College Games to Watch: October 31 to November 2

After finishing the third and fourth seeds, respectively, in the Atlantic 10 (A10) last season, Richmond and VCU are now fighting for the top spot heading into the postseason. VCU is an undefeated 5-0 in conference play so far, and currently riding a seven game win-streak. The Rams' three losses in a 13-3 season have come at the hands of top-ten opponents, the now ranked No. 2 Northwestern, No. 6 Wake Forest, and No. 8 Duke. Freshman Lina Behrmann, who leads the A10 in assists (14) and is tied for the VCU single-season record, was named A10 Rookie of the Week after notching one goal and two assists last week.

Richmond (10-7, 4-1 A10) currently sits behind VCU after giving up a 2-1 loss to Saint Louis a few weeks ago. Last weekend, the Spiders suffered a 6-1 loss to No. 1 North Carolina, but turned it around two days later with a 5-1 victory over William & Mary. Senior Emma Williams earned A10 Defensive Player of the Week for helping lock down the defense in the win.

Last season, Richmond picked up a narrow 1-0 shutout over VCU at home.

Fairfield and Saint Francis, the undefeated Northeast Conference (NEC) duo, will face off on Friday to see who will clinch the top seed.

Reigning NEC champion and 2025 tournament host Fairfield (12-5, 8-0 NEC) looks to add the regular season title to their resume. The Stags split their results last weekend with a 5-1 victory over LIU and narrow 3-2 loss to No. 20 UConn. Fairfield snagged two of this week's NEC honors, with Konni Hofmann garnering Offensive Player of the Week after scoring three goals across the two games, and Kaelyn Fogelson picking up Rookie of the Week after tallying one goal in each.

Saint Francis has made big strides from last season, which saw a 5-3 NEC record and no postseason appearance. This year, the 14-3 overall Red Flash is an undefeated 8-0 in NEC play, and riding an 11 game win-streak. Their most recent win was a 4-0 shutout over New Haven, where NEC Offensive Player of the Week Sofia Marciano notched her third hat trick of the season.

Wake Forest will defend their pristine 7-0 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) this weekend against a formidable Virginia team. Mia Schoenbeck earned ACC Offensive Player of the Week after her scoring feat, netting a hat trick over No. 8 Duke and an assist over App State. If victorious over Virginia, the Demon Deacons will earn an undefeated ACC season for the first time since 2005. 

Virginia is riding off a four-game win streak, most recently shutting out Big Ten threat No. 11 Maryland, 2-0. Goalkeeper Nilou Lempers claimed the conference’s Defensive Player of the Week spot for her heroics against Louisville last Friday to keep the ‘Hoos 6-1 in conference. This is the Amsterdam native’s second weekly honor this season, as she leads the nation in save percentage (87.8%) and goals against average (0.49). 

Last fall, Virginia finished the regular season with a dramatic 2-1 double overtime victory over Wake Forest.

The Battle of the Blues will cap off the final week of the regular season before both Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) teams enter postseason action. Duke (11-5, 4-3 ACC) wrapped their home slate up with a 2-0 senior day shutout over Old Dominion this past weekend. Mainstay Alaina McVeigh notched a pair of goals, as the Blue Devils struck an eleventh tally in the win column.

Last week, North Carolina (15-1, 6-1 ACC) had its first berth into the top spot of the NFHCA Coaches poll, and has remained there for the eighth week of competition. The Tar Heels enjoyed a comfortable 6-1 over Richmond last Friday, with the usual suspects–Charly Bruder, Dani Mendez, and Ryleigh Heck–combining for all six goals.

The Blue Devils will travel just eight miles down the road to Karen Shelton Stadium on Halloween night. The Tar Heels hold an all-time 86-12 record in this match-up, including 5-2 and 3-0 wins last season.

South Atlantic Conference (SAC) third seed Belmont Abbey will take on top seed and undefeated Newberry in their regular season finale.

After defeating Converse, 1-0, in a friendly match two weeks ago, Belmont Abbey found themselves with a 1-0 conference loss to the Valkyries this past week. The Crusaders remain in good standing, having already notched seven SAC victories this season.

Newberry (15-0, 10-0 SAC) most recently extended their perfect season with a 4-0 shutout over Wingate. Parker Keeler earned her third SAC Offensive Week of the Honor on the season, putting away four goals and two assists over the Wolves’ most recent pair of conference victories.

Looking to finish the season back at .500, Pace (8-9, 7-4 NE10) will face one more Northeast-10 foe as they take on Bentley. The Setters picked up an important 2-1 win over So. Connecticut State this past Tuesday, with the defense outlasting a barrage of corners and shots from their opponent. Senior goalkeeper Morgan Strecker made nine saves, while sophomore Enya Manzanera notched the gamewinner. Pace even picked up their first NE10 weekly honor of the season this past week, after Feline Rook was dubbed Rookie of the Week after tallying seven points in two games.

Bentley sits at a slightly more comfortable 8-3 in NE10 play, with a 10-7 overall record. The Falcons recently dropped two conference match-ups in very tight fashion, one of them in overtime to Saint Anselm after regulation ended 0-0. Most recently Bentley had their six-game home streak snapped by Franklin Pierce, who took a 2-1 win over the Falcons.

Last season, Bentley won a back-and-forth battle over Pace, 3-2.

Kean and Stockton will spar off this Saturday to determine the latter half of conference playoff seeding. 

Kean (9-7, 3-2 NJAC) secured a necessary pair of New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) wins last week, shutting out both Ramapo and Montclair State, 3-0 and 1-0, respectively. Goalkeeper Daniella Maresca was honored with both NJAC and NFHCA Defensive Player of the Week honors after a stellar pair of performances. Across 11 saves, the sophomore maintained a perfect 1.000 save percentage, swatting three crucial shots aside in the win over Montclair.

Stockton (10-8, 3-2 NJAC) will host the Cougars, after besting them in shootouts last year to keep them from the post-season. In their lone game of the week, the Ospreys cruised past William Paterson, 4-0. The victory secured Stockton’s double-digit win total for the third consecutive season.

Swarthmore (10-7, 7-2 CC) bested No. 19 Haverford, 3-0, this past Wednesday, notching their fourth straight Centennial Conference shutout to improve to a 7-2 record. Annika Hoyer was crucial on offense in the past two wins, netting the lone goal against Washington College and two against Haverford. The Garnet's two conference losses were to ranked foes No. 2 Johns Hopkins and No. 12 Dickinson.

Similarly, Franklin & Marshall earned their fifth straight Centennial win this week by taking down Bryn Mawr, 2-0. Caitlin Hoover, who assisted both goals in the win over the Owls, secured her third conference Offensive Player of the Week for her nine point week in combined victories over Ursinus and No. 12 Dickinson.

The Garnet topped the Diplomats in last year’s meeting by a close 2-1 scoreline, but Franklin & Marshall holds the overall advantage in record at 22-12-1.

The top two teams in Division II field hockey will round out regular season play this Saturday.

Kutztown (17-0, 8-0 PSAC) has been the team to topple all season, only a single win away from a perfect regular season. Olivia Kirkpatrick doubled on her award efforts this week, earning both Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) and NFHCA Defensive Player of the week. Kirkpatrick contributed on both ends of the field, scoring a goal in Kutztown’s last three games and aiding a defense that allowed only eight shots in two matches.

In their most recent contest, Shippensburg (14-2, 6-2) earned a 3-1 win over Mansfield, all three of which came from penalty corners, and two from Carme Caracotche Picone. Already having clinched a spot in the PSAC playoffs, the Raiders hope to improve upon their 6-2 conference record, their two narrow losses coming at the hands of No. 6 Bloomsburg and No. 4 East Stroudsburg. Kutztown won each of those matches by a two-goal margin.

In 2024, it was Shippensburg who went an undefeated 9-0 in conference. The Raiders defeated Kutztown 3-2 in the regular season but fell 4-3 in the NCAA Semifinals.

In-state foes Central Michigan and Michigan state will cap off the final weekend of regular season play.

Central Michigan will have one last non-conference test on Sunday, following their crucial Mid-American Conference (MAC) contest against Bellarmine on Friday. It will be a full circle opportunity for the Chippewas, who scrimmaged Michigan State to open the season. Carolena Ryon earned her first MAC weekly honor after leading Central Michigan over the weekend with a second career hat-trick over Longwood.

Michigan State will cap their 2025 season this Sunday at home, after facing No. 2 Northwestern on Friday. In last year’s meeting, the Spartans outlasted the Chippewas, 3-1.