Last week, Utica College women's soccer and sophomore Kaela Mochak (Westfield, MA/Westfield) were featured on ESPN's flagship program, SportsCenter… Mochak scored the only goal in Utica's 1-0 victory over SUNY Potsdam last Tuesday… Her strike from 35 yards out sailed just under the bar for her first of the year… The play landed at No. 2 on SportsCenter's top-10 plays. 
 
HOW ABOUT HERNANDEZ?: Senior Ro Hernandez (Carmel, NY/Kennedy Catholic) has been a force to start the season… She has five goals and one assist through the first five games… Her five goals are tied for second in the Empire 8 and she is also tied for second in points per game (2.20)… Utica is 4-1 when Hernandez scores, dating back to last season.
 
COUNT ON CONNOLLY: Sophomore Courtney Connolly (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) has been impressive so far this season… Amongst goalkeepers who have played at least half their team's minutes, Connolly ranks first in the conference with a 1.00 goals against average… She is also second in the E8 with a .864 save percentage.
 
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Utica has had six different players find the back of the net so far this season, and three additional players record at least one point… Graduate student Sydney Cook (Waterville, NY/Waterville) is second on the squad with eight points (three goals, two assists), she needs just three more points to match her highest scoring output as a Pioneer… Mochak and Hope Millets (Whitehall, PA/Whitehall) each have a goal and an assist, while Eliza Ericson (Beacon, NY/Beacon) has two helpers… Katherine Migliori (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) has chipped in with one goal and Kiersten Girard (St. Albert, Alberta/Bellerose Composite) and Jenna Keeman (Douglas, MA/Douglas) each have one assist to their credit. 
 
SCOUTING SUNY POLY: The Wildcats are 2-3 on the year and they are coming off a 2-1 win at Cazenovia on Saturday… Junior forward Kaitlyn Daley has scored four of her team's eight goals on the year… Utica is 23-5-1 all-time against the Wildcats, but 2-2-1 in their last five meetings… The last time these two teams matched up was Oct. 9, 2019, when Utica won 3-0.
 
LOOKING AHEAD: Utica will have nearly a week off before returning home to face RPI on Tuesday… Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.