10/28/2026 1:39:00 PM | Field Hockey
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The No-12 ranked Liberty Lady Flames will wrap up their 2026 regular season slate with a road BIG EAST match against Villanova, Friday afternoon. Friday's contest will commence at noon and be held at Ursinus' Snell Field Hockey Field in Collegeville, Pa.
The winner of the game will earn the No. 2 seed for the upcoming 2026 BIG EAST Field Hockey Championship, which will be held Nov. 6-8 at Temple. Liberty (11-5, 4-1 BIG EAST) has already clinched a berth for an 11th straight season and can be no worse than the No. 3 seed, even with a loss on Friday. Villanova (10-6, 3-2 BIG EAST) would earn the No. 2 seed with a victory but could be the No. 3 seed, No. 4 seed or eliminated depending on how other games in the league play out.
Liberty has won six of its last seven games overall. The Lady Flames split a pair of home matches last weekend, shutting out Temple 4-0 before falling in a shootout, 5-4, to No. 7 Duke in its final contest at the Liberty Field Hockey Field. Villanova, sporting a 5-1 home record, has won back-to-back games entering the regular season finale. The Wildcats topped Providence 2-1 on the road in a crucial league match before knocking off Wagner 3-1 in its final regular season contest away from home.
Lady Flames News and Notes
The winner of the game will earn the No. 2 seed for the upcoming 2026 BIG EAST Field Hockey Championship, which will be held Nov. 6-8 at Temple. Liberty (11-5, 4-1 BIG EAST) has already clinched a berth for an 11th straight season and can be no worse than the No. 3 seed, even with a loss on Friday. Villanova (10-6, 3-2 BIG EAST) would earn the No. 2 seed with a victory but could be the No. 3 seed, No. 4 seed or eliminated depending on how other games in the league play out.
Liberty has won six of its last seven games overall. The Lady Flames split a pair of home matches last weekend, shutting out Temple 4-0 before falling in a shootout, 5-4, to No. 7 Duke in its final contest at the Liberty Field Hockey Field. Villanova, sporting a 5-1 home record, has won back-to-back games entering the regular season finale. The Wildcats topped Providence 2-1 on the road in a crucial league match before knocking off Wagner 3-1 in its final regular season contest away from home.
Lady Flames News and Notes
- Liberty is 14-0 all-time versus Villanova. Last year, the two teams squared off twice, once in the regular season and again in the 2025 BIG EAST Championship semifinal round. Last year, the Lady Flames prevailed 5-0 in the regular season finale and went on to defeat the Wildcats 3-1 in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Championship.
- Senior forward Luna Prieri earned BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week honors on Tuesday. The San Luis, Argentina native scored two goals in a pair of games last weekend and is tied for second on the squad with eight goals this season. Meanwhile, junior defender Dara Semmartin garnered BIG EAST Honor Roll distinction. Semmartin totaled one goal, two assists and four points over Liberty's final two home games.
- Liberty is in the No. 12 spot in the Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll for a second consecutive week. The Lady Flames are also 12th in the NCAA Field Hockey RPI listing. Villanova is currently No. 41 in the RPI.
- Lady Flames junior Josefina Tomasi leads the BIG EAST and ranks sixth nationally with five total defensive saves on the season. Fifth-year defender Kyleigh is No. 10 in the country with three defensive saves, second most in the conference.
- As a team, Liberty ranks among the top 10 nationally in six statistical categories: goals per game (No. 5, 3.56), scoring average (No. 5, 3.47), assists per game (No. 5, 3.13), points per game (No. 6, 10.25), defensive saves (No. 8, 8) and scoring margin (No. 9, 1.94). The Lady Flames lead the BIG EAST in goals per game, scoring average, defensive saves and scoring margin.
- Liberty has earned 16 BIG EAST weekly awards through nine weeks of the 2026 campaign.
Players Mentioned
Saturday, October 03
Monday, September 21
Thursday, April 16
Tuesday, November 11