POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (October 20, 2015) – The Vassar College field hockey team will look to rebound from two Liberty League losses last week, finishing conference play with a road contest Friday at Union College and Senior Day Saturday against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Currently, Vassar College has a 2-3 record, but still controls its destiny in the quest to make its third consecutive Liberty League Tournament.

Game Details
Opponent: at Union College (5-9, 0-5 Liberty League)
Links: (Union's Field Hockey Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Schenectady, NY
Facility: Frank Bailey Field
Date: October 23, 2015
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)

Opponent: vs. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (9-3, 1-1 Liberty League) – SENIOR DAY
Links: (RPI's Field Hockey Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Poughkeepsie, NY
Facility: Weinberg Field
Date: October 24, 2015
Time: 3 p.m.
Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)

What To Look For
The Brewers dropped their first two conference matches of the season last week, but still have a great opportunity to clinch a playoff spot if they come to play against Union and RPI. Vassar College has not won a road Liberty League contest in over 10 years,  but has a chance to play spoiler Friday night on Senior Night for the Dutchwomen. Vassar will be looking for a win against Union to give them some momentum going into Saturday's huge Senior Day home contest against RPI.

A Look At The Dutchwomen (5-9, 0-5 Liberty)
The Dutchwomen have scuffled lately, dropping their last six contests, three of which were lost by just one goal. Last weekend, No. 7 William Smith came into Frank Bailey Field and barely knocked off the Dutchwomen. Union comes into the match with 30 goals this season, sixth-best in the Liberty League, while allowing 41 goals which is the second-most in the conference. Union is fifth in the conference in corners per game with 7.43, while the Dutchwomen have stopped 9.64 shots per game, second-best in the conference.

Union has a balanced attack of four players with five goals, as Hannah Madden has chalked up 15 points thanks to her five assists on the year. Laura Pacheco has five tallies and four helpers as well, while Bretta Beer has one of the team's five game-winners amongst her five scores. Alexa Steriti has played in all 14 games, notching five goals, while Rachel Andreana tops the team with eight assists, tying her for the third-most in the Liberty League. Goalkeeper Laura Aptowicz leads the conference in saves with 116, registering one shutout so far this year.

Against Union All-Time
Union holds a 20-7 all-time mark against the Brewers, including winning an overtime victory over Vassar last year 2-1. VC has beaten Union once on the road, with a 4-0 win back in 2003.

A Look At The Engineers (8-5, 3-2 Liberty)
The Engineers of RPI have thrust themselves right back into the thick of things in the Liberty League playoff hunt thanks to a pair of huge wins at home, most notably a 1-0 shutout of the University of Rochester last week. RPI has won two straight matches and are 7-1 at home this year, but have won just once on the road in five tries, dropping the last four contests away from Harkness Field. RPI is third in the conference in total goals, scoring 36 this season, while allowing two goals on average per game. RPI is very strong individually, but only half of its goals have been assisted on, as the 18 helpers are the second-fewest in the Liberty League.

Jena Nawfel has paced the offense for the Engineers, as she has the team lead with seven goals and seven assists for 21 points. Her 21 points are the fourth-most in the Liberty League this season as well. Megan Jones is right behind with seven scores and five helpers, while Angela Cascio holds a share of the team top spot with seven goals as well. Jones has scored five of the team's eight game-winning goals, second-best in the Liberty League. Rachel Kaufman is sixth in the conference in goals against average with a 2.83, and is fourth in the Liberty League with 63.

Against RPI All-Time
The Brewers have won nine of the 27 all-time meetings, as last year's win for Vassar was its first since the 2005 season. Incidentally, that win in 2005 for Vassar was the Brewer's last road conference victory.

Playoff Picture
The Brewrs are currently tied for fourth place with Rochester with 2-2 records, a half-game behind RPI and its 3-2 record. Skidmore sits atop the league standings with a 4-1 record, while William Smith is 3-1 with its only loss coming to Vassar. The Brewers can still finish anywhere from second to sixth in the conference, but the chance to host a home playoff game is a good opportunity to move up the standings.

If Vassar wins the last two games, Rochester loses once and William Smith drops one of its final two games, the Brewers would hold the tie-breaker for the No. 2 spot over William Smith. In that scenario, Skidmore and Vassar would host the semi-final contests.

Shot Caller
Freshman Megan Caveny (Cicero, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) has fired on average four shots per game, which is the fourth-most in the conference this year.

Senior Celebration
On Saturday, the Vassar College field hockey team will host its annual Senior Day for one of the winningest groups in program history, honoring seniors Lauren Wiebe (Chicago, IL/Francis W. Parker), Bianca Zarrella (Leominster, MA/Leominster) and Haley Merritt (Northport, NY/Northport).

Baker's Dozen
This season, four players have started and played in all 13 games this season, while eight players have seen action at some time in all 13 games.

Different Strokes
This season, neither the Brewers nor their opponents have been awarded a penalty stroke; the first time ever that this has happened. The last time  VC went an entire season without a stroke was 2006.

Up Next
The Brewers will continue their three-game home stand to finish the regular season on Wednesday evening, hosting the University of Scranton on Weinberg Field at 7 p.m. in non-conference action.