The Friday Fives

Yesterday we got you ready for championship season. Now let's take a look inside what will prove to be a great weekend on the field of play. Here a five big things to keep in mind this weekend, as championships are at stake.

Number 1

The America East women's soccer championship is at on the line this weekend, with No. 1 Hartford taking on No. 6 Stony Brook. The Hawks have history on their side in this one, as the No. 1 seed has gone on to win the title 16 out of 18 times in the America East Championship. Hartford also has a fair bit of tradition on its side, having won 10 conference championships. Senior Striker of the Year Amelia Pereira will have a hand in just about everything for the Hawks, as she recorded a point on both of the goals in the semifinal win over Vermont. Her speed and nose for the net will be huge in this game.

Stony Brook, meanwhile, is making its third appearance in the America East title game, having gone 0-2 previously. The Seawolves are an extremely young team, with 10 freshman on the roster as compared to just three seniors. After going on the road and winning two tough games, Stony Brook has shown itself to be tough, hungry and talented. So don't count them out. The No. 6 seed has made the title game just one other time in conference history, after Maine made it in 2010. The Seawolves are vying to become the first No. 6 seed to win it all.

Free of Charge

The America East and Stony Brook have teamed up to offer free admission to Saturday's men's soccer quaterfinal matchup between Stony Brook and Binghamton. It is a symbol of respect for the people of Long Island as they continue to recover from Hurricane Sandy. This should give the Seawolves a little extra motivation, as it is possibly the last home game for seven seniors, including First-Team All-Conference midfielder Leonardo Fernandes. Fellow senior First-Team All-Conference performer Jake Keegan will do his best to lead the Bearcats on Saturday. The striker has proven to be explosive throughout the year and it doesn't take much space for him to be able to make his move.

It should be an awesome atmosphere on Saturday night leading to a game between two really exciting teams. If you can make it to Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium, we hope you take advantage of a great event.

Back-to-Back

New Hampshire, ranked 19th in the country coming into the weekend, is attempting to become the first America East field hockey champion to repeat in five years. In doing so, the Wildcats will feature an offense that lead the conference in goals scored with 55. Junior forward Hannah Richard has led the charge, as she has 14 goals on the season. Her impressive total only trails Fairfield star Felicitas Heinein. Coincidentally, Heinen leads another high scoring attack, as the Stags are second in the conference in goals scored. If there is one thing we know about today's game, it is that the back of the cage is in danger. Both of these teams can really score and the two teams combined for five goals in the regular season meeting, as New Hampshire won 3-2 in double overtime.

Co-Offensive Player of the Year Daphne Voormolen

Prevent and Attack

It sounds simple, but that's what Albany does. The Great Danes will face Maine in the America East field hockey semifinals later today after an impressive regular season. Challenging itself with numerous matchups versus ranked opponents, Albany scored some big wins against Louisville and Massachusetts, solidifying its place among the nation's elite. The Great Danes were able to do this with an excellent combination of goal prevention and stellar attack. Among the many facts that evidence this style of play is that Albany boasts both the Co-Offensive Player of the Year in Daphne Voormolen and the Co-Goalkeeper of the Year in Kristi Troch. These two helped Albany to the 20th best scoring margin in the nation at 1.11, which is also the best mark in the America East. Maine, with Co-Offensive Player of the Year Annabelle Hamilton, is sure to give the Great Danes a real challenge, as it seems each of the four teams in the playoffs could easily win it all.

#MAYSONET4PAYTON

We mentioned this briefly on the blog yesterday, but it deserves another mention. Stony Brook running back Miguel Maysonet is a legitimate candidate for the Walter Payton Award, which is given annually to the top offensive player in the FCS. Maysonet has led the Seawolves all the way up the polls to No. 9 in the country and he is continuing to shatter records as he goes. Among the many records he owns are the Stony Brook all-time marks for rushing yards (4,263), rushing touchdowns (41), rushing yards in a season (1,633) and rushing touchdowns in a season (16). Maysonet could set a new mark in every one of those categories when Stony Brook takes on VMI this Saturday.

So if you have a second, visit the official website of his Payton Award campaign and help a deserving young man get some national spotlight.

Daily Word: Weekend Preview

Three different fall championships are in action this weekend, with women's soccer, men's soccer and field hockey and by the end of Sunday, two more champions will be crowned. Let's get ready for one of the most exciting times of the year with today's preview.

Women's Soccer

It's No.1 Hartford against No. 6 Stony Brook. The Hawks are coming off of a 2-0 shutout of Vermont and continue a long streak of top seeds that have made the finals. Stony Brook went on the road and beat New Hampshire and then Maine to advance. The Sealwolves core of young talent is peaking at the right time and Sunday's matchup is sure to be a good one. You can watch a live stream of that game on AmericaEast.com.

Men's Soccer

No. 6 Binghamton at No. 3 Stony Brook, Saturday 12 p.m.
No. 5 New Hampshire at No. 4 Albany, Saturday 6 p.m.

What To Watch For

• Binghamton is back in the playoffs this season after missing last year for the first time in nine years.
• No. 3 Stony Brook was selected to win the league prior to the season and is the defending champion.
• Last time New Hampshire was the No. 5 seed (2010), the Wildcats advanced to the championship game.
• Albany beat New Hampshire 3-1 when the two teams met earlier this year. Stony Brook won its matchup over Binghamton 2-1.

No. 1 Vermont awaits the winner of Albany vs. New Hampshire, while the victor of Stony Brook vs. Binghamton will play No. 2 UMBC.

Field Hockey

No. 4 Fairfield at No. 1 New Hampshire

No. 3 Maine vs. No. 2 Albany

*Tournament is being held at the University of New Hampshire

What To Watch For

• New Hampshire earned the No. 1 seed for the third consecutive year. Last year marked the first America East Championship for the Wildcats.
• Last time Albany was the No. 2 seed (2010), the Great Danes won the tournament. 
• Maine is looking for its first America East title.
• Fairfield is making its first appearance in the tournament since it joined the league as an associate member in 2007.
• New Hampshire needed double overtime to beat Fairfield earlier this season by a score of 3-2, while Albany shutout out Maine in 1-0 victory.

The winners will face off on Sunday at New Hampshire to decide the 2012 America East Championship.

Volleyball

Albany at UMBC, Friday 7 p.m.

Hartford at Binghamton, Friday 7 p.m.

Providence at Stony Brook, Friday 7 p.m.

New Hampshire at Stony Brook, Sunday 1 p.m.

Hartford at UMBC, Sunday 2 p.m.

Albany at Binghamton, Sunday 5 p.m.

The Playoff Picture

Albany is still holding the No. 1 seed after dropping its first match of the season last weekend. New Hampshire and Binghamton are tied for second place, each with a 6-3 record while UMBC is a half game up on Stony Brook for fourth place. Hartford needs to get hot to put itself back in playoff contention.

The Big Game

Albany will have two tough tests this weekend, but its matchup against Binghamton on Sunday should be a great one. If the Bearcats beat Hartford on Friday, they will be riding a three game win streak into Sunday's showdown. The Great Danes are trying to bounce back from their first loss of the year with two very tough road matches. A big weekend for both teams indeed.

Swimming and Diving

It will be a busy upcoming week for America East swimming and diving, with all but one team in action. Maine kicks everything off, hosting Bryant on Thursday. On Friday, Binghamton hosts Massachusetts, Maine visits will take on Boston College and Liberty in Chesnut Hill, Mass. and the New Hampshire women are in Smithfield, R.I. taking on Bryant and Central Connecticut. Things wrap up on Saturday with Boston U. at Fordham and Vermont traveling to Siena.

Linked Up

Check out this story from Binghamton on a pair of women's lacrosse players who will play overseas this summer.

The Hartford men's basketball team is ready for the season after an intense training program.

Albany had its own basketball media day yesterday. Check out a recap from the men and the women.

Bangor native and one-time Maine baseball player Brian Butterfield has been hired as the third-base coach for the Red Sox.

Stony Brook has started a website for its Walter Payton Award candidate, Miguel Maysonet. Read the full release here.

What's Next

Still no games today, but we're just one day away from America East Championship action!

Daily Word: Atop the Leaderboards

With women's soccer in preparation for its championship game and playoffs about to begin for men's soccer and field hockey, we thought it might be fun for fans to take a look at some of the statistical leaders from the regular season. Volleyball is excluded because they are still very much in the thick of the regular season. All stats come straight from AmericaEast.com, so you can see the full results for yourself if you want.

Women's Soccer

Total Points

Hartford's Amelia Pereira

1. Amelia Pereira, Hartford -- 33
2. Shayla Bergeron, Albany -- 28
3. Larissa Nysch, Stony Brook -- 19

Goals

1. Amelia Pereira, Hartford -- 13
2. Shayla Bergeron, Albany -- 11
3. Madison Clemens, Boston U. -- 8

Assists

1. Amelia Pereira, Hartford -- 7  
2. (T1) Depina Psomopoulos, Albany -- 7     
3. Shayla Bergeron, Albany -- 6                   
4. (T3) Tessa Devereaux, Stony Brook -- 6

Goals Against Average

1. Erin Quinlan, Hartford -- 0.69
2. Carrie Martin, Binghamton -- 0.72
3. Andrea Green, Boston U. -- 0.86

Save Percentage

1. Carrie Martin, Binghamton -- 0.837
2. Erin Quinlan, Hartford -- 0.833
3. Lauren Kadet, UMBC -- 0.808

Shutouts

1. Erin Quinlan, Hartford -- 9
2. Andrea Green, Boston U. -- 7
3. Ashley Castanio, Stony Brook -- 4

Pereria is just the third player in conference history to lead in points, goals and assists in the same season -- our triple crown, if you will. Lisa Kevorkian of Boston U. did it in 2010 and Kim LeMere of Hartford did in twice in 1991 and 1992.

Men's Soccer

Total Points

1. Pete Caringi III, UMBC -- 32
2. Leonardo Fernandes, Stony Brook -- 22
3. Jake Keegan, Binghamton -- 21

Goals

UMBC's Pete Caringi III

1. Pete Caringi III, UMBC -- 14                
2. Jake Keegan, Binghamton -- 9 
3. (T2) Javoni Simms, Hartford -- 9

Assists

1. Milo Kaper, UMBC -- 13
2. Anthony Ciccone, Boston U. -- 8
3. Mamadou Kansaye, UMBC -- 6

Goals Against Average

1. Conor Leland, Vermont -- 0.79
2. Stefan Manz, Stony Brook -- 0.81
3. Phil Saunders, UMBC -- 0.90

Save Percentage

1. Conor Leland, Vermont -- 0.846
2. Phil Saunders, UMBC -- 0.793
3. Stefan Manz, Stony Brook -- 0.792

Shutouts

1. Phil Saunders, UMBC -- 6
2. (T1) Conor Leland, Vermont -- 6
3. Nick Thomson, Boston U. -- 5
4. (T3) Travis Worra, New Hampshire -- 5

2012 marks the fourth time in the last five years that a UMBC player has led the conference in goals. Levi Houapeu and Andrew Bulls did it three times between them before Caringi III led the America East this season.

Field Hockey

Total Points

Fairfield's Felicitas Heinen

1. Felicitas Heinen, Fairfield -- 35
2. Hannah Richard, New Hampshire -- 32
3. Jessica Longstreth, Albany -- 28

Goals

1. Felicitas Heinen, Fairfield -- 15
2. Hannah Richard, New Hampshire -- 14
3. Corrine McConville, Albany -- 12

Assists

1. Jessica Longstreth, Albany -- 14
2. Laura Page, Albany -- 13
3. Casey Pohlmeyer -- 9

Goals Against Average

1. Kristi Troch, Albany -- 1.17
2. Jess Maroney, Boston U. -- 1.26
3. Valentina Cerda, Boston U. -- 1.55

Save Percentage

1. Jess Maroney, Boston U. -- 0.825
2. Stephanie Zygmunt, Vermont -- 0.758
3. Alicia Frisch, Maine -- 0.732

Shutouts

1. Kristi Troch, Albany -- 5
2. Maddy Sposito, Fairfield -- 3
3. Five tied with 1

Heinen becomes the first player from Fairfield to lead the America East in any offensive category since the Stags joined the league as an associate member in 2007.

Box Scores, Recaps and Highlights

Binghamton battled to a 2-2 tie against visiting Bucknell: Box/Recap/Highlights

Linked Up

The Baltimore Orioles have added UMBC alum Zach Clark to their 40-man roster.

More UMBC news, Pete Caringi III has been named the America East Fans' Choice Men's Soccer Player of the Year.

The Hartford baseball and softball teams teamed up with the Connecticut Miracle League to do their own version of Trick-or-Treat.

New Hampshire Athletics is hosting its annual Wildcat Food Drive.

Binghamton alum Scott Diamond was named the Minnesota Twins' Pitcher of the Year and Most Outstanding Rookie.

What's Next

No games tonight. America East play will pick up on Friday will volleyball regular season action and the first round of the field hockey championship.

Daily Word: Caringi on a Tear

Caringi III had a great finish to the regular season.

Back on September 26th on AExtra, we talked about a pair of America East men's soccer players that had a chance at 30 points on the season. We remarked about how this benchmark was somewhat of a milestone in recent years and how it was great that two players were on pace for a total that high in the same season. Only six players since 2003 have reached 30 points. We added a seventh to that group this year, but it wasn't who we thought it might be at the time.

Pete Caringi III went on an absolute tear over the last week, scoring eight goals in UMBC's last three home games and 10 goals in his last six games. This incredible stretch put him at 14 goals on the year, nine of which have come in conference play. Those nine goals in the America East are fifth-best in conference history and the highest conference only total since 2003. His 21 points in America East play are also fifth best all-time and the second most in a seven game conference season.

To put it quite simply, Caringi has been unstoppable of late. His hot streak also includes a record-tying performance as he scored four goals in a game against Boston U. Only one other Retriever in history has scored four goals in a game and only three other players in the country have accomplished that feat in 2012. Caringi is fifth in the NCAA this season in both total goals and total points. It's been some finish to the season for the junior and equally as impressive for his team, which finished the season on a five game winning streak to jump up to second place in the standings. His performance in the America East Championship should be great to watch.

Linked Up

Maine is looking ahead to its future with an institutional five-year plan.

The Maine Campus also has a preview of the men's basketball team for the upcoming season.

Jay Bilas of ESPN wrote about who will win the conference titles around the country, including the America East (Insider subscription required).

Five America East teams appear in this week's regional cross country rankings after the conference championship.

Vermont ranks 41st in Division I for Graduation Success Rate. The America East as a whole is seventh among the 31 Division I conferences.

What's Next?

Binghamton hosts Bucknell in men's soccer tonight at 7 p.m. Three other men's soccer games have been cancelled for tonight.

AEC Rewind

Sa'sha Kershaw helped lead the Seawolves
to this Sunday's championship game.

First and foremost, our thoughts are with everyone throughout the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions as Sandy continues its slow crawl. Some cancellations for games this week have already come in, but championship season rolls on here at the America East. Over the weekend we had an awesome cross country championship, some great semifinal action in women's soccer and we set the bracket in men's soccer and field hockey. So while we're all hanging out inside, catch up on the weekend that was in the America East.

Box Scores, Recaps and Highlights

Women's Soccer

Stony Brook found a way to get it done on the road against Maine. The Seawolves become the second No. 6 seed in the last three years to advance to the conference championship game: Box/Recap/Highlights

Amelia Pereira continued her great season, leading Hartford to a 2-0 victory over Vermont. The senior striker had a goal and an assist, as Hartford extended a streak of No. 1 seeds making the championship game that began in 1996: Box/Recap/Highlights

Stony Brook and Hartford will face off this coming Sunday at 3 p.m. for the America East title.

Cross Country

Stony Brook swept the men's and women's races on Saturday in New Hampshire. The women's title was the sixth straight for the Seawolves', while the men's title was a first. Stony Brook's Eric Speakman cruised to a victory for the men, while New Hampshire senior Keely Mcguire won the women's race.

Men's Soccer

Vermont claimed its first regular season title since 1989 with a 2-1 win over Stony Brook: Box/Recap/Highlights

UMBC locked up the No. 2 seed and a first round bye with a 3-0 win over Binghamton: Box/Recap/Highlights

Albany clinched a playoff bid with a 1-0 victory over Hartford: Box/Recap

An overtime goal sent New Hampshire past Boston U. and into the playoffs: Box/Recap

Visit Championship Central for everything you need to know about the upcoming tournament

Field Hockey

New Hampshire's 2-1 over Maine completed a perfect regular season in the America East: Box/Recap

Albany beat Vermont 1-0 to clinch the No. 2 seed in the upcoming tournament: Box/Recap/Highlights

Boston U. ran past Fairfield 6-2: Box/Recap/Highlights

Harvard 1, at Vermont 2
Boston U. 2, at Yale 1
Dartmouth 4, at New Hampshire 5

Visit Championship Central to see the bracket and to get ready for the upcoming tournament!

Volleyball

Stony Brook gave Albany its first conference loss, 3-1: Box/Recap

UMBC cruised past Providence 3-1: Box/Recap

Binghamton stayed hot, beating New Hampshire in five sets: Box/Recap

New Hampshire won a big match against UMBC, staying in second place: Box/Recap

Binghamton is now 6-0 all-time against Providence after its 3-2 victory on Sunday: Box/Recap

Stony Brook completed its perfect weekend with 3-1 win over Hartford: Box/Recap

Not much news today unrelated to Sandy, so we'll wrap up here. Make sure to check out the weekly releases to find out who the Performers of the Week were in men's soccer, field hockey and volleyball. Also keep an eye on Twitter for any schedule updates (@AmericaEast). Most importanly, stay safe, everyone.