UAlbany Field Hockey Hosts Two Nationally Ranked Foes at Alumni Turf Field Over the Weekend

Courtesy: UAlbany Athletics ALBANY, N.Y. -- UAlbany (2-1) will host nationally-ranked foes Michigan and Connecticut over the weekend at Alumni Turf Field. The Great Danes, currently ranked 21st in the country, will take on #15 Michigan on Friday at 2 p.m. before facing off against #7 Connecticut on Sunday, also at 2 p.m. The Wolverines and Huskies will also play each other on Saturday. UAlbany, which has now been nationally ranked since the first week of the 2010 season, is coming off a 3-1 win over Hofstra last Friday. The Great Danes are led by senior Corrine McConville, who scored twice in the win over the Pride. McConville has two goals and an assist on the season. Also leading UAlbany is graduate student Jessica Longstreth, who has recorded two goals and two helpers. Freshman Liza Morgan scored single goals in each of UAlbany's first two games of the season, en route to being named the first America East Conference Rookie of the Week of the 2012 season. Junior Daphne Voormolen has scored one goal this season, but leads the team with 18 shots. Senior Kristi Troch, the lone goalkeeper on the UAlbany roster, has a 2.25 goals against average and a .667 save percentage between the pipes. The two-time conference goalkeeper of the year has made 12 saves for the Great Danes. Scouting the Wolverines • #15 Michigan posted a perfect opening homestand last weekend, with wins against Delaware and Maine to even their season record at 2-2. The Wolverines defeated Delaware, 4-1, and UAlbany league foe Maine, 2-0. Junior Leslie Smith netted a hat trick to headline the Wolverines' win against the Blue Hens. Freshman Shannon Scavelli and senior Liesl Morris both earned their first collegiate goals in Michigan's win over the Black Bears. The Wolverines allowed just one shot on goal in the weekend homestand. UAlbany is 1-1 in the all-time series against the Wolverines, with Michigan claiming the most-recent meeting, 4-3 in double overtime, last season. Scouting the Huskies • #7 Connecticut is 3-0 on the season, earning a 2-1 win over Penn State in it's last outing. The Huskies opened 2012 with back-to-back shutouts against Bucknell (3-0) and Sacred Heart (8-0). Marie Elena Bolles, who was named the Big East Player of the Week on Monday, leads UConn with four goals and three assists, while Chloe Hunnable has scored three goals. Seven different players have scored at least once on the season. Head coach Nancy Stevens boasts a 354-118-8 record in her 23rd season at the helm of the Huskies. The Great Danes are 0-4 in the all-time series with Connecticut, after the Huskies claimed a 5-0 victory last season. Shooting for 100 • UAlbany head coach Phil Sykes, in his ninth season with the Great Danes, is just one win away from his 100th career victory. He entered the 2012 season with a 97-60 record, and guided the Great Danes to wins in two of the first three games. Already the winningest head coach in program history, Sykes will become the first UAlbany field hockey coach to reach the 100-win plateau.