FAIRFIELD, Conn. --- A weekend with Philadelphia-based teams is on the docket for the Fairfield University field hockey team with the Stags playing at Drexel University on Friday afternoon before returning to campus for a match up with Villanova University on Sunday.

This weekend's action marks the last before the program plays its Northeast Conference opener against LIU on October 1. Fairfield has posted a 3-4 record against out of conference opponents so far which includes a 3-1 mark on the road. At home, the team has run up against three teams that currently have a combined  .761 winning percentage off a 16-5 combined record.

Drexel will host a game for the seventh time this season and has yet to leave the confines of Philadelphia. In addition to its time on its own pitch, the Dragons' two road games came at Penn and at Saint Joseph's. The team brings a 2-6 overall record into the weekend which includes a loss to fourth-ranked North Carolina on September 12.

The Dragons have not had too much trouble finding the back of the net this year with 16 goals in eight games. Avery Powell paces the offense with seven total points, netting a team-best three goals in addition to one assist. Four student-athletes are tied for second on the team scoring list with six points each Hannah Nihill accounting for all of her points off three goals. Isabel Jacobs comprises most of her six points off a team-leading four assists. Megan Hadfield has played a majority of minutes in the Dragons' goal, posting 46 saves and a 3.73 goals against average in her eight starts.

Villanova has also spent most of its season at home, playing six games on its field and two road dates this season. The Wildcats left the state of Pennsylvania just once so far, falling in overtime to nationally-ranked Monmouth University on September 10. The team owns a 4-4 overall record with a 1-0 Big East mark.

This is another team that knows how to score goals, starting the weekend with 23 goals in eight outings. The Wildcats have three of the top four scorers in the Big East, led by Sabine De Ruijter and Meghan Mitchell. The duo each have 15 points this year with De Ruijter posting seven goals and an assist while Mitchell has six goals and three assists. Caitlin Van Goverden is next in line with 14 points which comes off four goals and a team-high six assists. Jordan McGinley has spent the most time defending the Villanova goal, registering 30 saves and a 3.48 goals against average in 345 minutes of work.

Fairfield reaches the midpoint of its 2021 season after this weekend and looks to head into conference play with positive results. The Stags have won two of five games that have been decided by a goal this year which includes a loss to nationally-ranked Monmouth. Starting with the Villanova match, the Stags will play six of their next eight dates on campus.

Malen Iglesias and Danielle Profita represents the team's top scorers with both having identical stat lines that include two goals and one assist for five points. The duo also combines for two of the team's three game-winning goals. Goalkeeper Zoe Rosen has an impressive .807 save percentage, turning away 46 of the 57 shots that the opponents have placed on goal. The graduate student is tied for 10^th in the country in save percentage, and is ranked 10^th solely for saves per game (6.57).