Nancy Stevens, Women’s Hockey’s head coach reaches her 650th career win as the hit 8-0 against UMass Amherst on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2017. (Eric Wang/The Daily Campus)
After a three game road swing, the Huskies are back in Storrs for a Saturday matinee against the Georgetown Hoyas.
Georgetown is in the midst of an up and down season. The Hoyas have a chance to climb above .500 with two wins this weekend but have a record of 1-3 in Big East play.
Despite their struggles, head coach Nancy Stevens believes Georgetown has the capability to be a dangerous opponent.
“Georgetown scored three goals against Providence and we only managed to score two against the Friars,” said Stevens. “This is just a snapshot of the Hoyas but our goal will be to lock down their strikers and limit their attack corners.”
The Huskies will likely focus on shutting down the pairing of Cami Osborne and Lindsay Getz. The duo rank fifth and eighth in the Big East in goals respectively.
UConn enters the weekend with a sterling 14-0 record. The Huskies have been elite on both sides of the ball all season. Their 3.23 scoring margin is first in the nation and their 4.87 goals per game average is behind only Virginia.
“To win championships in our sport, limiting the opponent’s goals is critically important,” said Stevens. “We have been stingy on defense- limiting shots, corner opportunities and goals. Our production on offense has been terrific so far and we will look to keep performing at a high level in that area.”
One of UConn’s unsung heroes has been Karlie Heistand. The senior midfielder doesn’t collect eye-popping stats but Stevens believes she is absolutely crucial to the team’s success.
“Karlie is the best tackler in the country. Stats for successful tackles are not kept in our sport but we see how terrific she is for us on every game day,” said Stevens. “She runs approximately six miles in every game.”
This week, Heistand was selected to play in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association’s Senior Game alongside goalkeeper Nina Klein. The Senior Game takes place two days before the National Championship Game and if the Huskies were to make it that far, Stevens says her seniors would have to miss the game.
But before the Huskies turn their attention the playoffs, they’ll first have to dispatch Georgetown.
Saturday’s game will get underway at noon at the George J Sherman Family Sports Complex
Bryan Lambert is a staff writer for The Daily Campus. He can be reached via email at bryan.lambert@uconn.edu.
