POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (October 29. 2009) – With men's soccer fighting for a Liberty League playoff spot, Gordon Field is the place to be on Saturday. Additionally, with the five-team women's volleyball Vassar Invitational on tap in the Athletics & Fitness Center on Friday and Saturday, and the men's rugby team hosting its final game of the fall at the Farm on Sunday, Vassar athletics fans have plenty of opportunity to cheer this weekend. Also competing in one of the final weekends of the fall season are women's rugby and the men's and women's cross country teams.

Men's soccer is playing its biggest game of the season on Saturday at 1:00 p.m., hosting No. 7 nationally ranked Rensselaer (RPI) in a contest with playoff implications. Currently in possession of the fourth and final playoff spot in the Liberty League, a win ensures Vassar its first postseason appearance since 2002, when the league was the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association. Coupled with a Vassar win, a Hobart College loss to Hamilton College on Saturday would result in the Brewers earning a No. 2 seed in the playoffs, and consequently, home field advantage in the semifinals. Vassar is 6-2 playing at home.

Potential Playoff Scenarios For Vassar: Seeded 2nd with a win and a Hobart loss. Seeded 3rd with a win and a Hobart win. Misses playoffs with a loss or tie and a Union win. Seeded 4th otherwise. For Rensselaer: Seeded 1st with a win and a Hamilton loss or tie. Seeded 2nd with a win and a Hamilton win. Seeded 2nd with a tie and a Hobart loss or tie. Seeded 2nd with a loss and a Hobart-Hamilton tie. Seeded 3rd with a tie and a Hobart win. Seeded 3rd with a loss and a Hamilton win. Seeded 4th with a loss and a Hobart win.

Although the Brewers are riding a hot streak, unbeaten with a 4-0-1 record in their last five games, they face no light opponent on Saturday in the No. 7 Engineers (12-1-2, 5-1-0). RPI's sole loss of the season came against Union College on October 9; the following day, the Brewers upset the Dutchmen, 3-2. Although the Engineers have secured a playoff spot, Saturday's game is far from meaningless for them, as they could still finish anywhere in the top four positions in the league standings. A win for the Engineers will ensure them at least the No. 2 seed. (See sidebar for all potential scenarios.) Saturday also marks the final regular season home game for Vassar's five seniors: Brian Bianchetti, Alex Freund, Jake London, Chris Nieminski, and Guthrie Raimondo.

Women's volleyball hosts the annual Vassar Invitational and will look to showcase the team's massive improvement from 2008 to 2009. Last year the Brewers finished the season 11-23 and went 0-4 in the Seven Sisters Championship. The Brewers will open up with Russell Sage on Friday at 4:00 p.m., followed by a 6:00 p.m. match against the University of Rochester. On Saturday, Vassar plays SUNY Vassar Invitational. This year the team is already 17-7 and ran the table at both the Union Invitational and Fredonia at 10:00 a.m. and concludes the Invitational with a 2:00 p.m. contest against Stevens Institute of Technology.

The men's and women's cross country teams return to Saratoga Springs for the second consecutive weekend for Saturday's RPI Invitational. Competing on the same course last Saturday at the Saratoga Invitational, the women placed fourth out of 13 teams while the men finished fifth out of 13 teams. Sophomore Johanna Spangler led the women's squad with a fourth place finish in 18:12, her sixth consecutive top five finish. The men were led by junior Jon Erickson who finished in 10th place.

Also on Saturday, the women's rugby team (4-3-1) heads to the University of Connecticut for the final game of the fall season. Although the Brewers will not qualify for the playoffs this season, they will look to end their season on a high note and rebound from a tough 77-5 loss to Army last weekend.

Concluding its fall season on its home field is the men's rugby team (2-4-1), hosting Fairfield University at 1:00 p.m. on the Vassar Farm. Although not playoff-bound this season, the men will look to avenge last season's narrow 36-34 loss to Fairfield while closing the fall season with a win.