BIG EAST Field Hockey Tournament Semifinals Notes
11/1/2000 12:17:01 PM | Field Hockey
No. 17 Syracuse Orangewomen (#4 seed, 12-7, 2-3 BIG EAST)
at
No. 10 Connecticut Huskies (#1 seed, 14-6, 5-0 BIG EAST)
SYRACUSE VS. CONNECTICUT
Series Record: Connecticut leads, 14-4-1
First Meeting: 9/17/83, UConn 5, Syracuse 0 (Storrs, CT)
Last Meeting: 10/28/00, UConn 2, Syracuse 0 (Storrs, CT)
SU's Last Win: 11/4/95, Syracuse 1, UConn 0 OT (Chestnut Hill, MA)
Streak: Connecticut +9
HEAD COACH KATHLEEN PARKER
Syracuse head coach Kathleen Parker is in her 23rd year at the helm
of the Orangewomen program. She is the only coach in the BIG EAST that
has been present on the sidelines for all 12 conference championships.
She owns a career record of 251-160-14 (.607). She reached the 250-win
milestone on Oct. 13 when SU defeated Villanova, 5-4, in overtime. She
ranks fifth among active Division I head coaches in all-time victories.
Only ODU's Beth Anders, UConn's Nancy Stevens, UNC's Karen Shelton and
Ball State's Karen Fitzpatrick have tallied more wins.
Parker earned the 1991 Mid-East Region Coach of the Year Award and was the BIG EAST Coach of the Year for three-consecutive seasons (1993-1995). She is the only coach SU has had since moving to Division I prior to the 1982 season. Since that time, the Orangewomen have gone 213-132-13.
SYRACUSE IN THE BIG EAST TOURNAMENT
Syracuse and Connecticut are the only two teams that have qualified
for each of the 12 conference tournaments. Last season, the Huskies
shut out the Orangewomen, 2-0, in the championship game at Coyne Field.
SU has claimed a pair of championships (1993, 1995). The Orangewomen
have earned runner-up honors three times (1992, 1994 and 1999).
EXPLAIN THIS TIE-BREAKER POLICY, PLEASE
The Orangewomen finished in a three-way tie for third place in the
conference with Boston College and Providence. SU was aided by Rutgers'
3-2 victory against Boston College on Oct. 28. The Orangewomen also
helped themselves by defeating the Eagles, 4-0, on Oct. 1. Syracuse's
goal differential in conference games (+1) was better than BC's (-3).
Providence earned the No. 3 seed by virtue of its 1-1 record against the
top two teams in the leauge. The Friars lost to Connecticut, 6-0, but
beat Rutgers, 2-0. In addition, Providence edged Syracuse, 2-1, in
overtime on Oct. 20.
THE FIRST SYRACUSE-CONNECTICUT MEETING THIS YEAR
The Huskies and Orangewomen met for the first time this season on
Saturday, Oct. 28, in Storrs. UConn scored two first-half goals for a
2-0 victory. Senior All-American Laura Klein tipped in Kelly Cochrane's
penalty-corner shot at the 16:52 mark. Freshman Amy Marland scored with
11:17 remaining and Cochrane assisted again. SU's sophomore goalkeeper
Audrey Latsko made eight saves.
SYRACUSE IN THE NATIONAL STATISTICS
In the Oct. 31 Division I national statistics, Syracuse was tied for
11th in the nation in scoring defense (1.15 goals per game). Sophomore
goalkeeper Audrey Latsko was second in the nation in save percentage
(.872), sixth in total saves (156) and 12th in goals against average
(1.15).
SYRACUSE IN THE BIG EAST STATISTICS
In the Oct. 30 BIG EAST statistics, Syracuse was leading the league in
goals against average (1.15), tied for the lead in shutouts (six), third
in assists (28) and third in goals (42). Audrey Latsko leads conference
goalkeepers for all games played in goals against average (1.15). She
is one of three goalies in the league this season that has recorded six
shutouts.
ORANGEWOMEN SCORERS
Syracuse has four of the BIG EAST's top 15 scorers this season.
Sophomore midfielder Kristin Aronowicz is leading the squad in scoring
with 26 points (11 goals, four assists). She is the sixth-leading
scorer in the conference. Fifth-year senior Laura Fitzpatrick has 21
points (six goals, nine assists) to tie for 10th in the league. Junior
Michelle Aronowicz (nine goals, 18 points) and senior Colleen Cech (16
points, 10 assists) round out the BIG EAST's top 15 scorers for all
games played.
The Aronowicz sisters finished in a five-way tie for fourth in scoring in the five BIG EAST games. They each totalled eight points against conference foes. Kristin registered three goals and two assists, while Michelle scored four goals in five conference matches.
BIGGEST HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SEASON
(So Far)
1. The Orangewomen opened the season with a 6-1 record. They beat Albany, Delaware, Central Michigan, Fairfield (double overtime), Colgate and Iowa by a combined score of 18-7. The only blemish during that stretch was a 1-0 loss to Ball State on Sept. 3.
2. Kristin Aronowicz set school records for goals and points in SU's 5-1 win against Colgate. Aronowicz became the first Orangewoman to ever tally four goals and eight points in one game. The old standard for goals in a game was three and had been achieved by seven different Orangewomen.
3. Audrey Latsko made a career-high 21 saves in SU's 2-1 double-overtime triumph against Fairfield. She nearly led Syracuse to its first-ever win against then No. 6-ranked Penn State. Latsko stopped 19 of the Nittany Lions' 26 shots, but Penn State prevailed, 1-0, in overtime. The sophomore, who is a member of the Under-21 national team, recorded a pair of 17-save performances which helped SU to big overtime wins against Iowa (2-1) and Villanova (5-4) this season.
4. After slipping on a four-game losing skid at the end of September, the Orangewomen turned things around in the month of October to win five games, including four by shutout. They defeated Boston College (4-0), Cornell (4-0), Massachusetts (1-0), Dartmouth (2-0) and Villanova (5-4 OT).
5. Emily Smith made her first career start against West Chester and responded by scoring a goal. She tallied again at Cornell, was responsible for the game-winner against then No. 7-ranked Massachusetts and scored the game-tying goal at Villanova which sent the game into overtime. SU captured the 5-4 BIG EAST victory in the extra session.
6. Head coach Kathleen Parker won her 250th career game at Villanova.
7. Michelle Aronowicz tallied six of her nine goals this season during SU's last eight regular-season games.
8. Laura Fitzpatrick successfully came back for her fifth year after undergoing surgery in 1999 to repair the ACL in her left knee. Fitzpatrick is SU's second-leading scorer this season with a career-high 21 points. Three of her six goals have been game-winners.
FITZPATRICK SELECTED to PLAY in the NFHCA DIVISION I NORTH/SOUTH SENIOR
ALL-STAR GAME
Fifth-year senior Laura Fitzpatrick was one of 17 seniors selected to
the North Squad for the 2000 NFHCA North/South Senior All-Star Game to
be held on Saturday, Nov. 18 at Foreman Field on the campus of Old
Dominion University.
CREDIT THE REST OF THE DEFENSE
Sophomore goalkeeper Audrey Latsko is a big reason why Syracuse has
held opponents to only 1.15 goals per game this season (11th in scoring
defense nationally), but the credit must be shared with the entire
defense. Sophomore back Dalton Beaver and seniors Cecily Cowburn and
Rachel Hitchcock have started all 19 games in the backfield this
season. They were joined this season by first-year sweeper Missy
Grosman. A junior in academic standing, Grosman played two seasons on
SU's women's basketball team before hanging up her hightops in order to
play field hockey. Grosman saw action in 18 games this season and made
17 starts. Cowburn is the only member of the defensive unit that has
tallied points. She had an assist in the first game of the season
against Albany and scored SU's lone goal versus Ohio.
INJURY CALLS FOR A SHIFT IN THE LINEUP
When sophomore midfielder Michelle Marks suffered a cut on her right
pinky finger in the Penn State game, it was an injury that required
stitches and forced her to miss the West Chester game. Coach Parker
moved Laura Fitzpatrick to the midfield and started freshman Emily Smith
in Marks' place. Fitzpatrick did so well in the midfield that Parker
kept her there and moved Marks up to forward, the position she played in
high school, when Marks was able to return to the lineup.
SYRACUSE VS. RUTGERS
Series Record: Syracuse leads, 7-5
First Meeting: 1982, Syracuse 3, Rutgers 2 (double stroke-off)
(Rutgers Tournament, Piscataway, NJ)
Last Meeting: 9/22/00, Rutgers 1, Syracuse 0 OT (Piscataway, NJ)
SU's Last Win: 1999, Syracuse 5, Rutgers 3 (Syracuse, NY)
Streak: Rutgers +1
Series Note: Rutgers victory this season against Syracuse marked its
first win in the series since 1994. Of the last seven meetings between
the two teams, six have been decided by just one goal and five have gone
into overtime.
SYRACUSE VS. PROVIDENCE
Series Record: Syracuse leads, 9-4-5
First Meeting: 1984, Syracuse 5, Providence 0 (Syracuse, NY)
Last Meeting: 10/20/00, Providence 2, Syracuse 1 OT (Syracuse, NY)
SU's Last Win: 1999, Syracuse 2, Providence 1 OT
(Providence, RI)
Streak: Providence +1
Series Note: Providence's win at Syracuse this season was its first
since 1996.
