PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania field hockey team hosts the final two home games of the season this weekend, clashing with Columbia on Friday before taking on Delaware for Senior Day on Sunday at Ellen Vagelos Field.
 
GAME DAY 15: Penn vs Columbia
Friday, Oct. 28 | 3 p.m.
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GAME DAY 16: Penn vs Delaware
Sunday, Oct. 30 | 1 p.m.
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Ivy League on ESPN
A reminder that the Ivy League is paired with ESPN and you will be able to find all Penn home games, as well as road Ivy matches and select non-conference road games, on ESPN+ this fall with the same high broadcast quality you've come to expect. ESPN+ is a subscription-based service that offers monthly and yearly packages. Click here to subscribe to ESPN+!
 
The Series with Columbia
The Quakers are meeting for the 26th time in program history on Friday, a series that dates to 1996. Penn currently owns a slight 13-12 edge in the series including a 9-3 record at home. Five of the last 10 outings have gone to overtime, all working out in favor of the Lions. However, Penn has won three of the last five meetings.
 
Last Time We Met
Penn traveled to Columbia last season, battling out a 1-0 shutout victory. Gracyn Banks was a force on both ends of the field, scoring the lone goal of the game while registering two defensive saves. The finish came at the close of the first quarter when Penn was awarded a penalty corner. With seven second left on the clock, Courtney Kenah placed the insert to the top of the circle where Ashley Wetzel settled it. With just seconds left, Banks sent a shot to the top right side of the cage for the eventual game-winner.
 
About The Lions
Columbia enters Friday matchup with a 5-9 record, 3-2 in Ivy League play. Starting out the year with two-straight league losses, they have followed up with three wins against Brown (3-2 OT), Yale (2-1) and Dartmouth (2-1). A two-game weekend last week in New York, the Lions are coming off a tight 2-1 loss against New Hampshire. Maya Walker leads the offense with 13 points off five goals and three assists. Defensively, Katie Wimmer has tended the cage for all 14 games with 103 saves on a 2.51 goals-against average.
 
The Series with Delaware
The Quakers will be facing the Blue Hens for the 30th time in program history on Sunday, with Delaware holding a 21-8 lead in the series. Penn will be looking to snap a six-game slide to the Blue Hens, who has proven to be a national-tier squad that won the national title back in 2016. The Quakers have won three matchups in the last 10 meetings, the last one coming in 2007 in Newark.
 
Last Time We Met
Penn made the short trek down I95 last season for a tight bout in Newark, falling to then-No. 23 Delaware, 1-0. The two squads were dead locked through the first half, totaling a combined five shots through 30 minutes. The Blue Hens scored the lone goal of the game in the third quarter off a penalty corner to ultimately secure the decision. The Quakers had three shots in the game, two by Banks and one by Allison Kuzyk.
 
About The Blue Hens
Delaware wraps up its regular season against Penn on Sunday, entering the game with a 7-10 record, 5-1 in the CAA. The Blue Hens have won three of their last four games, only falling to No. 15 Harvard (2-1). Their most recent outing was this past Sunday, hosting Hofstra on Senior Day, winning the high-scoring battle, 6-4. Delaware has five players with double-digit points this season led by Julia Duffhuis with 18 off eight goals and two assists. Berber Bakermans and Ashlyn Carr lead the team in assists with eight each. Back in the cage, Lizzie Gaebel has started in all 17 games, making 66 saves with a 2.80 goals-against average.
 
Senior Day Festivities
Sunday's game will be recognized as Senior Day. Prior to the game, the Quakers will honor the careers of all seven seniors: Maya Geller, Sydney Huang, Julia Russo, Meghan Ward, Banks, Elita Van Staden, and Olivia Kenny.
 
Penn's Last Time Out
The Quakers traveled to Connecticut over the weekend for a pair of matchups, an Ivy League tilt at Yale and a non-conference game at Quinnipiac. On Saturday against the Bulldogs, Penn took an early 1-0 lead off another Allison Kuzyk finish, her third goal in the last two games. Yale responded with two goals in the third quarter to take the lead, but Kenah deflected a pass into the back of the cage in the fourth to send the game to overtime. The Bulldogs capitalized first in the extra period to take the 3-2 decision. On Sunday, the Bobcats were the only team to score, although the teams split in shots 12-12. Quinnipiac scored a goal in the third and fourth quarters to win, 2-0.
 
Quaker Notemeal
*The Quakers opened the season playing four top-10 opponents in their first five games: No. 9 Louisville, No. 2 UNC, No. 20 Boston College, and No. 1 Northwestern. They have since then played No. 7 Princeton, No. 24 Temple, and No. 15 Harvard. Penn was ranked No. 24 in the country last week.
 
*Kenah leads the team with 11 points on five goals and an assist.
 
*Penn has had four game-winning goals this season, all by different Quakers: Ward, Banks, Kuzyk, and Livia Loozen.
 
*The Quaker backline has registered five defensive saves this season: three by Banks and two by Meghan McGinley. They both rank in the top five in the Ivy League in the category.
 
*Seniors Banks, Ward and Van Staden lead the Red and Blue this season as team captains. It is Banks' second-straight year as a captain.
 
*Head coach Colleen Fink heads the program for her 13th season, totaling 99 victories entering Friday's game.