UVM FIELD HOCKEY NOTEBOOK
The University of Vermont field hockey team prepares for their final weekend of regular season play before traveling to the University at Albany for the 2015 America East Conference Tournament next week. This year marks the first postseason playoff appearance for Vermont since 2007.
 
No. 18 Maine will host Vermont on Friday, Oct. 30 at 3 p.m. in their last conference matchup before the Catamounts return home on Sunday, Nov. 1 to take on the Dartmouth Big Green at 2 p.m.
 
RELATED LINKS
Maine Coverage – Live Stats | Live Video (free)
Dartmouth Coverage –Live Video (free)
 
WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
Prior to Sunday's contest, the five senior members of the field hockey squad will be honored for their accomplishments as members of the Vermont field hockey program.
 
Sunday will also be Student-Athlete Faculty Appreciation Day. Student-athletes will provide an individual faculty or staff member that has positively influenced their educational or athletic performance with free admission to the match.

KEEPING UP WITH THE CATS
Vermont picked up their second conference win at UMass Lowell on Sunday (Oct. 25) in a 4-1 decision. The four goals marked a season high as four different Catamounts earned points, including junior Anne-Marie Farmer who posted two goals for a career-high total.
 
Rookie Lauren Tucker notched a goal and an assist against the River Hawks as well. Tucker continues to pace the Catamount offense with 19 points, ranking ninth in the conference, and holds the seventh spot in the America East for goals with seven.    

Starting goalkeeper Lena Benwood has earned every decision (4-12, 2-5) for UVM. Benwood remains at the top of the conference in total saves (120) averaging 7.50 stops per game.

SCOUTING NO. 18 MAINE
Nationally ranked for the third week in a row at No. 18, Maine sits on a record of 15-3 (5-1) with their lone conference defeat at No. 8 Albany last week by a score of 3-1.
 
The Black Bears have outscored opponents 65-23 on 277 total shots – most in the conference – for a .235 shot percentage. The team has been lead by junior Sydney Veljacic and freshman Libby Riedl who each have 22 points on the year. Veljacic has netted a team high of ten goals and two assists, while Riedl claims six goals and ten assists. 
 
Sophomores Emily Corbett (8-2) and Emma Cochran (7-1) have split the minutes in the cage this season. Corbett has allowed only ten goals in 18 games for a .783 save percentage while Cochran has stopped 27 shots in 639 minutes.
 
THE SERIES HISTORY
Maine holds the all-time series record against the Catamounts 26-9-1. Their previous meeting took place in Burlington on Oct. 11, which ended 3-1 in favor of the Black Bears.
 
SCOUTING DARTMOUTH
The Big Green (6-8) are coming off a 3-2 defeat at Holy Cross Wednesday afternoon. Dartmouth is averaging 2.86 goals per game on 230 shot attempts.
 
Rebecca Hu leads the Dartmouth offense with 22 points on nine goals and four assists. Hu is one of six to appear as a starter in all 14 games. Eliza Becker ranks second among the league in assists, dishing out 12 on the season and recording a season-high of three at Providence on Oct. 4.
 
Paige Duffy has earned every decision in goal for the Big Green. In 893 minutes she has faced 221 shots, stopping 92, placing her second in the Ivy League saves and save percentage (.713).
 
SERIES HISTORY
Sunday will mark the 33rd meeting between Vermont and Dartmouth. The Big Green lead the series with a 25-6-1 advantage. UVM's last victory in the series was a home match in 2011 that ended in a 4-3 decision. Their most recent matchup was Oct. 23, 2013 in Burlington where Dartmouth held off the Catamounts 3-2.
 
AMERICA EAST CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
The 2015 America East Conference Field Hockey Tournament is set to begin on Thursday, Nov. 5 at the University at Albany. This season's tournament will feature three nationally ranked squads with No. 8 Albany (15-2, 6-1), No. 18 Maine, New Hampshire (7-9, 3-3) and Vermont in the eastern division and No. 13 Stanford (11-5, 3-2), UC Davis (7-11, 0-5), California (9-8, 3-2) and Pacific (10-6, 4-1) in the western division playoffs.
 
Quarterfinals and semifinals of the tournament will be streamed live, for free at AmericaEast.TV and the championship game will be presented on ESPN3 Sunday, Nov. 8. Streams are available on all devices and will be available on Championship Central after Sunday's matchups.