Tigers Take On Robert Morris This Sunday At Brookside Field

Stockton Calif. - The Pacific Tigers Field Hockey team continues play this weekend Sunday, October 2 at noon against the Robert Morris Colonials. The contest is a non-conference matchup and the third of four home games this season for the Tigers.

Pacific is coming off games against currently ranked No. 7 California and No. 5 Stanford where the Tigers played well, but dropped both contests. The Tigers look to use the experience of playing two teams in the top ten against the Colonials.  

Head Coach Linda MacDonald expects her team to come out strong against Robert Morris saying, "we played a good game against Stanford and a had a great half at California, but we need put it together for a full 70 minutes. We had great practices, and if we play well we can get the victory."

It is important for Pacific to have a strong performance from goalkeeper Ashlee Schlesier. The junior from San Diego, Calif. ranks seventh in the country with 8.43 saves per game. Schlesier's impressive season included a 12 save performance against California on Sept. 25, which put her over 300 saves for her career. She now heads into Sunday's contest with 304 saves for her career.

Schlesier will look for help from her defense that has recorded four defensive saves. The Tigers defense is led by junior Emily Trudeau who has two of the team's defensive saves.

Also, the Pacific offense must put pressure on the Colonials defense, and MacDonald knows it is a key to getting the win saying, "we need to collect more shots on goal. We have done a better job attacking the defense, but now it is time to turn those opportunities into goals."  

The Tigers will look to senior Amanda Spellman and freshman Tarah Trotter to continue their success on the offensive end. The duos have two goals each in the 2011 campaign, and were key in the Tigers victory over Brown earlier this season. 

MacDonald added about the importance of this game before heading to Virginia for three games saying, "this game is huge, as is every game the rest of the year. We are playing better and we need to translate that into wins." Pacific will take on Longwood, Richmond, and Virginia Commonwealth Oct. 6, 8, and 9, respectively.