FARMVILLE, Va. - Longwood looks to rebound in Mid-American Conference action Thursday as the Lancers host Missouri State at 1 p.m. The contest marks the first-ever MAC home game for the blue and white.

Longwood (2-4,0-2) will look to bounce back after a pair of tough losses to Miami (OH) and Ohio on Saturday and Sunday. Missouri State (2-3,0-0) visits Farmville for the first time after claiming its first two wins of the season over UC Davis and Saint Louis.

The Lancers know this is a crucial game. In such a competitive conference, winning home games is often the difference between making a postseason run and ending the season early.

"For us, winning our home MAC games is crucial to our potential success in the conference," echoed head coach Iain Byers. "We're going to make sure that we are first to every ball and implant our style of play on the game.'

In honor of Longwood's first home game inside the MAC, the Lancers and McDonald's are teaming up to offer a special deal of $1 Big Macs on Thursday from 11 a.m.- 3 p.m.

Scouting the Bears

Longwood and Missouri State are meeting for the second time in field hockey. The only previous meeting came in 1990, Missouri State defeated Longwood 2-1.

The Bears visit Farmville after picking up their first two wins of the season. Junior Holly Scherer leads the way for the Bears having scored three goals, all of which came in the victory over UC Davis. Junior Charlie Redhead adds an additional two goals while freshman Daelynn DeMello paces the Bears with three assists.

"They play an aggressive counter attacking system that is reliant on the speed and technical ability of some key players," Byers said. "Their style of play is intense, creating a high level of pressure on their opponent's goal. This, however, leaves them somewhat susceptible to breakaway attacks and will, in our opinion, lead to quite a hectic game on Thursday. Expect a lot of circle penetrations and some exciting end to end hockey. We're going to be prepared for a physical encounter, somewhat similar to our last home game against VCU."

In goal for Missouri State is sophomore Megan Drew. In her first season as the starting keeper for the Bears, Drew has stopped 21 of 34 shots she has faced. Her save percentage of .618 is sixth in the conference, but Drew only allows 2.54 goals per game, third-best in the MAC.

Missouri State finished 2013 1-4 in the MAC, missing out on the conference championships. The Bears are celebrating their inaugural season in Betty and Bobby Allison North Stadium.

An Intertwined Past

Longwood and Missouri State have faced one another just once back in 1990, but that doesn't mean the two schools are not connected. The Lancers and Bears share a long and winding history through the years, bringing the two together in MAC play Thursday afternoon.

From 1998-2004 Missouri State was a member of the Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference (NorPac). Following the 2004 season, Missouri State accepted a bid from the Mid-American Conference, leaving the NorPac immediately. That opened the door for then Longwood College, a transitional D-I school, to join the budding conference. Longwood spent the next 9 years as NorPac members, completing the transition to D-I status in 2007. As fate would have it, Longwood found its way to the MAC this summer and now, the Lancers finally meet Missouri State, the team that started it all.