Field Hockey

#AEFH Week 4: #17 UAlbany & Vermont Open #AEFH Play 1-0

BOSTON – No. 17 UAlbany and Vermont both started league play 1-0, while Maine won twice with conference play set to begin in earnest on Friday.
 
Need to Know:
  • The Great Danes scored twice in the second half to take down UC Davis 2-0 at home on Sunday, improving to 6-1 overall.
  • Vermont secured its first #AEFH win 3-2 in overtime against UC Davis on Friday afternoon, before falling 4-1 to No. 8 Harvard on Sunday.
  • UMass Lowell came through with a key 1-0 victory over ACC foe Wake Forest.
  • Conference play begins on Friday with three matchups. UAlbany hosts UMass Lowell is a matchup of last year’s co-regular season champions. UNH travels to Bryant while Maine welcomes Vermont.
  • On Sunday all seven teams have non-conference contests, led by #17 UAlbany hosting #14 Liberty. UNH welcomes Providence while UC Davis faces a tough Cal team.
  • The #AEFH preseason poll and All-Conference teams were announced on August 14 - link.
 
2024 #AEFH Weekly Award Winners – Sept. 23
Offensive Player of the Week
Alison Smisdom, UAlbany – Sr., Midfield, Antwerp, Belgium
  • Finished with one goal and one assist in a 2-0 victory over UC Davis.
  • Scored the eventual game-winner in the 3rd quarter, assisted on the 2nd goal and helped limit UC Davis to one second-half shot.
  • This is Smisdom’s fourth #AEFH Offensive Player of the Week honor of the season.
 
Defensive Player of the Week
Marie Oliemans, UMass Lowell – So., Goalkeeper, Driebergen, Netherlands
  • Made eight second-half saves to earn the victory in UML’s 1-0 win over Wake Forest.
  • Entered at the half and faced 15 shots and seven penalty corners over the final 30 minutes.
  • This is Oliemans’ second career #AEFH Defensive Player of the Week honor.
 
Rookie of the Week
Marie Dijkstra, Vermont – Fr., Forward, Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • Scored twice in a 1-1 week for Vermont.
  • Tallied two goals, including the game-winner with 42 seconds left in overtime to beat UC Davis 3-2.
  • This is Dijkstra’s first #AEFH Rookie of the Week honor.
 
Links  
2024 #AEFH Weekly Award Winners
Sept. 4 - Offensive Player of the Week: Alison Smisdom, UAlbany; Defensive Player of the Week: Rozarie Mrazova, Maine; Rookie of the Week: Karlijn Kerkhof, UMass Lowell
Sept. 10 - Offensive Player of the Week: Alison Smisdom, UAlbany; Defensive Player of the Week: Abby Johnson, New Hampshire; Rookie of the Week: Abby Johnson, New Hampshire
Sept. 17 - Offensive Player of the Week: Alison Smisdom, UAlbany; Defensive Player of the Week: Illa Gunner, Vermont; Rookie of the Week: Lotje Ligthart, UAlbany
Sept. 24 - Offensive Player of the Week: Alison Smisdom, UAlbany; Defensive Player of the Week: Marie Oliemans, UMass Lowell; Rookie of the Week: Marie Dijkstra, Vermont

Fans will once again be able to watch nearly every #AEFH contest this season. Select games will air on The AE on ESPN while others will air on AmericaEast.TV. Those games will be available on computers, OTT devices and the America East app, which is available on all IOS and Android devices and can be found by searching ‘America East Conference’ in app stores.
 
ABOUT AMERICA EAST
Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference its social media channels, @AmericaEast. 
 
- America East Conference – Where Champions Rise -