No. 3 UConn plays at Providence on Friday.
NEW YORK – The BIG EAST field hockey slate on Friday shows Connecticut and Liberty – both at 3-0 in league play – taking to the road. The No. 3 ranked Huskies play familiar foe Providence and No. 19 Liberty takes on No. 22 Old Dominion.
The Huskies (10-1) are coming off their first loss of the season, a 4-2 decision against Maryland this past Sunday. The Friars have won four in a row and own a 7-5 overall record and a 2-1 BIG EAST mark. Game time is 6 p.m. In the contest at ODU, the Lady Flames (8-3) are 5-1 away from home this season while the Monarchs (7-3, 1-2) aim to end a three-game losing streak after a 7-0 start.
Also on Friday
, Quinnipiac visits Villanova in a battle of teams that have 1-2 BIG EAST marks. Game time is 4 p.m. Georgetown, another team with a 1-2 conference record, will travel to Temple for a 6 p.m. match. The Hoyas’ last league game was a 2-1 overtime win against Old Dominion. Temple is looking for its first conference victory with an 0-3 BIG EAST start.
On Sunday, three BIG EAST teams host ranked opponents and one squad will be on the road against a ranked foe. No. 3 Connecticut hosts No. 5 Princeton, No. 22 Old Dominion plays No. 4 Duke and Liberty takes on No. 1 North Carolina, all at home. Georgetown will play at No. 15 Rutgers. Also on Sunday, Temple visits Saint Joseph’s and Providence hosts Fairfield.
Moroni Earns National Offensive Player Of The Week Again
Liberty’s Agueda Moroni has been named the Longstreth/National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season.
Moroni is the first two-time national offensive player of the week recipient in 2018. Also named the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this season, the senior recorded six goals, three assists and 15 points in three games last week. Her two most prominent accomplishments of the week included breaking the single-season school record for goals with her 20th goal of the season versus Wake Forest this past Sunday and notching her fourth hat trick of the year last Friday against Quinnipiac.
Moroni is No. 1 nationally in goals per game (1.82) and points per game (4.45) while placing fourth in assists per game (0.82). She leads the country in goals (20) and points (49). With 49 points, Moroni is 12 points ahead of second-place Emily McNamara of VCU (37 pts).
Third RPI Report
The third NCAA RPI report through games of Sept. 30 showed Connecticut at No. 5. Other teams in the top 30 are: Old Dominion (22), Liberty (26) and Quinnipiac (27). The BIG EAST as a conference ranks fourth.
Tops In Stats
Through five weeks of play, the BIG EAST tops the statistical rankings in three team categories. Temple remained tied for first in defensive saves with 11, Connecticut is first in points per game at 14.09 and first in the nation in scoring average with 4.73 points per game.
Individually, Antonia Tiedtke of UConn is tied for first in assists per game with an average of 1.09. Quinnipiac’s Ines Ruiz-Martinez leads the nation with five defensive saves per game. Liberty’s Agueda Moroni is first with 1.82 goals per game and with 4.45 points per game.
In The Polls
The BIG EAST continues to have three teams in the national poll. Connecticut is slotted at No. 3, followed by Liberty at No. 19 and Old Dominion at No. 22.
Despite their loss to then-No. 3 Maryland on Sunday, the Huskies still received one first-place vote. The BIG EAST is 9-7 (.563) against ranked teams in the NFHCA poll. Four of those wins came from Connecticut, three from Old Dominion. Liberty most recently defeated then-No. 7 Virginia, 3-2. In non-conference play, the league overall is 36-26 (.581).
#BIGEASTfh Schedule
October
5 Fri. QUINNIPIAC at VILLANOVA 4:00
#19 LIBERTY at #22 OLD DOMINION 5:00
#3 CONNECTICUT at PROVIDENCE 6:00
GEORGETOWN at TEMPLE 6:00
7 Sun. TEMPLE at Saint Joseph’s Noon
#5 Princeton at #3CONNECTICUT Noon
#4 Duke at #22 OLD DOMINION Noon
Fairfield at PROVIDENCE 1:00
#1 North Carolina at #19 LIBERTY 1:00
GEORGETOWN at #15 Rutgers 1:00
All Times Eastern | BIG EAST games in ALL CAPS