GAME DAY INFORMATION |
DATE: November 1, 2021
|
LOCATION: Benley Turf Field
Waltham, Mass. |
|
GAME DAY LINKS |
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO |
|
|
|
THE LEAD
For the first time in the four-year history of the New Haven Field Hockey Program, the Chargers are on to the postseason, improving on a preseason pick to finish ninth with a seventh place performance that pits the Blue and Gold against the second seeded Bentley Falcons on Monday night. The first ever postseason game for New Haven will take place under the lights, a familiar place for the Chargers, with the games scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. start. All of the action in the NE10 Championship quarterfinal game can be seen live on NE10 NOW using the link to the right.
SERIES HISTORY VS BENTLEY
New Haven and Bentley meet for the fifth time in the history of the program with the Falcons holding a perfect 4-0 edge in the all-time series. Earlier this season, the Chargers dropped a 3-1 decision to the Falcons, however that lone goal was the first time New Haven has scored against the NE10 foe, falling in the previous three meetings by a combined score of 22-0.
SCOUTING THE CHARGERS
Despite the goal at the beginning of the season to advance to the NE10 Championship for the first time in program history, the New Haven field hockey team isn't done just yet, now they have their sights set on advancing to the semifinal round. The Chargers have many different options to look to for scoring in the postseason, with 15 different players finding the back of the cage throughout the season. With a six-point performance against Mercy last week by freshman Abby Nixon (Wrentham, Mass./King Phillip Regional), the rookie now leads the team with 19 points on seven goals and five assists. Following her in leading the way is senior Sophie Schreck (Madison, Conn./Daniel Hand) who enters Monday night with 14 points on six goals and two assists. Two others have recorded double digit points with seniors Reilly Bialko (Shickshinny, Pa./Northwest Area) and Alexis Rider (Delran, N.J./Delran) each standing at 12 points. Graduate student goalkeeper Keira Integlia (Branford, Conn./Branford) has played every minute in the cage for the Chargers, racking up 113 saves, including a career-high 17 which came against Adelphi one week ago.
SCOUTING THE FALCONS
Bentley closed out the regular season without a loss in the month of October, going 8-0 in that stretch and closed out with a 14-4 overall record and a 12-2 mark in conference play. Included in that late season stretch were three-straight shutouts to end the regular season with those decisions coming against Molloy, Saint Michael's and American International. Overall, the Falcons sport a balanced attack on offense, with 13 different players scoring at least one goal on the season, led by junior Ava Bevilacqua and sophomore Katie Thies. Bevilacqua leads the squad with 23 points on 10 goals and three assists, while Thies sits behind her with 15 points on seven goals and an assist. After utilizing a rookie in goal in the first seven games, junior Madison Clark has started the last 12 games for the Falcons, allowing just nine goals in that stretch and collecting 32 saves and an 11-1 record.
INTEGLIA GOES NATIONAL
After recording her fourth and fifth shutouts of the season, graduate goalkeeper Keira Integlia (Branford, Conn./Branford) earned some national recognition this week as she was named an honorable mention National Player of the Week by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association. The accolade came just one day after she was tabbed the NE10 Goalkeeper of the Week by the league office. Across the two games last week, Integlia racked up 12 saves, including six in the opening game against crosstown rival Southern Connecticut and four more in the home win over Southern New Hampshire. Overall, the back-to-back wins this week helps improve the Chargers to 7-1 in the Northeast-10 with six games remaining before the postseason. Click Here for the full NE10 weekly report.
UP NEXT
With a win over second seeded Bentley, the Chargers would advance to the NE10 Championship semifinal round with a potential date on the docket against the winner of the quarterfinal between third seeded Stonehill and sixth seeded Adelphi. Check NewHavenChargers.com for the most up to date information on the Blue and Gold's postseason run.
