Championship Central

November 3 vs. #1W Stanford (3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT)
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STOCKTON, Calif. - The No. 4 seeded UMass Lowell field hockey team will compete at the 2016 America East Championship hosted by the University of the Pacific on November 3-6. The River Hawks will open their first ever America East post-season appearance against Stanford, the league's top seed in the West Division, on Thursday, Nov. 3 at 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT.
 
Bracket Breakdown
In the America East East Division, UAlbany took the top spot, while Maine and New Hampshire were seeded second and third, respectively, just ahead of UMass Lowell. In the West, Pacific earned the second seed behind Stanford, California finished third and UC Davis rounded out the bracket in fourth. All quarterfinal games will be played on Thursday and Friday, Nov. 3-4. The winner of the UMass Lowell-Stanford quarterfinal will advance to take on the winner of the Maine-California contest the semi-final round on Saturday, Nov. 5. The league's title game is set for Sunday, Nov. 6, when two squads will be competing for an automatic bid into the 2016 NCAA Division I Tournament.
 
Looking at UMass Lowell
UMass Lowell finished the regular season with an 8-10 overall, including a 3-5 mark in America East action. The squad split a pair of games last week, defeating Vermont, 7-2, to clinch a spot in the America East Championship on Oct. 28 before falling, 5-1, at No. 19 UAlbany on Oct. 30. So far in 2016, freshman Anouk Lalande (Brussels, Belgium) paces UMass Lowell with nine assists and 29 total points. Junior Christa Doiron (Worcester, Mass.) has notched a team- and personal-best 11 goals to follow close behind with 27 total points. Sophomore Torrie Huk (Milford, Del.) has added to the offensive effort with 10 goals and five assists for 25 points, as well. Junior keeper Kelsey Federico (Windham, N.H.), who has started 10 of the 13 games she has appeared in, totals 86 saves with a .717 save percentage. Freshman goalkeeper Eva Berkhout (Amersfoort, Utrecht, Netherlands) boasts a 5-2 record on the year, compiling 63 saves, a .759 save percentage and a 2.29 goals against average.
 
Scouting Stanford
The Cardinal earned the No. 1 seed in the America East West Division with an 11-5 overall record in 2016 and a 5-1 mark in league games. Stanford closed out the regular season with a pair of non-conference wins, including a 3-2 shootout victory against Northwestern on Oct. 29 and a 3-2 win at Michigan State on Oct. 30. Through 16 games, Fran Tew has led the team's offense with seven goals and 16 total points. Jessica Welch has chipped in with six goals for 12 points, while Katie Keyser is first on the team with five assists. Goalkeeper Kelsey Bing has started all 16 games in the cage, totaling 54 saves, a .740 save percentage and a 1.15 goals against average.
 
Series History
Thursday's contest marks the first meeting ever between UMass Lowell and Stanford in the sport of field hockey.
 
Around the League
As a team, UMass Lowell is fourth in the America East rankings with a 2.95 scoring average and 3.00 goals scored per game. The team also sits fourth with 2.28 assists per game. Individually, Anouk Lalande is tied for fifth with 29 total points and teammate Christa Doiron is seventh with 27. Kelsey Federico is third among goalkeepers with 86 total save. Eva Berkhout ranks second with a .759 save percentage, while Federico follows in fourth with a .717 save percentage.
 
Defensive Depth
Goalkeepers Kelsey Federico and Eva Berkhout have split time in the cage for UMass Lowell this season, combining to put UMass Lowell atop the conference standings with 152 total saves and a .738 save percentage.
 
Helping Hands
The River Hawks' offensive output has been a real team effort this year, with 41 assists on 54 goals so far in 2016. That means 75.9 percent of the squad's goals have been assisted this season.
 
Making History
In addition to making its first ever America East Championship appearance, UMass Lowell has turned in a record-setting season in 2016. With eight victories so far, the River Hawks have already secured their winningest season at the Division I level. In their 9-2 win against Saint Louis on Sept. 18, they recorded their most goals in a game and the largest margin of victory since a 2012 contest against Franklin Pierce (9-1). More recently, the squad completed its first swept of a home-and-home America East regular-season series against Vermont, notching their most league victories (3) since joining the conference back in 2013.
 
Notables
Senior Kristin Aveni (Westminster, Mass.) scored a personal-best two goals against Vermont (10.28) … junior Fiona Fitzgerald (Lexington, Mass.) set a career high with two goals against Lehigh (10.16) … freshman Mikayla Paone (Watertown, Mass.) registered her first collegiate goal against Lehigh (10.16) … Katie Luchino (Freehold, N.J.) notched a career-high four points with one goal and two assists against Lehigh (10.16) … Anouk Lalande scored a pair of goals in the team's win at Vermont (10.9) … Torrie Huk found the back of the cage twice against New Hampshire (10.7) … Christa Doiron tied a career high with two goals at Sacred Heart (10.2) … Huk scored against Maine (9.30) to compile a five-game scoring streak, the team's longest of the season … Lalande tallied a season-high four goals and nine points against Saint Louis (9.18) … Huk set a new personal best with three goals vs. Siena (9.16) … sophomore Allyssa Moser (Mertztown, Pa.) scored her first career goal on a penalty stroke at Holy Cross (9.9) … Eva Berkhout logged a season-best seven saves against Massachusetts (9.4) … Kelsey Federico posted a season-high 16 saves against Miami (9.2) … Anouk Lalande notched her first career goal vs. Miami (9.2) … Luchino tallied her first career assists at Quinnipiac (8.28).