Oct. 13, 2000

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The top ranked Maryland field hockey squad hits the road this weekend for the second and third games of the final away stretch of 2000. The Terrapins (12-1, 2-1 ACC) heads south to face Virginia Commonwealth on Saturday, Oct. 14 at noon before squaring off against national rival Old Dominion. The Terps and Monarchs clash for the second time this season, this time in Norfolk, on Sunday, Oct. 15 at 1 p.m. in a match-up of the nation's two top-rated teams and offenses.

Maryland enters the weekend's action on a five-game tear after overwhelming Rutgers, 6-3 on Wednesday to give head coach Missy Meharg her 200th career coaching win. Read all about the victory on ESPN.com! The Terrapins have posted three shut outs in five games since suffering their lone loss of the season at Wake Forest on Sept. 23. Maryland has outscored the last four opponents by a combined score of 25-4 with a 128-29 shot advantage.

Meharg Reaches 200 Victory Milestone
Maryland's 6-3 victory over Rutgers was a special one for Missy Meharg, who reached 200 career victories as a head coach with the win. The Terp mentor entered her 13th season at Maryland with a 188-68-9 record, and after guiding the Terps to a 12-1 record has improved her career slate to 200-69-9. Meharg has been Maryland's head coach since the 1988 season after spending time on the Terp sideline as an assistant.

On Oct. 1 in Maryland's shutout victory over Virginia on Oct. 1, Meharg moved into sixteenth place all-time in coaching victories, overtaking her former mentor Mary Ann Hitchens. Hitchens accumulated a 196-76-33 record at Meharg's alma mater, the University of Delaware. The next milestone mark belongs to fifteenth-ranked Judith Davidson. Davidson amassed a 206-67-23 record at Iowa from 1978-87.

Tagliente Ties Goals Record
With two goals in Maryland's 6-3 victory over Rutgers, senior All-American and Honda Award hopeful Carla Tagliente (Cortland, N.Y.) has a new career total of 70. That new mark ties Lisa Buente's all-time record total, set between 1987 and 1990. Tagliente will become Maryland's all-time leader in goals with her next score.

The senior tri-captain eclipsed Buente's all-time points mark of 165 on Sept. 23, 2000, vs. Wake Forest. Tagliente now has 178 career points and counting.

The midfielder is currently tied for first on the team in goals scored (14) and game-winners (3) with senior All-American Rachel Hiskins (Victoria, Australia). Tagliente is also second in points (39) and is tied for third with seven assists this season.

Terps Stay On Top Of STX/NFHCA Poll
After defeating unranked opponents Stanford and Duke last week, the No. 1 Maryland Terrapins held on to the top spot in this week's 2000 STX/National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) poll. Maryland captured fifteen first place votes, the most since the second poll of the season on Sept. 19, in today's vote. The Terps have owned the top ranking in the previous ten NFHCA polls, dating back to Oct. 26 of last season.

Eight of this week's Top 20 teams are found on Maryland's 2000 schedule. The No. 1 Terps have met No. 8 Connecticut (W, 9-1, Aug. 26), No. 2 Old Dominion (W, 5-4 2OT, Sept. 3), No. 9 Massachusetts (W, 2-0, Sept. 16), No. 4 Wake Forest (L, 5-3, on Sept. 23), No. 7 Princeton (W, 2-0, on Sept. 28) and No. 10 Virginia (W, 5-0, on Oct. 1). Later on the schedule, Maryland squares off against ODU again in Norfolk (Oct. 15) before hosting No. 11 James Madison (Oct. 20) and No. 3 North Carolina in an ACC tilt on Oct. 22. Maryland travels this weekend to face unranked Virginia Commonwealth before the second clash of the 2000 season with No. 2 Old Dominion.

Terps At A Glance
The No. 1 Terrapins once again used their trademark attacking style of hockey with smothering defense and solid goaltending to key victories over Rutgers, Stanford and conference-rival Duke. The Terp attack, led by All-Americans Carla Tagliente, Rachel Hiskins, Caroline Walter (Reilingen, Germany) and Keli Smith (Selinsgrove, Pa.) has overwhelmed opponents with 79 scores (5.97 gpg) on 364 shot attempts (28.0 spg), while Maryland's defense anchored by seniors Molly Kauffman (West Lawn, Pa.), Lindsay Gorewitz (Rockville, Md.) and juniors Autumn Welsh (Macungie, Pa.) and Kristy Palchinsky (Leonardtown, Md.) has limited the opposition to 18 goals (1.36 gpg) on 81 shots (6.2 spg).

In the cage, Maryland's junior goalie Ashley Hohnstine (Oak Hill, Va.) has been extremely tough, recording five shut outs on the season. The Terp keeper owns a 1.21 goals against average and a .725 save percentage.

Scouting VCU: Ram Round-Up
The Terps face Virginia Commonwealth on Saturday, Oct. 14 at noon. The Rams have posted a 2-9 record in 2000, most recently suffering a 1-0 defeat to Richmond after beating Radford by the same margin. Other common opponents for the Terps and Rams include: Rutgers who defeated VCU 2-1, Wake Forest who beat VCU 7-0, James Madison who won 6-0, Duke who was victorious 3-0, Old Dominion who won 13-0 and Virginia, who defeated VCU 6-0.

The Rams are led statistically by senior Masha Sonina who has four goals on the season for eight points. Freshman goalie Anne Forrester owns a 3.98 goals against average.

In her fourth season with the Rams, head coach Dawn Hill has helped VCU to steady improvements. The 1987 Old Dominion graduate boasts four NCAA title game appearances as a player to go along with experience as a reserve on the national team. Hill was an assistant coach at ODU and Maryland before taking her current position, and helped the Terps to a 1991 national semifinal appearance while Missy Meharg was with the U.S. National Team.

The Terrapins defeated the Rams by the largest goal-total and margin of victory in school history, 13-0 to open the 1999 season on August 29 (the Terps tied the single-game goal total in a 13-1 victory over Georgetown on Sept. 18, 1999). The only other meeting between the two schools was a 3-0 Maryland victory in 1983.

Scouting ODU: Eye On The Monarchs
In a No. 1 vs. No. 2 battle of national significance, the Terrapins meet the Old Dominion Monarchs on Sunday, Oct. 15 in Norfolk, Va. The fireworks are sure to fly as the top two scoring offenses (Maryland 5.97 gpg, ODU 5.73 gpg) in the nation collide at 1 p.m. ODU faces Richmond on Oct. 14 before meeting the Terps.

The Monarchs have posted a 13-1 record -- their only loss of the 2000 season was a 5-4 double-overtime decision at the hands of the Terps. The Monarchs' most recent win was a 2-1 OT victory at home vs. No. 8 Princeton on Oct. 8, who Maryland defeated 2-0 on Sept. 29 in New Jersey.

Monarch senior Marina DiGiacomo leads ODU and the nation with 30 goals and 15 assists for 75 points, but did not score a goal against the Tigers. Sophomore Marjolijn van der Sommen has eight goals and 12 assists for 28 points, followed by freshman Angie Loy and junior Adrienne Yoder with 21 and 20 points, respectively. Sophomore goalie Marybeth Freeman is one of the finest in the nation with a 1.11 goals against average.

Head coach Beth Anders is in her 19th season at ODU, and with a 378-55-7 career record is the winningest coach in collegiate field hockey history. She had led the Monarchs to eight national titles, the most recent coming in 1998.

The Monarchs have a 15-9-1 series advantage over the Terrapins, but the Terps took three out of the last four meetings. In 1999 Maryland fell in a 5-3 decision in Norfolk on Sept. 6 before bouncing back to defeat ODU 2-0 on Oct. 17 in College Park and eliminating the Monarchs in a 3-2 overtime contest in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Hiskins Atop The Leaders
Senior All-American Rachel Hiskins, who set a school-record in 1999 with 67 points in 25 games, remains atop the season statistical charts. With a goal against Rutgers, the defensive midfielder has a team leading 42 points and a .485 shot percentage, a team-high tying 14 goals and three game-winners and a second-ranking 10 assists.

Messimer ACC Player of the Week
Field hockey forward Carissa Messimer (Mountaintop, Pa.) was named ACC Co-Player of the Week after scoring four goals in two Maryland victories over Stanford and Duke. After capping the Terps' 8-1 victory over the Cardinal with the final goal of the game, the 1999 All-Region selection buried Duke with a hat trick performance. Messimer scored the game winner in the shut out win before a two-goal flurry to end the contest. The sophomore recorded two hat tricks as a freshman in 1999, scoring three goals apiece vs. Towson (Sept. 15) and Georgetown (Sept. 18).

Messimer is a first-time ACC Player of the Week honoree. She is fourth on the Terp squad with 10 season goals and fifth with 21 points. Her game winner against Duke was her first of the season, but Messimer's "most famous" game winner came vs. Michigan in the 1999 NCAA Championship game.

Carissa is the daughter of Linda and Robert Messimer. She is majoring in letters and sciences.

Messimer shares the honor with North Carolina senior Holly Huff, who also notched a hat trick in a game vs. Radford.

"Arnie" Flexes Offensive Muscles
Junior All-American Caroline Walter put on mighty offensive displays in the games vs. Stanford and Duke, totalling three goals and an assist. The forward, referred to affectionately by her teammates as "Arnie," has netted nine goals and three assists in the last eight games. Walter is tied for second on the squad with 35 points and 14 goals, is outright in second with a pair of game-winners and is third with seven season assists.

Smith Dishing Out Assists
Senior All-American Keli Smith was an integral part of the Terp victories over Rutgers, Stanford and Duke, dishing out six assists in the three contests. The forward was credited with a career-high three helpers vs. the Cardinal, and fed Carissa Messimer for one of her three goals against the Blue Devils. Smith leads the Terps with 13 assists on the season and is fifth in points with 19.

Dina Delivers
Forward Dina Rizzo (Walpole, Mass.) notched a goal and an assist in Maryland's victory over Rutgers. The junior has now scored in in two of the last three games and marked her first multi-goal game of the 2000 season against Stanford, punching in a pair of goals. The two scores tied her single-game high, first set against Lafayette on Nov. 13 of last season. The junior now has three goals and an assist on the season for a total of seven points.

Kelly Strikes Twice
Junior Megan Kelly (Gaithersburg, Md.) struck for her first career multi-goal game against the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers, for a single-game high four points. The junior already has a career-high five goals this season, good for sixth on the squad, and also has a sixth-ranking 11 points.

Backs Stepping Forward
The stifling Maryland defense has also been displaying their offensive prowess of late, with Molly Kauffman, Autumn Welsh and Kristy Palchinsky making their way onto the scoring charts. Kauffman netted her first goal of the year against Stanford, tipping one in late in the first half. Welsh is a proven scoring threat especially on penalty strokes, burying one apiece in games against Stanford and Virginia (Oct. 1). Palchinsky has shown to be an excellent option on penalty corners, ripping in a goal in Maryland's 11-2 devastation of Radford (Sept. 17).

ACC Tournament Comes To College Park
We are now less than a month away from the 2000 ACC Field Hockey Tournament, to be held Nov. 2-5 at the Artificial Turf Facility in College Park, Md. Game times are still tentative, but the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds will meet on Thursday, Nov. 2. No. 2 faces No. 3 and the top seed meets the No. 4/No. 5 winner in the semifinal round on Friday, Nov. 3. The championship game is slated for Nov. 5 and will be aired by Home Team Sports. Be a part of the action as five NFHCA Top 20 Teams square off in the strongest conference tournament in the nation. Be sure to make plans to attend, and keep checking www.umterps.com for updates.

Contact: Mark Fratto
301-314-7064 (Phone)
301-314-9094 (FAX)
301-314-TERP (Fan Phone)
fratto@wam.umd.edu