Now into the latter half of the season, the No. 17 Owls have a weekend of Big East play ahead of them.
They’ll start with a matchup against Providence on Friday afternoon at Geasey Field.
Providence is 5-6 overall and 1-2 in conference play heading into Friday’s game. The team is 1-1 in its last two games, which included a 5-1 win over Brown on Oct. 2 and a 4-1 loss to No. 4 UConn on Oct. 5.
The Friars’ offense is led by junior forward Daniella Bernasconi, who leads the Big East with 14 goals and 30 points. Bernasconi recorded a hat-trick in the win against Brown and also scored Providence’s only goal in the defeat to UConn. She is first in the nation in goals per game with a 1.27 average.
Providence’s defense has allowed an average of 1.73 goals per game, with junior goalkeeper Deidra Clymer posting a .753 save percentage that is good for 20th best in the nation.
Temple is also coming off a 1-1 weekend. The team took a heartbreaking loss to Louisville (now No. 14) 2-1 in overtime, but bounced back with a 3-1 win over Bucknell that saw senior midfielder/defender Molly Doyle record her first career hat-trick.
Doyle also scored Temple’s lone goal against Louisville and is tied for fourth in goals in the Big East, and she made the conference’s weekly honor roll.
There have been a few bumps in the road, but Temple has enjoyed a lot of success already, going into Friday’s game with a 9-3 record.
The Owls are 2-1 in conference play and have enjoyed much of their success at home, going 7-1 at Geasey Field.
Temple has won six-straight at home, after losing to the currently No. 1 ranked Maryland 5-1 on Sept. 1.
Defense has been one of the team’s greatest strengths, holding opponents to 1.42 goals per game. Meanwhile, redshirt junior goalkeeper Lizzy Millen has played extremely well in net, posting a .795 save percentage that is sixth in the nation.
Friday’s game is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. with rain expected in the forecast.
