GAME INFORMATION
GAME #16: Cornell vs. Dartmouth
GAME TIME: Sunday, Nov. 9, at Noon
GAME SITE: Marsha Dodson Field (Ithaca, N.Y.)
SERIES RECORD: Dartmouth leads, 20-8-1
LAST MEETING: Cornell won, 2-0, on Nov. 3, 2007 in Hanover, N.H.
2008 RECORDS: Cornell (10-5, 5-1); Dartmouth (6-9, 4-2)
THE MATCHUP WITH DARTMOUTH: The Cornell University field hockey team will honor Stephanie Brownstein, Abbi Horn, Belen Martinez and Eva Olesky as it hosts Senior Day and welcomes Dartmouth to Marsha Dodson Field on Sunday, Nov. 9, at noon.The Big Red will look to secure second place in the Ivy League, while holding off a Big Green squad that sits right behind them in the conference standings. Cornell's hope at an Ivy League title is not completely dead, as a win over Dartmouth, coupled by a Princeton loss to Penn, would give the Big Red a share of the conference championship. Cornell, which is 10-5 overall and had a seven-game conference winning streak snapped last weekend by the Tigers, will be looking to get back into the win column against Dartmouth and send the winningest senior class in program history off with one more victory to its credit.
Brownstein, an athletic player with explosive power, has seen action in 57 games during her career, making 41 starts. She has been an integral part of a Cornell defense that over the past four years has allowed opponents less than 11 shots per game and just over six penalty corner per game. Her only collegiate point was a big one, as she set up the game-winning goal in overtime against Columbia during the 2007 season. A three-time member of the NFHCA Academic Squad, Brownstein was the recipient of the team's Sportsmanship, Leadership and Determination Award following her junior season.
Abbi Horn (Attack, Severna Park, Md./Severna Park HS)
Horn will leave her mark on the Cornell record books as one of the most proficient scorers in school history. She currently sits in fifth place in career assists (15) and in seventh place in both career goals (17) and career points (49). She has seen action in all 65 games during her career, making 36 starts. One of the team's three captains for the 2008 season, Horn ranks second on the team this year in both goals (7) and assists (5). She has four game-winning goals to her credit, including the first two goals she scored during the 2007 season, both of which were scored against Ivy League opponents in the final minute of regulation (Princeton – 21 seconds remaining and Brown – 46 seconds remaining). She has been named the Ivy League Player of the Week twice during her career and was named the team's Offensive MVP following the 2006 season.
Martinez, a second-team Mideast Region All-American in both 2005 and 2007, was named a unanimous first-team All-Ivy selection as a junior after earning second-team honors in each of her first two seasons. A two-time team captain, she was recently named to the 2008 NFHCA Division I Senior All-Star team, one of just two Ivy League players to make the squad. She is the heart of the Cornell defensive unit but will also leave as one of the school's top offensive threats, currently ranking seventh in career goals (17), ninth in career points (45) and ninth in career assists (12). A two-time defensive MVP for the Big Red, she has started all 65 games of her career since arriving on East Hill.
Eva Olesky (Midfield/Back, Warren, N.J./Newark Academy)
One of three captains for the 2008 season, Olesky has seen her production skyrocket during her final two years with the Big Red. During her career, she has seen action in 38 games, making eight starts. She has been a solid part of the Cornell defense that over the past four years has allowed opponents less than 11 shots per game and just over six penalty corner per game. Her only collegiate point came earlier this season when she assisted on Abbi Horn's game-winning goal against Georgetown. She is one of the team's most fit players her determination, enthusiasm and energy is an inspiration to her teammates.
THE HEAD COACH: Cornell head coach Donna Hornibrook is in her fifth season at Cornell (40-41, .493) ... Hornibrook became the sixth coach in Cornell field hockey history in January 2004 ... She has a 211-88-10 (.666) record as a head coach, including a 111-39-4 mark at Houghton and a 60-8-6 record at New Brunswick.
THE BIG RED'S LAST GAME: The Big Red dropped a 4-0 decision to No. 11 Princeton on Nov. 1 on Marsha Dodson Field. The loss was the first in Ivy League play for the Big Red this season, as the team fell to 10-5 overall and 5-1 in the conference. The Tigers improved to 13-2 overall and 6-0 in league and clinched at least a share of the Ivy League title. The game was much closer than the final score indicated, with Princeton holding the slight 18-14 advantage in shots and 10-6 edge in penalty corners. The Tigers put 13 shots on goal, while Cornell had nine shots on goal. Both teams' goalies were outstanding with Cornell junior Melanie Jue making eight saves in the loss, while Jennifer King stopped nine in the victory. Sophomore Sara Sanders also recorded a defensive save for the Big Red.
SCOUTING THE BIG GREEN: Dartmouth had a three-game win streak snapped last weekend when it fell to No. 2 Wake Forest, 5-1, on Sunday, Nov. 2. The Big Green owns a 6-9 overall record, but has come on strong in the second half of the season and sits in a tie for third place in the Ivy League with a mark of 4-2. Dartmouth is led by Kelly Hood with nine goals and 20 points, while Virginia Peisch has a team-high 14 assists. In goal, Meagan Vakiener has seen the majority of playing time for the Big Green, starting all 15 games, and has posted a 2.56 goals-against average while stopping .745 percent of the shots she has faced.
LAST TIME VS. DARTMOUTH: For just the second time in program history, the Big Red finished a season with five conference wins, as the Big Red defeated Dartmouth, 2-0, on Nov. 3, 2007 on Scully-Fahey Field to improve to 5-2 in the Ivy League and 10-7 overall. With the win, Cornell secured a second-place finish in the Ancient Eight, while tying the school record for victories in a season. Despite the fact that Dartmouth held the edge in shots, 15-9, and penalty corners, 8-3, the Big Green were unable to find the back of the net and the Big Red created multiple dangerous scoring opportunities. Neither team managed to get on the board in the first half, but just as they had done all year, the Big Red made the halftime adjustments and scored two goals late in the contest. Cornell opened the scoring at 44:09 when Catie De Stio stole the ball and streaked upfield, beating several defenders, before forcing Dartmouth goalie Ashley Heist off her line. As Heist charged out, De Stio slipped a pass to Brenna Gulotta, who sent the ball into the open net to put the visitors up, 1-0. With just under five minutes to play, the Big Red tacked on an insurance goal as Gulotta came up with a steal and outran the Dartmouth back line. She played the ball into space and Mandy Malzberg beat Heist to it in the open field. Malzberg then pushed the ball around Heist and dribbled it right into the open net to account for the 2-0 final. In goal, Shannon Prescott made two saves to earn the shutout, while Heist stopped four.
THE BIG GREEN'S LAST GAME: Dartmouth closed out its home season schedule on Nov. 1 as the Big Green fell to the second-ranked Demon Deacons of Wake Forest, 5-1, in non-conference action at Chase Field. For Wake Forest, Hilary Moore tallied two goals, while Michelle Kasold added a goal and assist to lead the Demon Deacon attack. Wake Forest had a huge advantage in shots, posting 33 with 23 coming on net. Crystal Duffield earned the win, her 16th of the season, making six saves. For Dartmouth, junior Chelsea Dodds recorded the lone Big Green goal, scoring on a penalty stroke. Freshman goalkeeper Meagan Vakiener was solid for much of the game, making a season-high 17 saves, including 12 in the first half. Senior Jordan Sedlacek came on with five minutes remaining in the contest and posted an amazing save in the final minute.
A WIN AGAINST DARTMOUTH WOULD:
- set the school record for both overall wins (11) and conference wins (6).
- be the third straight win over the Big Green.
- make the Big Red 13-3 in its last 16 Ivy League games, going back to the final two games of the 2006 season.
- give the senior class an overall record of 38-28 and a mark of 19-9 in the Ivy League, the best marks of any class in Cornell field hockey program history.
A SHOCKING SHUTOUT: When the Big Red lost to Princeton on Nov. 1, it was just the third time in Ivy League play over the past four years (20 games) that Cornell was shutout by a conference opponent. The Big Red was last shutout by a league member in a 1-0 overtime loss to Harvard in 2006, which followed a 6-0 loss to Princeton the week before. The Big Red, which was shutout just twice overall in both 2005 and 2007, did not go scoreless against an Ancient Eight foe in either of those seasons.
GETTING VOTES: In the Oct. 27 edition of the STX/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll, the Big Red made an appearance in the “others receiving votes” section. The seven votes earned is the most by Cornell during Coach Hornibrook's tenure.
RECORD WINS: With the victory over Brown on Oct. 24, the Big Red tied the school record for overall wins (10) and conference wins (5) in a season. In total, Cornell has had 10 wins three times in the history of the program (2005, 2007, 2008), all of which came during Coach Hornibrook's tenure. Cornell has earned five Ivy League wins twice before (1997, 2007), including last season.
SENIOR CLASS: With just one game left in the 2008 season, the class of 2009 is already the winningest class in program history. Coach Hornibrook's first recruiting class has piled up 37 wins overall and 18 victories in the Ivy League. Previously, the members of the class of 1998 were the winningest in program history with 33 victories overall and 14 wins in the Ivy League.
RECORD WATCH: Cornell needs an outstanding offensive effort against Dartmouth to set the school record for goals in a single season. The Big Red is currently averaging 2.80 goals per game and needs three tallies in the final contest to eclipse the school mark of 44 goals, set in the 2005 season. Cornell is also just three assists away from beating the school record of 36, set in the 2000 season. The Big Green has given up at least three goals in nine of its 15 games so far this season.
AND THAT'S EVERYBODY: The Big Red's class of 2009 has defeated every team in the Ivy League at least once. The last team to fall was Princeton, which Cornell defeated last year, 4-3, in Princeton, N.J. Over the last four years, the Big Red managed to get a victory at home and on the road against each Ancient Eight opponent except for the Tigers.
SEASONED SCORER: Catie De Stio is having a solid sophomore season and with one game to play she needs just two more goals and three more total points to move into the Cornell top-10 for goals and points in a single-season. She currently leads the team with eight goals and 21 points on the season. De Stio has scored at least one goal in five of the Big Red's last seven games.
IVY WIN STREAK: The Big Red opened the Ivy League portion of its schedule with five straight victories to extend its conference winning streak to seven games, the longest conference winning streak in program history. Previously, Cornell's longest winning steak against Ancient Eight foes was four games, coming in 1997 when the Big Red defeated Harvard (3-0), Dartmouth (3-1), Brown (1-0) and Yale (2-1) to close out the season.
HEY NOW, YOU'RE AN ALL-STAR: Belen Martinez has been named to the 2008 NFHCA Division I Senior All-Star team. Martinez is just one of two Ivy League players named to the 38 player squad. The 2008 NFHCA Division I Senior All-Star game will be played on Saturday, Nov. 22 at the University of Louisville at 7:30 p.m.
THE FOUR SEASONS: With its 1-0 victory over Harvard on Oct. 18, Cornell assured itself of a winning record in the Ivy League for the fourth season in a row. The stretch, which includes records of 5-2 in 2007 and 4-3 in both 2005 and 2006, is the longest in program history.
RANKED OPPONENTS: Cornell is 0-2 this season against ranked opponents, falling to both No. 19 Albany and No. 11 Princeton. Last year, the Big Red was 1-1 vs. teams that were ranked in the NFHCA rankings, defeating No. 19 Syracuse after losing to No. 15 Albany. Cornell also defeated Princeton, which ended its season ranked No. 17 in the nation.
KNOCK THREE TIMES: When the Big Red fell to Syracuse during the 2006 season, 4-3, in overtime, it marked the first time in Coach Hornibrook's career with Cornell that the team scored three goals and lost the contest. Under Coach Hornibrook, the Big Red improved to 24-1 in games in which it scores at least three goals after a 4-2 victory over Brown on Oct 25.
DOUBLED UP: Cornell is taking nearly twice as many shots as its opponents (16.8 spg.– 9.8 spg.), and is averaging nearly twice as many goals as its opponents (2.80 gpg. – 1.53 gpg.).
FIRST HALF FIREWORKS: For the season, the Big Red has taken 121 shots in the first half of play and 130 shots in the second half of play, while its opponents have taken exactly 73 shots in each half of play. Despite the even distribution of the shots over the two halves, Cornell has outscored opponents, 23-7, in the first half, but only 18-15 in the second half.
TOP 20 TEAM: As a team, the Big Red ranks in the top 20 in the nation in several categories, including shutouts per game (0.33 – 10th), save percentage (.768 – 11th), assists per game (2.40 – 13th), penalty corners per game (8.20 – 15th), points per game (8.00 – 19th), scoring average (2.77 – 19th), scoring margin (1.26 – 20th), goals per game (2.80 – 20th), goals and winning percentage (.667 – 20th).
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE (A NEW) HOME: The Big Red is 5-1 on the newly constructed Marsha Dodson Field. Collectively, the team has outscored its opponents by an impressive margin of 20-10 and has taken two and a half times as many shots (121-47) as its opponents. The defense has been equally solid in the circle, allowing just 26 penalty corners (4.3 per game), including giving up just one penalty corner in back-to-back games against Yale and Lehigh.
HATS OFF: After going three seasons without seeing a Cornell player score three goals in a single game, the Big Red has had three players register hat tricks so far this year – Abbi Horn (Georgetown, Sept. 21), Kelley Kantarian (Colgate, Oct. 9) and Catie De Stio (Bryant, Oct. 11). Horn's hat trick against the Hoyas was the best single-game performance by a Cornell player since Gina Testa tallied four scores at Rutgers on Oct. 31, 2004. The three hat tricks in a single season is the most by the Big Red since having four during the 1995 season. That year, Cari Hills scored three goals vs. Colgate and four goals against Holy Cross, while Emily Robb tallied three against both Lehigh and Brown. Until this year, Cornell had never had three different players register hat tricks in the same season.
OFFENSIVE ONSLAUGHT: The Big Red defeated Colgate, 6-4, and Bryant, 9-0 on Oct. 9 and Oct. 11, respectively. The combined 15 goals is the largest offensive output in back-to-back games by Cornell since the Big Red defeated St. Lawrence, 6-2, and Rochester, 7-0, in the first two games of the 1974 season.
MATCHING THE MARK: The Big Red tied the school record for goals in a single game when it defeated Bryant, 9-0, on Oct. 11. That performance came on the heels of a 6-4 victory over Colgate on Oct. 9. Under Coach Hornibrook, the team has scored at least six goals in a game on four occasions.
CIRCLE OF TRUST: Cornell's defense has been extremely calm in the circle this season, allowing just 5.2 penalty corners per game. That is the best school average since the stat began to be recorded in 1998. Since taking over the program, Coach Hornibrook's teams have allowed just 6.8 penalty corners per game. That is significantly down from the 8.4 average prior to her arrival. On the weekend of Oct. 4-5, the Big Red held Yale and Lehigh to just one penalty corner each. That is the best performance in back-to-back games since Cornell held Lafayette and Columbia to one and three penalty corners, respectively, in back-to-back contests in 2006.
QUICK HITS: Abbi Horn scored just 37 seconds into the game against Yale on Oct. 4. The goal was the quickest registered by a Cornell player since Carissa Mirasol scored at the 15-second mark against American on Oct. 28, 2001.
MOVING ON UP: The weekend of Sept. 20-21 proved to be a successful one for Belen Martinez and Abbi Horn as both moved into the top 10 of several career categories at Cornell. Currently, Martinez ranks seventh in career goals (17), ninth in career points (45) and ninth in career assists (12). Meanwhile, Horn sits in fifth place in career assists (15) and in seventh place in both career goals (17) and career points (49).
STRONG STOPPER: In her first year with the Big Red field hockey team, junior goalkeeper Melanie Jue has been solid, ranking among the best in the nation in save percentage (.750 – 18th) and goals-against average (1.63 – 27th).She has also posted the third-highest number of saves in the nation in a single game with her 19-save performance vs. Albany on Sept. 6, third only to Deitre Corvo (Georgetown), who made 23 saves vs. Syracuse on Oct. 10, and Susie Rowe (Maryland), who made 20 saves against Northwestern on Sept. 7.
WHERE WE RANK: Several Cornell players rank among the best in the conference in several categories. Abbi Horn is ninth in goals (7), goals per game (0.47) and assists (5), and she is 10th in points per game (1.27) and assists per game (0.33).Catie De Stio leads the league in game-winning goals (4), ranks sixth in points per game (1.40), is eighth in goals (8), goals per game (0.53) and assists (5) is ninth in points (21) and is 10th in assists per game (0.33). Kelley Kantarian is ninth in goals (7) and goals per game (0.47), while Kate Thompson is seventh in assists (6) and assists per game (0.40) and Natlie Appleton is eighth in assists (5) and assists per game (0.36). Goalie Melanie Jue is third in shutouts (3), goals-against average (1.63), and save percentage (.750) and is sixth in saves (66) and seventh saves per game (4.71).
CLOSE CALLS: Cornell's 1-0 victory over Harvard on Oct. 18 continued the Big Red's trend of playing in one-goal games. Since the start of the 2006 season, the Big Red has lost 20 games, with 14 of those coming by a single goal, including seven in overtime. During that same span, Cornell has won 12 one-goal games. So far this season, all four of Cornell's losses have come in one-goal contests, including one in overtime.
COMING AT YOU FROM ALL SIDES: Since taking over the Cornell program in 2004, Coach Hornibrook has had a dozen or more players register at least one point in three-of-four seasons, with a high of 14 in 2005. So far this season, 13 different Big Red players have registered at least on point.
FAST STARTS: Scoring first has been a big part of the Big Red's success in recent years. Since Coach Hornibrook has taken over the program, Cornell has posted an impressive 37-8 record in games in which they have scored first. Conversely, the team has won only three games in which they have had to come back from an early deficit to win. The first was Coach Hornibrook's very first victory with the team, a 6-3 win over Lehigh in 2004, with the latest coming on Oct. 9, 2008 as Cornell defeated Colgate, 6-4.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Three Cornell players have earned Ivy League Player of the Week honors so far this season – Kelley Kantarian, Catie De Stio and Abbi Horn. Kantarian was named the Player of the Week on Oct. 28 after scoring two goals, including the game-winner, and adding an assist as Cornell defeated Brown, 4-2. De Stio was given the award on Oct. 7 after a stellar weekend in which she registered both game-winning goals as the Big Red defeated Yale, 2-1, in overtime and Lehigh, 2-0. She also assisted on Cornell's first goal against Yale for a five-point weekend. Horn was named the Ivy League Player of the Week on Sept. 23, following an outstanding weekend against Penn and Georgetown. Horn assisted on the final goal in Cornell's 3-1 victory over the Quakers, but that paled in comparison to her performance on Sunday in which she registered a hat trick against the Hoyas.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK: Melanie Jue was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week on Sept. 9 after helping the Big Red open the season with a 1-1 record. In her first collegiate start, Jue made 19 saves against No. 19 Albany before dropping a 1-0 decision to the Great Danes on Sept. 6. The following day, Jue was not called upon to make a single save as she recorded her first career shutout. Jue, who is a junior at Cornell, is considered a rookie because she has not played field hockey at the collegiate level prior to this season.
THAT'S A START: Cornell goalie Alex Botte got her first collegiate start against Fairfield on Sept. 28. The freshman netminder stopped six shots in a 1-0 loss.
IVY OPENERS: Cornell opened its 30th season of play in the Ivy League on Sept. 20 with a 3-1 victory over Penn. With the win, the Big Red improved to 12-15-3 all-time in conference season openers, thanks mostly to an 9-3 record since 1997. Cornell has played only four of the seven Ivy League teams in its season openers through the years. Cornell has had its best outings in Ivy League openers against Yale (1-0) and Columbia (6-1). The Big Red has played Princeton more than any other team in conference openers (14), posting a 3-9-2 record, but the two teams have not met in the season opener since 1999. Cornell has met Penn eight times in its conference opener, posting a 2-5-1 record against the Quakers. All but two of those games came prior to the 1989 season, with the 2002 and 2008 meetings proving to be Big Red victories.
A RUDE WELCOME: After a two-year hiatus from field hockey, junior Melanie Jue saw action in her first collegiate game, getting the start in goal vs. No. 19 Albany on Sept. 6. The two-sport athlete was called on to make 19 saves during the contest, the most since Kaitlin Tierney stopped 20 shots vs. Princeton on Oct. 21, 2000.
FOR OPENERS: After the loss to No. 19 Albany, the Big Red is 21-12-4 (.636) all-time in season-openers … The loss vs. the Great Danes was Coach Hornibrook's first in season-openers during her time with Cornell (4-1).
THE 200: Coach Hornibrook secured her 200th career win last season as the Big Red defeated Siena, 4-2, on Oct. 28, 2007.
