The William Smith College field hockey team will enter Liberty League play as the 11th-ranked team in the country according to the Penn Monto/NFHCA Division III Coaches Poll released this afternoon. The Herons, who are 5-2 this season, will travel to Troy, N.Y. to take on Rensselaer on Saturday at 2 p.m.
 
William Smith is led offensively by junior Hannah Wood and senior Alessandra Patrizio. Wood has notched a Liberty League leading nine goals and 20 points, while Patrizio is second in the conference with eight goals and 19 points. Junior Maura Moran, who earned a spot on this week's Liberty League honor roll following an eight point week, is third on the team and in the conference with 13 points. Her team-leading five assists are second most in the Liberty League to date. The Herons offensive unit is ranked 13th in the nation in goals per game (4.14), assists per game (2.71), points per game (11.0), and scoring margin (2.61). Individually, Wood is 20th in the nation in goals per game (1.29) and 26th in points per game (2.86). Senior Biz Chirco has seen a majority of the minutes in goal for William Smith and owns a 1.28 goals against average and a .724 save percentage.
 
The Engineers enter conference play with a 4-2 record. On Sunday, Rensselaer knocked off then No. 7 Montclair State 1-0 in overtime. The Engineers are led offensively by reigning Liberty League Offensive Performer of the Week Mikaela DiBello's eight points (2g, 4a). Megan Jones also has two goals, four assists, and eight points. Nessa Costa has a team-high three goals. Rachel Kaufman has started all but one game in goal for Rensselaer. She is only allowing one goal a game and has a save percentage of .828. Kaufman is 25th in the nation in goals against average (1.00 GAA).
 
Saturday's game will be the 28th meeting between the Engineers and the Herons. William Smith holds a 23-4 edge in the series, including a 9-3 record in Troy. Rensselaer's last win in the series came in 2010 on its home turf.
 
Entering the first weekend of league play, two other teams join the Herons in the NFHCA poll. Rochester (7-0) is 12th, one point behind the Herons, and Skdimore (4-1) is 13th.