Field Hockey Opens Regular Season with #21 American, Saint Louis

#21 American at Michigan State
Date: Friday, Aug. 26
Time: 6 p.m.
Live Stats
Watch Live: B1G+
Location: East Lansing, Mich. (Ralph Young Field)

Saint Louis at Michigan State
Date: Sunday, Aug. 28
Time: 2 p.m.
Live Stats
Watch Live: B1G+
Location: East Lansing, Mich. (Ralph Young Field)

Michigan State Game Notes

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State field hockey is set to open the regular season with a pair of home games this weekend at Ralph Young Field. The Spartans face No. 21 American on Friday, Aug. 26 at 6 p.m., and take on Saint Louis on Sunday, Aug. 28 at 2 p.m.

OPENING WEEKEND
Michigan State returns its top two scorers in senior midfielder Merel Hanssen (6 goals, 5 assists during the 2021 season) and sophomore midfielder Ellie Rutherford (4 goals, 2 assists) from the team that finished the 2021 season 7-8. Michigan State has added seven newcomers, including six freshmen and one graduate transfer. Head coach Helen Knull enters her 12th season at the helm and 16th overall with the program in 2022.

WHO TO WATCH
Three Spartans, including Hanssen and Rutherford, as well as senior forward Hannah Jarvie, were named to the Preseason Field Hockey Big Ten Players to Watch list. Hanssen collected several accolades during the 2021 season, including Second Team NFHCA All-West Region and Second Team All-Big Ten honors. In July, Jarvie was selected to participate in the USA Field Hockey Senior Nexus Championship alongside teammate Celina Riccardo. Hanssen, Rutherford, and Riccardo started in all 15 games for the Spartans during the 2021 season. Graduate transfer Georgia Davies (American) is also set to make an immediate impact on the program as a defender.

REUNION FOR DAVIES
Davies, who signed with the Spartans in March, will face her former team on Friday. A native of Ipswich, England, Davies started all 59 games during her remarkable four-year career at American that included two Patriot League titles and two NCAA tournament appearances. She collected All-Patriot League First Team and NFHCA Mid-Atlantic All-Region Second Team honors in three-straight seasons (2019-21) and was named Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year in the spring of 2021.

SCOUTING THE EAGLES
Following a 2021 season that saw the Eagles finish 13-4 (6-0 Patriot League) and included Patriot League regular season and tournament titles as well as a trip to the NCAA tournament, American was selected to finish first in the 2022 Patriot League Field Hockey Preseason Poll and enters the season at No. 21 in the Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll. Senior defender Charllene Boshoff and junior goalkeeper Bryn Underwood were selected to the Patriot League Preseason All-League team. The Eagles knocked off two top-25 opponents (No. 21 UMass, No. 23 VCU) last season and narrowly missed a win against No. 3 Iowa in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Spartans and Eagles last played on Sept. 1, 2017, with American securing a 1-0 victory. American leads the all-time series 5-3-1. The Eagles are led by head coach Steve Jennings, who enters his 24th season with the program in 2022.

SCOUTING THE BILLIKENS
Saint Louis finished the 2021 season 3-14 and posted a 1-6 record in the Atlantic 10. The Billikens return senior midfielder Demi Sahuleka, who led the team in scoring with 13 points (4 goals, 5 assists). Saint Louis head coach Zoe Adkins enters her third season with the Billikens in 2022. The Spartans topped the Billikens 4-0 on Aug. 28 last season and hold the edge in the all-time series 8-0-1.

UP NEXT
The Spartans head to California for matchups at UC Davis on Friday, Sept. 2 (3 p.m. ET/noon PT) and Stanford on Sunday, Sept. 4 (4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT).

Field Hockey Opens Regular Season with #21 American, Saint Louis

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Players Mentioned

Georgia Davies

Merel Hanssen

Hannah Jarvie

Celina Riccardo

Ellie Rutherford