Hempstead, NY – The Hofstra Field Hockey team's quest for a Colonial Athletic Association Championship berth will either be achieved or denied when the Pride wrap up the conference regular season at the Hofstra Field Hockey Stadium this weekend.

The Pride will host defending national champions and the current seventh-ranked Blue Hens of Delaware on Friday, October 27 at 3 p.m. before taking on the Dragons of Drexel for Senior Day on Sunday, October 29 at noon.

The Pride (7-10, 1-3), who are coming off an 8-0 loss at current 15^th-ranked James Madison in Harrisonburg, Virginia last Sunday, is pursuing what appears to be the only spot remaining of the four spots for the CAA Championships that begins on November 3. Hofstra is currently in a fifth-place tie with Drexel (6-11, 1-3) trailing fourth-place Northeastern (7-10, 2-2).


The Pride or the Dragons could sneak into the fourth-place spot with two wins and two losses by Northeastern. A win by Northeastern over Drexel puts the Huskies in the conference tournament. Delaware (11-4, 4-0), #19 William and Mary (12-5, 4-1) and #15 James Madison (10-5, 3-1) seem to have the first three spots sealed up with the order to be determined this weekend.

After Hofstra posted its best offensive output of the year with their 7-3 victory over Saint Francis on October 15, the Dukes of JMU turned the tables on them last Sunday, scoring three times in the first half and five times in the second half on the way to the victory.

The Pride is led in scoring by junior Madison Sauve with 10 goals and four assists for 24 points. Freshman Philine de Wolf has eight goals and three assists while O'Brien has four goals and a team-high seven assists. Graduate-student Marloes Schavemaker has six assists on the season. Senior Carys Swan has a 2.97 goals against average with 100 saves and a .690 save percentage.

Delaware enters Friday game at Hofstra riding a three-game winning streak and having won six of the last seven contests.  The Blue Hens are coming off a forfeit/no contest victory over Towson due to a severe case of food poisoning last Sunday. Friday's game at Hofstra will be the 32^nd meeting in the series between Hofstra and Delaware with the Blue Hens holding a 24-7 series advantage. UD has won the last two meetings including a 7-2 decision last season.

The Blue Hens are led in scoring by All-American junior Greta Nauck with 17 goals, including three game-winners, and four assists for 38 points. Senior Taylor Lister has added five goals and 17 assists for 27 points. In goal, senior Emmeline Oltmans, the 2016 NCAA Field Hockey Championship Most Valuable Player, has a 1.89 goals against average and a .683 save percentage with 41 saves in 15 games.

On Sunday, after Hofstra honors its four graduating seniors Taylor Mumley, Carys Swan, Savanna Malloy and Marloes Schavemaker in pregame ceremonies, the Pride take on the always tough Dragons of Drexel. The Dragons are coming off a 2-0 loss to William and Mary last Sunday and will face Northeastern in Dedham, Massachusetts Friday night at 6 p.m. before trekking to Long Island on Sunday. Sunday's contest is the 37^th meeting between Hofstra and Drexel with the Dragons holding a 19-16-1 series lead including a 4-3 loss in Philadelphia last season. The last four games have all been one-goal decisions.

Drexel is led in scoring by Tess Horan and Tess Bernheimer with five goals and two assists each. Junior goalie Erin Gilchrist has a 2.87 goals against average with 136 saves and a .731 save percentage