ABOUT THE GAME

• Following a setback on the road against No. 1 Shippensburg, the third-ranked Millersville field hockey team returns to the friendly confines of Biemesderfer Stadium where it is undefeated. The Marauders host Mercyhurst team coming off its first win of the season. 
• Three of Millersville's five regular season games are at home. Much can happen in the standings over the course of those five games. The Marauders are 3-2 in PSAC play and sit in fourth place. East Stroudsburg, currently at 5-1, comes to Millersville on Oct. 27, and the Warriors have yet to play 5-1 West Chester. IUP is 3-3 but still has East Stroudsburg and top-ranked Shippensburg on the schedule. Mansfield is also 3-3 and also has to travel to Millersville (Oct. 23) and West Chester. Not only are wins important for PSAC Tournament seedings, but they are also crucial in determining the field for the NCAA Tournament. 

SCOUTING THE MARAUDERS

• Millersville is one of the most statistically dominate teams in Division II, ranking third in goals per game (3.50), second in scoring margin (3.04), first in goals against average (0.72) and second in save percentage (0.846). Millersville is one of only five teams allowing less than one goal per game and one of only two teams with an average scoring margin greater than 3.0 goals per game. 
• Freshman Kerstin Koons has risen to the occasion in goal. After needing to make just eight saves in the first seven games, she's averaged 6.0 saves over the last five games while allowing just four goals. Her save percentage is up to .826 which ranks sixth in all Division II and first among all PSAC goalkeepers. If Koons can maintain her 0.70 goals against average, she will be the sixth Millersville goalkeeper (since 1984) to post an average of under 1.0 for an entire season. The feat has been accomplished nine times since 1984. 
• Millersville's only two losses this season have come on the road against the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams in the country. The Marauders have been unbeatable at home, posting a 8-0 record while outscoring teams 40-4. They've posted four shutouts at home. 
• Balance has been key for the Marauders all season. The 11 goals scored in the recent wins over Slippery Rock and Kutztown came from nine different players. Fifteen different Marauders have scored at least one goal and 13 have recorded at least one assist. 
• With five regular season games remaining, Bri Harsh's 25 points already rank 11th on Millersville's single-season points rankings, which date back to 1984. 
   

SCOUTING THE LAKERS

• Mercyhurst alum Brittney Randolph is in her first season as head coach. She was on staff at Shippensburg for two NCAA Championships prior to returning to her alma mater. 
• The Lakers started the season with 11 consecutive losses before a double-overtime win at Seton Hill on Tuesday. Three losses have come by one goal, but Mercyhurst has been shutout six times. 
• The Lakers have been outscored on average 5.17 to 1.17 per game and out-shot 347-90. 
• Jenna Cavalieri is the team's leading scorer with four goals and 10 points. 

THE LAST TIME OUT

• Millersville: Shippensburg 2, Millersville 0 (Oct.. 12, 2021) - No. 1 Shippensburg received a second-quarter goal from Jazmin Petrantonio and added another in the final seconds to ward off a stiff challenge from No. 3 Millersville. Millersville's freshman goalkeeper Kerstin Koons made a career-high 11 saves, and kept the Marauders within striking distance until the final seconds of the game. Shippensburg held a 21-3 advantage in shots and an 8-0 edge in corners.
• Mercyhurst: Mercyhurst 4, Seton Hill 3 (Oct. 12, 2021) - The Lakers defeated Seton Hill in dramatic fashion in double overtime by a score of 4-3. The score remained tied after the first period of overtime. Kayla Desormeau made one save in the period to keep the Griffins off the scoreboard. As time went on in the second overtime period, the teams remained scoreless until there were 14 seconds left on the clock. That is when Jenna Cavalieri shot from the left side of the goal and into the back of the net for the overtime game-winner.

SERIES HISTORY

• Millersville and Mercyhurst first met in 1998, and after Mercyhurst won four of the first six meetings, it's been all Marauders. Millersville has won 16 consecutive games against Mercyhurst including seven in a row at Biemesderfer Stadium. Millersville has won four in a row and nine of the last 13 by shutout. Mercyhurst has not scored more than one goal in any of the last 10 meetings--a streak that dates back to 2013. Millersville has scored at least five goals in four of the last five meetings. 
• The Last Meeting - Millersville 6, Mercyhurst 0 (Sept. 27, 2019): The Marauders outshot the Lakers 16-3. Mercyhurst managed one shot on goal to Millersville's 10. Millersville forced 10 penalty corners scoring off five of the attempts. Mercyhurst forced just four corners.