FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- The Fairfield University field hockey team will host two key Northeast Conference (NEC) matches this weekend beginning with Friday's meeting with Rider University and ending with Sunday's game against Sacred Heart University. Coming into this weekend's action, Fairfield, Rider, and Sacred Heart each won their respective NEC opener and join Wagner as the four teams with a 1-0 record in conference play. Sunday's game will also be the program's senior day when the team will honor the Class of 2022.

Rider brings a three-game winning streak into this weekend, a run which includes victories over Hofstra, Merrimack, and Lock Haven. All three of those decisions were by one goal including an 3-2 overtime result against Hofstra. The Broncs are in the midst of their second three-game winning streak of the season, opening the campaign with three victories before falling to Miami (Ohio) on the road.

In its last outing, Alyssa Hoffman and Julia Divorra each scored a goal in the 2-1 decision against Lock Haven as the Broncs outshot their opponent by a 9-6 count. Divorra also netted the game-winning tally in the team's win over Merrimack, a third-quarter goal that stood for the rest of the game. She currently has eight goals this season with five of those scores serving as game winners.  Carly Brosious also has eight goals on the season with two game-winning goals and two assists.

Goalkeeper Kaitlyn Tomas earned the NEC Defensive Player of the Week after allowing just two goals in two games, one of which came off a penalty stroke. She made seven saves during the week, highlighted by her four stops against Lock Haven. She owns a 1.70 goals against average and a .709 save percentage for the season, making 39 saves in her 10 starts. 

Sacred Heart picked up its conference with a 4-3 overtime decision against Bryant University with four different Pioneers scoring a goal in the game. Julia Chang, Mia Katterman, and Kayla Kruk scored in regulation which Isabell Chamberlain followed with the overtime game winner just seconds into extra time. Chamberlain leads the team in scoring with three goals for six points followed by Katterman's four points off a goals and two assists.

Goalkeepers Samantha Maresca and Erin Burgess have split the minutes between the posts for the Pioneers with Burgess gaining the starting assignments. Maresca owns a 2.88 goals against average with a .520 save percentage, making 13 saves in her eight appearances. Burgess has a 3.25 goals against average with a .618 save percentage off 21 saves in eight games.

Fairfield University brings a 5-6 overall record into this weekend's action, winning two of its last three games which includes its 1-0 decision over LIU in conference play. Malen Iglesias has scored a goal in two of her last three appearances including the game-winner against Villanova on September 26. The senior leads the team in scoring with four goals and an assist for nine points, followed by Madison Hoskins (3 goals, 1 assist) and Danielle Profita (2 goals, 3 assists) who both have seven points on the season.

Goalkeeper Zoe Rosen continues to excel in the Fairfield goal with a 2.45 goals against average and a .778 save percentage. The graduate student has collected 63 saves in her 11 starts, ranking 17th in the nation with 5.73 saves per game. She also ranks 14th in the country for save percentage.