Folk leads team to play No. 8 Michigan State
Amanda PapkeSophomore Alisa Folk will look to continue her offensive production when she leads the field hockey team to East Lansing Thursday.
Folk was named MAC Offensive Player of the Week after scoring three goals in two games last weekend. She leads CMU with three goals and six points.
No.8 Michigan State is 3-1, and it is the first time the 1-3 Chippewas play a ranked team this season. MSU’s only loss on the season came against No. 2 North Carolina 3-0 on Sept. 6.
“Obviously Michigan State is very good,” said coach Cristy Freese. “This game will be a matter of limiting our mistakes offensively and defensively.”
Freese said having a positive attitude is crucial heading into the game.
“Before we step on the field we have to have confidence that we will win the game,” she said. “We all have to be confident in individual play and the players have to be confident in their teammates play.”
A preseason scrimmage against MSU ended 2-2, so the Chippewas know they can be competitive.
“The scrimmage helped us realize we can play with them,” Freese said. “It is going to be 70 really tough minutes.”
The Chippewas pride themselves in creating opportunities, Freese said.
“We opened up the Cornell game by our ability to steal the ball,” Freese said. “It does not matter we are playing Michigan State, it’s all about attitude, confidence, and how we play our game.”
The Chippewas defeated Cornell 3-1 Sunday for their first victory of the season.
The last time CMU beat the Spartans was in 2000, when senior co-captain Tarah Trottier scored the game-winning goal in a 3-2 overtime game. Senior defender Allison Foland also was on that team.
“In the Syracuse and Northwestern games we took our time to get in a groove,” Foland said. “At MSU we don’t have any time to get in a groove, and we do not have any time to falter.”
