LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Bellarmine field hockey faces an important road weekend as they open MAC play at Central Michigan and clash with Big Ten foe Michigan State.

The Knights' (0-6) matchup with CMU (1-5) is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Friday, while their game at Michigan State (3-1) starts at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday in East Lansing.

While Bellarmine came out of last weekend empty-handed against a pair of tough opponents, the Knights did show encouraging signs in their losses to James Madison and Indiana.  BU held JMU scoreless in the second half of Saturday's contest, and Head Coach Devanny Boisvert enjoyed Bellarmine's ability to push the ball forward early in the match.  Against the Hoosiers, the Knights took a quick 3-1 advantage in the second quarter, resulting in their highest scoring game of the season.

With two goals from Marit van der Bend and a goal from Amber Hofenk Jerembo against IU, those two are tied for a team-best three goals on the season.  Defensively, Grace Dukes has made four defensive saves already – three more than any Knights player had all last season.

Bellarmine will take some positive vibes into Friday's game, however, as they dominated Central Michigan at home last season.  The Knights claimed their first shut-out in the DI era, beating CMU 3-0 at Trager Stadium.  Anna Crump scored twice, while Hofenk Jerembo added the other goal.

This season, Central Michigan has gotten off to a slow start and lost five consecutive matches.  Since their 2-0 season-opening win over Saint Louis, the Chippewas have fallen to American, Ohio, Michigan, Bucknell, and Lock Haven.  Bellarmine lost 1-0 to Lock Haven early in the season, while CMU fell by a final score of 2-1.  Senior Alice O'Hagan leads Central Michigan with two goals and two assists this year.

The Spartans are off to an impressive start with wins over no. 21 American, Saint Louis, and UC-Davis.  Michigan State's only loss came on Sept. 4 at Stanford in a shoot-out.  MSU has had the last two weeks off and returns to the pitch Friday against no. 19 Rutgers.  Emma O'Neil and Ellie Rutherford have three goals each for the Spartans, while Georgia Davies has racked up a team-high five assists.

Friday's game at CMU can be viewed on Central Michigan's athletics page, while Sunday's game at Michigan State is available to watch on BTN+ (subscription required).

For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow us on Twitter (@BUKnights), Instagram (BUKnights), and Facebook (BUKnights).