International Talent coming to Storrs, CT to play field hockey is nothing new...as Lauren Henderson in the mid 2000's was carving up the Big East and the Nation becoming UConn's All Time Leading Scorer...When she was a senior, a freshman from Holland was about to carry the torch and then some from 2004-07. Lizzy Peijs was just another in the long line of talent from abroad that would keep the Huskies atop the league...
Nancy Stevens Teams hadn't been to a Final Four since 1999, and even when the Huskies won the Big East, getting past the first weekend of the NCAA's was difficult, losing in the quarterfinals in 2000 and again in 2003. The 2004 season again saw the Huskies flourish in the conference, going 20-2...While Henderson scored 31 goals, Peijs was making an early impact with 11 goals and 9 assists. Her first goal and multi-point game in a victory over Quinnipiac..she'd register multiple point games 6 times in her first year..good enough for 2nd Team All Big East and a NFHCA All Region Team Selections. After winning both the Big East Regular Season and Tournament Titles, the Huskies suffered a 2-1 loss to Northeastern..the only team UConn lost to all year....Twice.
In 2005, the Huskies would go 17-6 and win the Big East Tournament with Peijs earning Tourney MOP Honors. Lizzy would register 5 game winning goals of the 10 she scored with 11 assists...plus Team Highs in shots and shots on goal. The game winners included an OT winner against Maine and later UMass...In the NCAA Tournament's first round, Peijs assisted on a pair and then scored the OT winner against Boston University to get the Huskies to the Quarters...losing to Duke 3-2 in OT. Again Peijs earning 2nd Team All Big East and NFHCA All Region Honors...the next step would take UConn to the Final Four in 2006.
Lizzy would miss the first two games of the season...but she would start her assault on becoming an All American in game three...23 goals and 15 assists, bot leading the team with 7 game winners. multi goal games against Yale, Sacred Heart and Louisville. Multi Point Games against UMass and Quinnipiac...And her first career hat trick at BU..The Huskies would go 21-4 and again win the Big East Tournament...beating Louisville (3 assists) and Providence, where she had 2 assists and scored teh game winner...UConn would win a pair of games at Princeton by 3-0 scores against BU and the host Tigers to earn UConn's first Final Four in seven years where Peijs scored twice. But in Winston Salem, NC, Maryland would beat UConn on Penalty Strokes, ending the Huskies season...61 points on 101 shots...64 on goal earned Lizzy Peijs 1st Team All Big East, and both NFHCA All Region and 1st Team All American Honors.
Now a Senior, Peijs with the help of juniors Jennifer Kleinhans and Megan Wheeler, Lizzy would again produce in 2007. 16 goals and 11 assists and a team high 43 points...as the Huskies would again win the Big East Tournament with shutout wins against Syracuse and Providence. Pejis was named the Conference Offensive Player of the Year. The Huskies went 10-1 against ranked opponents. After beating UMass and BU,where Pejis would score one of the goals against the Terriers, the Huskies earned a second straight trip to the Final Four. But Top Ranked North Carolina proved too much, winning 4-2 to again deny the Huskies a chance to win a National Championship. In addition to the Big East Honors, Lizzy Peijs was named to her 4th All Region Team and for the second straight year, a 1st Team All American....
In her four years as a Husky, Lizzy Peijs left as the program's all time assist leader with 46 (now 4th)...She's currently 7th all time in goals with 60 and 4th in points with 166. Upon her graduation from UConn, Lizzy returned to her native Holland to her her Legal Degree from the University of Leiden, followed by a Masters in Banking Compliance at Fordham...Today she's the Authorized House Counsel for Performance Equity Management LLC in Greenwich...
Using UConn and field hockey to earn a degree, Lizzy Peijs came to the states and helped Husky Field Hockey become a regular in the National Semi-Finals and Finals....And in the process, become a UConn Legend