ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College women's field hockey team will take a short trip up Route 13 to challenge former Empire 8 Conference foe Ithaca College on Wednesday, September 25. The non-conference bout is slated to begin at 5:00 p.m. at Higgins Stadium in Ithaca, New York.
LAST TIME OUT
The Soaring Eagles dropped an E8 contest to the Stevens Institute of Technology, 7-2, on Saturday, September 23, at the Ducks' DeBaun Athletic Complex. Senior keeper
Julie Hockenberger '18 did everything that she could to keep the contest close, as she posted a career-best 19 saves in the losing effort. The Manlius, New York, native had faced constant pressure from the opening whistle and stopped 14 shots in the first half alone. Unfortunately for EC, the Ducks kept the pressure going throughout the matchup, as they finished with 45 shots, 26 of which were on goal, on their way to the league triumph.
Alison Mariano '18 and
Janie Kempf '21 accounted for both of EC's goals. Mariano netted her third goal of the season in the 50th and Kempf scored her team-leading fifth goal in the 61st minute. The product of New Woodstock, New York, has been on a roll recently, as she has tallied three of her five goals on the year in the last two games.
HOCKENBERGER INCHES CLOSER TO EC RECORD BOOKS
In four seasons donning the Purple and Gold, Hockenberger has been one of the top goalkeepers in program history. In 47 career games, Hockenberger has posted 389 saves and sits just 26 stops short of Ann Phillips '07 for the fifth spot on the program's all-time leaderboard. Hockenberger also ranks fifth in Elmira history in minutes played with 2,651, has a chance to catch Jalene McCulloch '10 (3,116) for fourth place.
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST THE BOMBERS
The all-time series against Ithaca has leaned in favor of the Bombers, as they own a 15-2 advantage over their Route 13 foe. The most recent contest in the series was a 6-0 Ithaca victory on October 29 at the Murray Athletic Center. The Purple and Gold last tasted victory in the series in the 2004 season, when they bested the Bombers by a 3-2 final score in Ithaca.
SCOUTING ITHACA
The Bombers enter Wednesday's contest with a 4-3 overall record and a 0-1 mark inside the Liberty League. Ithaca has been on a recent upswing of late, winning three straight after dropping two of its first three bouts. The win streak was ended in the Bombers' most recent result, a 3-1 loss to Union College in their conference opener. Of the Ithaca's four wins, two have come against E8 members, as the Bombers have defeated both Hartwick College (3-1) and Nazareth College (2-1). Senior striker Michaela Donohue has paced the Ithaca offense through seven games, as she owns a team-leading six goals. In the conference, Donohue ranks fifth in both points (1.71) and goals (.857) per game. In cage, senior Savanna Lenker is fourth in the Liberty League in saves per game (6.29) and fifth in save percentage (.759).
LOOKING AHEAD
Elmira returns to action on Saturday, September 30, when it heads to Geneseo, New York to challenge SUNY Geneseo at the Knights' College Stadium. The non-conference bout is scheduled to begin at 11:00 a.m.
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