The California field hockey team is set to play its first home games of the 2025 season at Underhill Field, facing No. 6 Harvard on Friday and Ball State on Sunday. This comes after the Bears opened their season with two road games, resulting in a split record: a loss at Monmouth and a win at Delaware.
California has a 1-3 all-time record against Harvard, last defeating them 3-2 in October 2010. The team has played Ball State only once before, losing in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in November 1992. A victory over Harvard would mark Cal’s first win against a ranked opponent since beating then-No. 5 Penn State in overtime on September 1, 2023.
In their recent game against Delaware, Cal played for 22 minutes with one fewer player but managed to secure a win with Liz Klompmaker scoring three goals—a career high for her—and five different players contributing assists.
Last season marked California’s debut as an Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) member. The team finished with an overall record of 7-10 after starting strong at 6-1 and appeared three times in the Penn Monto/NFHCA DI National Coaches Poll, their first ranking since 2018. The Bears reached the ACC Championship for the first time but lost to North Carolina in the opening round. Head coach Shellie Onstead achieved her 300th career win during a regular-season victory over Louisville, which was also Cal’s first-ever ACC matchup win.
“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.”
The Bears’ roster this year includes eleven new players—six freshmen and five transfers—such as Emma Becker from Dusseldorfer Hockey Club and graduate transfer Lieve Schalk from Iowa, who helped her previous team make three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances between 2021 and 2023.
Returning talent includes six full-time starters from last season, notably Liz Klompmaker, who led Cal in points (31), goals (15), and game-winning goals (5) last year and was named ACC Freshman of the Year. Goalkeeper Delphine Ayitey-Hammond is expected to contribute after missing last season due to injury; she previously helped Surbiton Hockey Club claim the EuroHockey Club Championship title.
Harvard will open its season against Cal following a successful previous campaign that ended with a trip to the NCAA quarterfinals and a final record of 16-4. Ball State enters Sunday’s match with a current record of 1-1 after finishing last year at 5-13.
For more updates on California field hockey, fans can follow @CalFieldHockey on X/Twitter or Instagram or visit Facebook at /CalFH/.
