Bulldogs head to the Golden State

Field hockey preps for a trio of games in Calif. over Labor Day weekend

SMITHFIELD, R.I. -- The Bryant University field hockey team will head west for a three-game California roadtrip over Labor Day weekend.

The Bulldogs (1-0) will first head to Stockton, Calif., for a matchup with the University of the Pacific on Friday evening (6 p.m. EST). From there, Bryant will travel to Davis, Calif., for a Saturday afternoon contest with UC Davis (3 p.m. EST) before concluding the weekend in Berkeley, Calif., for a showdown with the Golden Bears on Labor Day (4 p.m. EST).

The Black and Gold will look to stay unbeaten on the season after defeating Colgate, 3-2, in their season opener last Saturday.  The Bulldogs wasted no time getting on the board against the Raiders. Sophomore Corinne Woods (Beverley, Mass.) scored off a helper from Kayleigh Ballantyne (Gorham, Maine) five minutes into the game to notch her first score of 2012, giving Bryant an early 1-0 advantage.

Just over a minute later, Colgate's Eliana Brown halted a Bryant clearing attempt just inside the circle to put away her first goal of the season, knotting the game at 1-1. The Bulldogs took just over three minutes to respond when Rosie Bird (Hamilton, New Zealand) hammered home a rebound off a penalty corner for her first score of the game, restoring the Bulldog lead.

Just before the end of the first half, the New Zealander extended the Bryant advantage, tallying her second goal of the contest from inside the circle off Ballantyne's second helper of the half.

The Raiders notched the lone goal of the second half when Brown redirected a pass from sophomore Rebecca Libutti, however, it would not be enough. Bryant goalkeeper Megan Hancock (Skowhegan, Maine) turned aside 11 shots with 10 of her saves coming in the second half.

Looking forward to weekend play, the Bulldogs take on a Tigers side Friday that split their first two games of 2012, defeating Saint Louis, 5-3, in their opener, but falling to La Salle, 4-3, on Sunday.

Bryant will then head to UC Davis to take on a 2-0 Aggies squad on Saturday (3 p.m. EST). The Aggies also played their first two games against Saint Louis and La Salle, defeating the Billikens, 3-0, last Saturday and the Explorers, 4-1, on Monday.

The final stop for the Bulldogs on their Golden State road trip will be Berkeley, Calif., for Monday's bout with the University of California. The Golden Bears split their opening games this season, dropping their opener, 2-1, to Maryland before most recently defeating Saint Louis, 6-0.

For links to live stats of this weekend's games and all the latest information on Bryant University field hockey, visit BryantBulldogs.com