Match 1 - 2014 Season Opener

Fairfield Stags (0-0)

at

UC Davis Aggies (0-0)

Sunday, Aug. 31 - 12 p.m.

Aggie Field Hockey Facility - Davis, Calif.

Live Stats

DAVIS, Calif. - The Tiffany Huisman era will officially begin when UC Davis hosts the Fairfield Stags in the inaugural game played at Aggie Field Hockey Facility. The non-conference contest is the first of six home matches scheduled this season; the Aggies will not return home until Sept. 19 when Cal visits campus for field hockey's NorPac home opener.

UC DAVIS FIELD HOCKEY JOINS THE TWITTER-SPHERE

In addition to its Facebook account, fans of UC Davis Field Hockey now have the opportunity to connect with their favorite athletic program on Twitter at the team's new handle, @UCDFieldHockey.

In addition to scores, news, notes, and highlights fans will now have an opportunity to interact and communicate with coaches and members of Northern California's favorite field hockey team. By providing photos, video and information year-round, fans can catch a glimpse of events and moments that take place off the field.

CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS

Live stats for all UC Davis field hockey home games, and its Sept. 11 neutral-site matchup against Iowa, at Stanford, are available at ucdavislivestats.com

HOME SWEET HOME

On Aug. 23, Aggie Field Hockey Facility, the program's new home facility, officially opened its doors to the public. The $3.2 million facility - built thanks to the collaborative efforts of donors, parents, the Athletics Department and campus - broke ground in late May and was the site of a field dedication ceremony that took place that afternoon.

UC Davis has played and practiced at Aggie Stadium since resuming varsity competition in 2009. The stadium's artificial turf is ideal for football and lacrosse but provides a much slower-paced game for field hockey. The new facility will have a USA Field Hockey certified turf that will provide the Aggies the same regulation-sized playing surface used by nearly every prominent collegiate program in the country.

SCOUTING FAIRFIELD

Fairfield University will commence its season, and Northern California road trip, Friday night at Cal before visiting Aggie Field Hockey Facility Sunday afternoon. The first official game at the Aggies' brand new facility will also mark the first head-to-head meeting between UC Davis and Fairfield as well.

Coming off their most successful season since joining the America East Conference, 14 letterwinners from 2013s roster return for head coach Jackie Kane this year. Including their second straight conference tournament appearance, the Stags won 11 games last season.

One of those returners is senior defender Felicitas Heinen, a NFHCA All-Mid-East Region and All-America East first team honoree last year. Heinen led her team in points and goals with 38 and 16 respectively, and just missed out on NCAA top-10 national rankings with her goals per game (0.89; No. 11) and points per game (2.11; No. 12) marks.

CH-CH-CH CHANGES

The NorPac Field Hockey conference experienced a handful of changes since the conclusion of the 2013 season, one of which involved the organization of schools in each of the league's two divisions.

The conference has restructured its divisional footprint for 2014 after Radford discontinued its program in February, along with Longwood (MAC) and Davidson (A10) changing conference affiliation.

This season, Pacific will compete as an East Division team.

Forced to relocate its games to allow construction of a parking structure next to Memorial Stadium, Cal will not host any games at Maxwell Family Field and play all of its games off campus. All NorPac opponents will host Cal twice this year.

FIELD HOCKEY'S SECOND SEASON

Forced to relocate all of its home games due to the construction of its new field, Pacific will host the 2014 NorPac Conference Championship Tournament. This year-end event will take place in Stockton, California, from Nov. 6-8 at Pacific Field Hockey Turf with event seedings based on each team's conference record.

WELCOME BACK

Also taking place on Aug. 23, following the conclusion of the "Field of Dreams Dedication Ceremony" was UC Davis' annual Alumnae Game. Current and former field hockey student-athletes competed against one another in a regulation contest and became the first individuals to test the new turf at Aggie Field Hockey Facility.

NEW SEASON, NEW LOOK, NEW HEAD COACH ...

In addition to a brand new home, UC Davis field hockey also enters the 2014 season with a brand new coaching staff as well.

A former member of the U.S. Women's National Field Hockey team with more than 100 caps to her credit, including matches played at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, new field hockey head coach Tiffany Huisman is eager to utilize her playing background to help her program continue to grow.

Huisman graduated cum laude from Old Dominion in 2003 following a storied career with the Lady Monarchs - one of the top field hockey programs in the country.

Ranked No. 6 all-time with 71 goals and 181 total points, Huisman helped Old Dominion capture four Colonial Athletic Conference championships and a national title in 2000. In addition to receiving CAA Player of the Year recognition in 2002, Huisman also collected two All-America first team and four All-CAA honors before joining Team USA.

Throughout her six-year tenure with the U.S. National Team, Huisman competed at the 2006 World Cup (held in Madrid) in addition to the Olympics.

... A NEW ASSISTANT COACH WITH PLAYING AND COACHING EXPERIENCE ...

Joining Huisman as one of her assistants is Kate Murphy. In addition to her daily involvement with the program's backfield, Murphy will also assist her coaching colleagues with recruiting, practice planning, team travel and other administrative tasks.

Murphy arrives to Davis from Boston University, her alma mater, where she most recently assisted 33-year head coach Sally Starr.

While attending Boston University as one of its field hockey student-athletes, Murphy began coaching at various camps in New England region. Throughout the last five years, Murphy's influence shaped the coaching curriculum at field hockey camps organized by Nike, Champion (five years), College of the Holy Cross (two), Deerfield College Connection and Northeast Hockey (one).

A 2012 graduate who earned a degree in hospitality administration, Murphy was three-year fixture in Coach Starr's lineup and one of only four players to earn a starting spot in her final three years.

In her first season as a starter, BU won the '09 America East title-one of two the Terriers captured throughout her four-year tenure as the team also finished the 2011 campaign as regular season co-champions.

Also a four-year member of her league's honor roll, Murphy received her first all-conference award in her junior season when America East named her to its 2010 second team.

Voted team captain by her peers the following year, she ended her college career with first team all-conference, all-conference tournament and all-region honors.

Named MVP by her teammates in 2011, Murphy capped a decorated career by competing in the NCAA's Division I Senior All-Star Game.

... AND ANOTHER ASSISTANT WITH BIG 12 AND EAST COAST CONNECTIONS

Rounding out Coach Huisman's staff is assistant coach Zach Miller. Besides instructing the Aggies' goalkeepers, he will also film, break down, analyze, and organize all practices and games, assist Huisman with all recruiting, travel, fundraising and alumni outreach.

In addition to advancing to the NCAA Tournament in each of Miller's three seasons, the Spartans also captured a 2009 Big Ten regular season and conference championship with help from his influence and efforts.

During the Spartans' off-season, Miller also assisted his colleagues with player evaluation, talent recognition and recruitment of student-athletes. In-season, Miller was responsible for organizing travel arrangements for all players and staff as well as facilitating video exchange between teams.

Miller also assisted in the overall administration and day-to-day operations of MSU's summer field hockey camps; twice, he was named its assistant director.

Before arriving to Davis, Miller served as the co-coordinator for the New York State Club Field Hockey League. Consisting of 15 teams located throughout the state, Miller was the one individual responsible for creating the NYSCFHL's regular season schedule, and aiding in organizing and operating its postseason tournament.

Outside of his league obligations, Miller was a Section VI high school field hockey official and a coach for the Buffalo Hurricanes-an elite club field hockey program based in Western New York.

SISTER ACT

Siblings Madison and Erica Cohen are a rare pair of sibling student-athletes that compete for UC Davis in 2014-15. Besides the Cohens, Christina and Cat Guidry (softball), Megan and Kaitlin Leung, Karley and Lexi Troup (swimming and diving) are the only sisters to compete within the same program.

Stephanie (gymnastics) and Summer Stamates (women's soccer), Michael (men's water polo) and Hailey Wright (women's water polo) are additional pairs of siblings that compete for the Aggies, albeit on separate teams.

Ryan and Derek Caro (men's soccer) are the only brothers who compete for the same team.

For every family mentioned above, the first name listed is the older of the two siblings.

Austin (men's cross country/track & field), Olivia and Rianna Goins (women's cross country/track & field) are the only triplets currently competing at UC Davis.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS ARE LASTING ONES

Since the 2009 season when UC Davis played its first game since its program was resurrected, the Aggies have enjoyed tremendous success in their season openers. In four of the last five seasons, field hockey was able to walk away with a season-opening victory.

Its lone loss took place in 2010 when the Aggies lost 4-2 against Miami.

Coincidentally, the four victories earned by UC Davis in its season opener all took place on the team's home turf.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

Starting with the Aggies' season opener against Fairfield on Aug. 31, field hockey will host six home matches at its new facility this season. A weekend of home events will take place when Cal and Central Michigan visit Davis on Sept. 19 and 21 respectively; UC Davis' home slate will conclude with three straight against Stanford, Cal and Pacific.

Construction at Cal will force its field hockey team to play all of its games on the road; UC Davis will host both head-to-head NorPac matchups this season.

PACK YOUR BAGS WISELY

Scattered throughout the season between UC Davis' season opener and its homesteads are three road trips. After playing its inaugural game of 2014 at home, UC Davis will embark on a four-match road trip that will take the Aggies to Missouri State (Sept. 4), Saint Louis (Sept. 6), Indiana (Sept. 7) and Stanford where the team will host a neutral-site contest against Iowa on Sept. 11.

UC Davis is the designated home team for that neutral site matchup against the Hawkeyes.

A quick mid-season three-match road trip - taking place within a four-day timespan - includes stops at Bryant (Sept. 25), UMass-Lowell (Sept. 27) and Northeastern (Sept. 28) before field hockey commences its final homestand of the season.

After Senior Night comes and goes, field hockey will end its season with another season-long four-match swing through Pacific (Oct. 18), Louisville (Oct. 24), Miami (OH) (Oct. 26) and Stanford (Oct. 31) before the Aggies return to Stockton to compete in the NorPac Championship Tournament.

ANYONE, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE

Teams on the Aggies' 2014 schedule that received preseason rankings from the Penn Monto/National Field Hockey Coaches Association's Division I Preseason Poll include Stanford (No. 12), Louisville (No. 15) and Iowa (No. 20).

BREAKING DOWN THE NUMBERS
Throughout the season, a breakdown of UC Davis' record will be available each week by the following categories:

- overall record, record at home, on the road and at neutral sites
- against ranked opponents
- overall against NorPac teams, NorPac home/road matches
- in shutouts
- in matches decided by one goal and two or more goals
- in overtime
- when UC Davis/opponents score first
- when leading/trailing/tied at halftime
- when outshooting/outshot by opponents
- taking more/fewer/equal number of penalty corners

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE AGGIES' ROSTER

Included below is a breakdown of UC Davis' 2014 roster by class, position and home state.

Seniors: Sophia Lisaius, Mattie Maloney

Juniors: Emily Costa, Hannah Drawbridge, Martha Duterte, Jamie Garcia, Courtney Hazy, Stephie Sabraw, Linnea Whitney

Sophomores: Erica Cohen, Lauren Copeland, Courtney Hessler, Danielle Koehne, Beth Lee, Kristin Rodgers, Agustina Singh, Kayla Wigney

Redshirt Freshmen: Eden Borsack, Megan Doles, Kat Jackson

Freshmen: Madison Cohen, Kelley Kramer, Makheila MacDonald, Briana Sooy, Nica Taglieri, Kate Young

Goalkeepers: Erica Cohen, Beth Lee, Makheila MacDonald

Defenders: Eden Borsack, Madison Cohen, Martha Duterte, Mattie Maloney, Briana Sooy, Linnea Whitney

Midfielders: Lauren Copeland, Emily Costa, Hannah Drawbridge,Jamie Garcia, Courtney Hazy, Courtney Hessler Kat Jackson, Kristin Rodgers, Kate Young

Forwards: Megan Doles, Danielle Koehne, Kelley Kramer, Sophia Lisaius, Stephie Sabraw, Agustina Singh, Nica Taglieri, Kayla Wigney

California: Eden Borsack, Erica Cohen, Madison Cohen, Lauren Copeland, Emily Costa, Megan Doles, Hannah Drawbridge, Martha Duterte, Jamie Garcia, Courtney Hazy, Courtney Hessler, Kat Jackson, Danielle Koehne, Kelley Kramer, Beth Lee, Makheila MacDonald, Mattie Maloney, Kristin Rodgers, Stephie Sabraw, Agustina Singh, Briana Sooy, Nica Taglieri, Linnea Whitney, Kayla Wigney, Kate Young

Vermont: Sophia Lisaius