This weekend, for the first time since 1999, the Big East field hockey championships will be held in Syracuse.

No. 1 seed Connecticut will play No. 4 Syracuse today at 5 p.m. at Coyne Field, with No. 2 Villanova meeting No. 3 Boston College at 7 p.m. The two winners meet Sunday at noon for the championship.

Syracuse will have a difficult time defending its conference championship, having lost to all three teams during the regular season.

Still, Orangewomen head coach Kathleen Parker said that the playoffs are a different season, and anything can happen.

“There isn’t any team that can’t win if they put two solid games together,” Parker said. “It comes down to who has the most heart and who has the most luck.”

Here’s a look at the three teams besides SU who will try their luck this weekend:

***

Connecticut (13-7, 5-0 Big East)

The Huskies, the regular season Big East champions, are hitting their stride at the right time, upsetting national No. 7 Northeastern, 2-1 in overtime, Tuesday.

Part of the Huskies’ success has come from buying into the idea of sharing the ball. Five players have score more than 10 points for Connecticut, including freshman Becky Helwig, who scored a goal in the Huskies’ 2-1 overtime win against Syracuse on Oct. 26.

“When we’ve played our best it’s been unselfish,” head coach Nancy Stevens said. “Our philosophy is, if you give up the ball, you get it back.”

The well-documented rivalry between Syracuse and Connecticut stems from the two teams meeting so often.

“Over the years, we’ve played a lot of overtime games,” Stevens said. “They always have meant something. Often times, we’re playing for a Big East title or a tournament.”

Dating to 1996, Syracuse has beaten UConn once in 12 games, including three overtime games. Syracuse fifth-year senior Becky Kohler has seen too many close defeats.

“We hate UConn,” Kohler said. “Our hatred is going to come out. I’ve played them nine times, and I’ve only beaten them once.”

***

Villanova (10-8, 4-1)

Wildcats head coach Joanie Milhous said it best.

“We’ve done well in the Big East,” Milhous said. “But games where we should’ve performed well, we didn’t. But we’ve won the games we needed to win.”

The Wildcats have had an up-and-down season, losing five of eight games to open the year and winning their last three to finish with a winning record.

Part of the reason for Villanova’s late-season surge has been sophomore Vanessa Pizzulli. The back finished fourth on the team in scoring with 12 points, an uncanny statistic for a defensive specialist.

“She’s got incredible game sense,” Milhous said.

Pizzulli played a key role in Villanova’s 2-1 win over Syracuse on Oct. 11. The Wildcats held the Orangewomen to only six shots while taking 22.

But Villanova still needed two rounds of penalty strokes before putting SU away.

“They’re definitely beatable,” SU junior Jackie Sheaffer said. “We should’ve beaten them. We just weren’t as intense that day.”

***

Boston College (15-5, 3-2)

One name comes to mind when thinking about Eagles’ field hockey: Kim French.

“She’s just a powerful presence,” Kohler said. “She’s really good off the ball. I had trouble sticking with her.”

French led BC in scoring with 11 goals, one coming against Syracuse in a 2-0 win on Sept. 29.

“I wasn’t pleased with the effort in that game,” Parker said. “That was one of the games we didn’t have (leading scorer) Kristin (Aronowicz), and we struggled.”

BC’s first conference loss came against Connecticut in a heartbreaker. Scoreless in regulation, the Huskies converted a penalty corner two minutes into overtime for the win.

Although UConn won the game, the Eagles demonstrated patience with the ball and played good defense, BC assistant coach Paula Wagoner said.

The Eagles are used to being on the other side of shutouts. Goalkeeper Lauren Hill has notched 10 this season, a team record.

“She’s a great team leader and she’s a feisty competitor,” Wagoner said. “It’s nice to have a good core back there, but a lot of the reason for her shutouts is the defense in front of her.”

Published on November 7, 2002 at 12:00 pm