BERKELEY - The California field hockey team opens America East Conference play this week after enjoying a non-conference record above .500. The Golden Bears (4-3) will open AE action at New Hampshire on Friday, Sept. 24, at noon PT before heading to Massachusetts to face UMass-Lowell on Sunday, Sept. 26, at 9 am PT. 

"We can't wait to start conference play," said the Donna Fong Director of Field Hockey Shellie Onstead. "I think we've really spent time with some tough games with purpose. Now, you shift. We're in the heart of it now, and you hope there's a postseason at the end. We're road warriors."

The Golden Bears will play America East Conference games for the rest of the regular season, with only one home game remaining in the back half of the schedule. Cal will play seven of the final eight games of the season on the road, and six on the east coast.   

Bears Split At home Last Week
• Cal split last weekend's homestand in Berkeley. The Bears started the weekend with a 2-1 win over Brown. The Bears couldn't sweep the weekend, though, after falling to No. 4 Northwestern, 5-1. The game marked Cal's fourth ranked opponent this fall.   
 
Offense Dominates In Wins
• In Cal's four wins this season, the Bears have brought consistent offensive pressure. In the four victories, Cal has outscored its opponents, 8-2, with two shutouts. Eight of the Bears' nine goals this season have come in victories. Cal has also out shot its opponents, 56-18, in wins. The Bears have also earned 19 corners to 10 for their opponents. Three of the four wins were one-goal victories as the Bears have clamped down defensively during games won, as well.   

Cal In AE Conference Openers 
• Cal is 3-3 in its last six conference openers. In 2015, Cal upset No. 6 Stanford in overtime, and in 2017, Cal's most-recent win in a conference opener, the Bears defeated No. 24 Pacific, 4-1. Cal lost at Pacific in 2018 and at No. 16 Stanford in 2019 before losing at Maine, 1-0, in the 2021 spring season conference opener.
  
Even All-time Series Records
• The Bears are 4-4 all-time against New Hampshire, and have beaten the Wildcats in the last two meetings. Cal also topped New Hampshire in the first meeting in 1980. Cal is 1-1 all-time against UMass-Lowell, but the River Hawks beat the Bears most recently during the spring 2021 campaign.  

Van Hoof Adds Experience
• A graduate transfer from Wake Forest, Anne Van Hoof has made her presence felt through the first seven games of the season. The native of The Netherlands paces the Bears in points with eight (4 goals), and with 21 shots, 13 on goal. She scored twice in Cal's 4-1 win at Towson, and also in Cal's 1-0 win over Dartmouth and 2-1 win vs. Brown. Van Hoof has started every game in the backfield. She brings veteran experience after Cal lost Yvie Lock and Sara Deck in the backfield after the spring campaign.      

Smart Bears
• A program-record group of 23 Cal field hockey student-athletes were honored with 2020 Zag Field Hockey/NFHCA Division I National Academic Squad laurels. Cato Knipping, Natalie Moore, Sara Stone and Kaiden Stanley were tabbed NFHCA Scholars of Distinction with Knipping earning the honor for the second straight year. Cal was also once again tabbed an NFHCA National Academic Squad. In addition, 22 Bears earned America East Honor Roll accolades, with 16 picking up AE Commissioner's Honor Roll stature (3.5 GPA or better). Earlier this week, Cal won the Newmark Award for the highest GPA (3.603) among Cal's large women's programs.  

Next Up
• Cal will be off next week before returning to the east coast for two more America East Conference games at Maine on Friday, Oct. 8, and at Vermont on Sunday, Oct. 10.