FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Fairfield University field hockey team will play a pair of games this weekend beginning with a Northeast Conference (NEC) date at Sacred Heart University on Friday night. The Stags will follow up by hosting Hofstra University on Sunday at University Field beginning at 1 pm. The program will also honor the seniors prior to the Hofstra game beginning at approximately 12:45 pm.
The Stags are riding a five-game winning streak dating back to September 29 when they collected a 2-1 win over the University of Maine. Including that match, Fairfield has outscored the competition by a 24-3 margin, a spread benefitting from back-to-back shutouts last weekend. Four of those victories came against NEC opponents, sending the Stags into a first-place tie in the standings with a 4-1 mark.
Three student-athletes have scored nine points during the five-game run with each doing it in their unique way.
Konni Hofmann posted four goals and an assist to account for her point total.
Pilar Mengotti has three goals and three assists but all three of her goals were game winners.
Alice Pifferi served as the play maker during the winning streak, registering seven assists with one goal to total out at nine points.
Goalkeeper
Emily Streib has been equally effective defensively by allowing just three goals in 270 minutes of work, translating into a 1.00 goals against average with 16 saves for a .842 save percentage.
Payton Rahn has also contributed to the defensive success by not allowing a goal in her 30 minutes of work.
Hoffman leads the team in overall scoring as well with six goals and two assists for 14 points, just ahead of Mengotti's 11 points which are comprised of four goals and three assists. Streib has collected a 1.60 goals against average and a .780 save percentage off 32 saves over her nine appearances this season.
Sacred Heart brings a 5-8 overall record and a 2-2 NEC mark into the weekend after picking up a pair of recent non-conference wins against Georgetown University and Towson University. Hannah Fawle posted the game-winning goal against Towson, finding the back of the cage in the 50
th minute to break a 2-2 tie.
Fawle and Celia Benson both have five points on the season with a pair of goals and an assist each which places second only to Emma Brayford's eight points off three goals and two assists. Abby Lauer has been successful in setting up her teammates this year with a program-best four assists this year. Samantha Maresca has started 12 matches in the Sacred Heart goal, registering a 1.81 goals against average with a .747 save percentage (68 saves).
Hofstra enters the weekend with a 2-10 overall record and an 0-3 record in CAA play. Both of the team's wins have come against NEC foes, edging LIU and Sacred Heart earlier in the year.
Teresa Karoff paces the offense with 10 points, recording four goals and two assists over her 13 starts this season. She and Arden Wojtach are responsible for the team's two game-winning goals this year. Tara McNally is second among her teammates in scoring with a goal and two assists for four points. Goalkeeper Pieke Roos has started 12 of the team's 13 games this year, owning a 2.85 goals against average with a .686 save percentage (70 saves).
