UTICA, NY - The Utica University field hockey team looks to build off its shutout win over Morrisville on September 9 with a pair of games this week. The team will travel to SUNY Brockport on Wednesday for a 4 p.m. game against the Golden Eagles. The Pioneers will then open Empire 8 play on Saturday when the team travels to Houghton University to take on the Highlanders at 2 p.m. 
 
Follow Along: Brockport will provide live video through https://bit.ly/3eLIYWD as well as live stats at https://bit.ly/3BbMiSq. On Saturday, Houghton will offer live video and stats via https://bit.ly/2xy5ERx. 
 
Last Time Out: Second half offense and total defensive domination guided the team to a 4-0 home opening win over the SUNY Morrisville Mustangs on September 9. After a slow offensive first quarter from the Pioneers, Mackenzie Mix (Camden, NY/Camden) put the team ahead with about eight and a half minutes to go before the half. Mix used a hesitation move on a penalty shot and snuck it to the left of Morrisville goalkeeper Morgan Dueber for a 1-0 lead. Utica's offense went on to score three more times in the third. Alyssa Pisano (Hopewell Junction, NY/Arlington) found Alanna Fragapane (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy ) about five yards out from the cage for her first career goal and a 2-0 lead. Fragapane went on to score again nearly three minutes later, this time off of a Shannon Jedreicich (Deer Park, NY/Half Hollow Hills East) pass as the Pioneers took a 3-0 lead. The final tally came midway through the third period off the stick of Jedreicich who collected a pass from Mix. From there, the Utica defense continued to play lockdown. The Pioneers held the Mustangs to zero shot attempts to their 17 and 15 on goal. The home team also drew 14 penalty corners to just one from Morrisville. Jedreicich led the team with six shots while Mix, Pisano, Fragapane and Riley Cosimeno (Sherrill, NY/Vernon-Verona-Sherrill) all had two. Lyla Cushman (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) recorded her first win and shutout of her career as well. 
 
Ball Hawks: Last Friday's win against Morrisville marked the second time in as many seasons the Utica defense held an opponent without a shot attempt in a shutout win. On September 25, 2021, Utica out-shot Russell Sage College 57-0 and 40-0 on goal in its 8-0 win. Much of the defensive success has come from the likes of Jenna Carbone (Gloversville, NY/Gloversville), Chloe Williams (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) and Kylee Wojciechowski (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent). In the event the dynamic trio slips, Lyla Cushman (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) is in cage with the best goals against average in the Empire at at .50 per game as well as with a .833 save percentage. 
 
Coming in Hot: Alanna Fragapane (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy ) impressed in Utica's win over Morrisville last week. After not recording a stat over 21 minutes in the Pioneers' first game at Oneonta, the Rome Free Academy product broke through against the Mustangs. She recorded her first two career goals on her only two shots taken in 23 minutes of field time. The freshman will look to continue making an impact on the Utica scoring attack. 
 
Experience Pays Off: Aside from Fragapane, the other three Pioneers with at least one point this season are returners from last season's Empire 8 runner-up squad. Shannon Jedreicich (Deer Park, NY/Half Hollow Hills East) and Mackenzie Mix (Camden, NY/Camden) have three points with one goal and assist each while Alyssa Pisano (Hopewell Junction, NY/Arlington) has one point on an assist. Last season, Jedreicich recorded a goal just before halftime against Brockport while Mix assisted on a game-sealing goal in the 51st minute. Jedreicich also scored two goals against Houghton last season while Mix assisted on a separate goal. 
 
About Brockport: The Golden Eagles are off to a 3-1 start this season while out-scoring opponents 21-5. After three-straight wins to start the season (11-0 over keuka College, 7-0 over Elmira College, 2-1 over Nazareth College), Brockport suffered its first loss of the season against RPI on Saturday, 4-1. Tiffany Andres leads the team with nine points on three goals and three assists while Brockport features six other multi-goal scorers in its lineup. In the cage, Ella Buchanan has started three of the team's four games totaling 15 saves (.750 save percentage) and five goals allowed. The Pioneers lead the all-time series 10-4 including a 4-2 win in the most recent meeting between the teams in 2021. 
 
Scouting Houghton: The Highlanders are 2-2 so far this season and will battle Wells College on Tuesday prior to hosting Utica. Houghton boasts the fourth-highest goals per game averaging the E8 at 1.75 per game while trailing only the Pioneers in goals allowed per game at 2.50. Deborah Cross and Jace Hunzinger are tied for fourth in the league averaging .50 goals per game as both have scored twice in four outings. Goalkeeper Madison Tadusz is second in the E8 behind Lyla Cushman (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) allowing 2.67 goals per game however, she ranks ninth with a .630 save percentage. The Pioneers are 9-1 all-time against the Highlanders while the teams have split the previous two meetings. 

Up Next: Utica will continue a season-long five-game road trip at St. Lawrence University at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, September 20.