The California field hockey team will close out a three-game homestand when it hosts visiting Ohio University at Underhill Field on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. PT.  
 
Cal owns a 4-3 series lead over Ohio with the Bobcats taking a 3-1 win in the most recent matchup at Ohio on Aug. 28, 2022. The Bears' last win against Ohio came in a 3-0 victory at Cal on Sep. 6, 2014.
 
Last Time Out
Cal split a pair of home games last week. The Bears fell to then-No. 6 Harvard 2-1 in overtime, playing the extra session without leading scorer Liz Klompmaker who got hurt late in the fourth period. Cal then rebounded with a 3-0 shutout win over Ball State when the Bears allowed just one shot all game and freshman Agustina Daud scored her first career goal.
 
2025 Trends

• Klompmaker has registered at least one goal in three straight games, including a career-high three at Delaware.

 

• Seven different Bears have registered at least one assist on Cal's 11 goals this season.

 

• Cal has had 20+ shots in two games already after having  just three such games last season and in four in 2023.

 
2024 Recap
Cal finished its inaugural season in the ACC with an overall record of 7-10 after a 6-1 start. The Golden Bears were featured in the Penn Monto/NFHCA DI National Coaches Poll three times throughout the season, marking their first appearance in the rankings since 2018.
 
The Bears advanced to the ACC Championship for the first time in program history and fell 5-0 in the first round to North Carolina, which captured the 2024 ACC Championship. Donna Fong Director of Field Hockey Shellie Onstead secured her 300th career win in a 2-1 regular-season victory against Louisville, which also gave the program its first-ever ACC win.
 
The Bears were led by ACC Freshman of the Year Liz Klompmaker, who led the team in points (31), goals (15) and game-winning goals (5). Klompmaker registered at least two goals in six games during the 2024 campaign. Canisha van Duyn made an immediate impact in her lone season at Cal, leading the Bears in assists (11) and defensive saves (7) while ranking second on the team in points (17). Both Klompmaker and van Duyn were named to the NFHCA All-Region and All-ACC Teams.
 
300 Wins
Onstead is now one of just eight active head coaches in the country to have reached the 300-win club. She is also one of just 23 all-time head coaches to reach the milestone.
 
Fresh Faces
The Golden Bears welcome 11 new players to this year's roster, which includes six freshmen and five transfers. Highlighting this year's newcomers are freshman Emma Becker and graduate transfer Lieve Schalk. Becker was a standout for her club team, the Dusseldorfer Hockey Club, while Schalk was a full-time starter at Iowa and helped the Hawkeyes earn three-straight NCAA Tournament bids from 2021-23.
 
Returning Experience
Cal has plenty of experience coming back to the team as it returns six full-time starters from last season, highlighted by Klompmaker, who was named to the Preseason All-ACC Team. Also expected to make an impact is goalkeeper Delphine Ayitey-Hammond, who missed last year due to injury but helped the Suribton Hockey Club win the 2024 EuroHockey Club Championship prior to coming to Cal.
 
About Ohio
Ohio is 1-3 and will be playing its third game in four days, having defeated UC Davis on Thursday and scheduled to take on Stanford on Friday in back-to-back games. The Bobcats feature two players in seniors Anouk Plaehn and Sasha Dikotla who were named to the 2025 NHFCA Watchlist.
 
STAY POSTED
For coverage of Cal field hockey, please follow the Bears on X/Twitter (@CalFieldHockey), Instagram (@CalFieldHockey) and Facebook (/CalFH/).