ITHACA, N.Y. — With three consecutive contests against nationally ranked opponents on the docket this week, the Cornell field hockey team kicks off the 2023 season when it visits No. 7 Syracuse on Wednesday, Sept. 6 at 6 p.m. at J.S. Coyne Stadium. The contest will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.

MATCH INFORMATION
Cornell at #8 Syracuse
SITE: J.S. Coyne Stadium – Syracuse, N.Y. (turf)
RECORDS: Cornell (0-0, 0-0 Ivy League), Syracuse (3-0, 0-0 ACC)
SERIES RECORD: Syracuse leads, 33-3-1
BROADCAST: ACC Network Extra (Ian Nicholas on pxp, Jesse Cook on color)
STATS: Cuse.com
DIGITAL PROGRAM: CornellBigRed.com

STORYLINES
• The Cornell field hockey team enters the 2023 season with big plans, and it will get its first chance to open some eyes when it visits No. 7 Syracuse on Wednesday, Sept. 6 at 6 p.m. at J.S. Coyne Stadium.
• The contest will be broadcast live on ACC Network Extra.
• The Big Red will open its season against the Orange for just the second time in the past 35 years, though the other meeting was memorable for Cornell fans.
• On Sept. 17, 2019, in head coach Andy Smith's first season on the sidelines, the Big Red raced out to a 2-0 halftime lead and claimed a 2-1 victory over No. 18 Syracuse at Dodson Field.
• Syracuse has won four straight since that contest and leads the all-time series 33-3-1 dating back to 1979.
• Cornell was chosen fourth in the Ivy League Preseason Poll fresh off a 10-7 season (4-3 Ivy League) that saw it tie for third in the final standings
• The Big Red enters the season returning six starters, including U.S. national team member Caroline Ramsey. • Smith's team was playing its best hockey of the season over the final weeks of 2022, as the Big Red won four of is final five contests with a victory over No. 4 Louisville.
• The Big Red will face an unbeaten Orange squad (3-0) that has outscored its opponents 20-3, including a 5-1 win over Monmouth in its most recent contest on Sept. 1. 
• Under first year head coach Lynn Farquhar, Pieke van de Pas has exploded for 16 points (six goals, four assists) to lead an offense that leads the country in goals and scoring margin.

THE SERIES
Overall: Syracuse leads 33-3-1, first meeting in 1979
In Syracuse, N.Y.: Syracuse leads 16-2-1
Current Streak: Syracuse, 4
Last Meeting: Syracuse, 5-0 (10/9/2022 in Syracuse, N.Y.)
Smith vs. Syracuse: 1-4 (0-3 on the road)
Series Notes: Syracuse leads the all-time series 33-3-1 and has won four straight meetings between the programs by a combined score of 15-1 ... the Big Red's last win came in 2019, a 2-1 triumph on Sept. 7 in head coach Andy Smith's first game on Cornell's sidelines ... the Big Red  holds a 5-40-1 all-time record against current members of the ACC: Boston College (0-4), Duke (0-0), Louisville (1-0), North Carolina (0-1), Virginia (1-2), and Wake Forest (0-0) in addition to Syracuse..

A WIN OVER SYRACUSE WOULD
• give Cornell its fourth consecutive season-opening win under head coach Andy Smith.
• make the Big Red 30-16-4 all-time in season openers.
• be the team's first win over a ranked team since last Oct. 23 when it defeated No. 4 Louisville 2-0 at home.
• be the first win over a ranked opponent on the road since upsetting the 19th-ranked Orange 3-2 on Oct. 25, 2007.
• give Andy Smith his 90th career win as head coach.
• make Cornell field hockey 354-377-36 all-time since 1972.

LAST TIME OUT: Cornell 1, Yale 0 (Nov. 5, 2022)  //  Recap  //  Box Score  //  Gallery
• The Cornell field hockey team closed out its 2022 season with a 1-0 win over Yale at home on Senior Day on Nov. 5, 2022 at Dodson Field. 
• Freshman Grace Leahy tallied her fifth goal of the season in the contest for the lone score of the game on an assist by Caroline Ramsey.
• The win helped Cornell clinch a tie for third place in the final league standings.
• The Big Red held a 12-7 edge in shots, though the Bulldogs had 10 penalty corners to just five for the home team.
• Aerin Park earned the shutout with three saves.

FOUR NAMED TO NFHCA WATCHLIST
• Four members of the Cornell field hockey team have been named to the 2023 NFHCA Watchlist sponsored by Victory Sports Tours. 
• Senior All-American Caroline Ramsey joins junior Olivia Friedberg, sophomore Grace Leahy and freshman Polly Parsons are among 131 student-athletes named to the initial list.
• Ramsey, an NFHCA third-team All-American in 2022, is a two-time all-region selection and a member of the U.S. National Team. 
• Friedberg was a member of the Canadian women's indoor national team this past season. 
• Leahy was the team's third-leading scorer a season ago as a freshman with five goals and 12 points, with three of her tallies going as game winners. 
• One of just 10 first year players to be recognized, Parsons joins the Big Red after being selected to compete for a spot at the Team USA U-21 National Training Camp. 

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES
• The Big Red enters the 2023 season picked to finish fourth in the Ivy League Preseason poll. 
• A finish of fourth or better would put the Big Red into the inaugural Ivy League Field Hockey Tournament in November.
• Eight members of Cornell's fall 2023 roster to be selected for either a senior national team or a junior selection camp, with Ramsey and Parsons (USA) and Friedberg and Leahy (Canada) joining Georgia Kelly (Ireland), Martha Broderick (Scotland), Annabel Cheveley (England) and Elizabeth Friedberg (Canada).
• Ramsey enters her senior season with 69 points, 30 shy of the career record at Cornell and 31 from becoming the first player in school history to surpass 100 points.
• With 31 goals, Ramsey needs 11 to match Krysten Mayers '18 with a Big Red record 42 scores.
• With her 13 career defensive saves, Ramsey already owns the Cornell record entering her final campaign.
• Ramsey, a two-time NFHCA first-team regional All-American — joining Karla Griffin, Carissa Mirasol and Marisa Siergiej — is looking to become Cornell's first three-time first-teamer.

UP NEXT
• The Big Red kicks off its 2023 home slate with a non-conference matchup with No. 15 UConn on Friday, Sept. 8 at 4 p.m. at Marsha Dodson Field.
• It will  be the second-ever meeting between the Big Red and the Huskies, with UConn winning the previous contest 7-1 on Sept. 13, 1998 in Mansfield, Conn.