CHAMPIONSHIP GAME RECAP
No. 7 seed St. Anselm defeats No. 4 seed Kutztown, 1-0 (OT)
Seventh-seeded St. Anselm found a goal in overtime against the run of play to win the school's first-ever national championship and snap a 12-year streak of consecutive PSAC field hockey NCAA Division II national titles. Kutztown held St. Anselm without a shot in regulation but the Hawks fired four in OT (three on target), including the game-winner from fifth-year player Maddie Davis. KU finished the game with six shots (five on target) and finished the game with six penalty corners compared to St. Anselm's five.
SEMIFINAL RECAPS
No. 4 seed Kutztown defeats No. 1 seed Shippensburg, 4-3
Kutztown came out strong scoring all four goals in the first half of the game. Erin Gonzalez scored two goals for the Golden Bears. The Raiders were able to answer back after scoring two goals in the second quarter thanks to Ashley Button and Lily Cantabene. In the beginning of the fourth quarter Nya Gilchrist helped bring the Raiders to a one goal game but the Golden Bears' defense held on strong from a barrage of penalty corners late in the game to secure the win.
No. 7 St. Anselm defeats No. 3 East Stroudsburg, 3-0
The Hawks of St. Anselm were able to hold East Stroudsburg scoreless to earn a 3-0 win, advancing them to the NCAA Championship Game against Kutztown. The Warriors had 10 shots while the Hawks only had five, and only three were on goal.
FIRST ROUND RECAPS
No. 1 seed Shippensburg defeats No. 8 seed Limestone, 3-2
Limestone put a bit of a scare into top-seeded Shippensburg, but the Raiders were able to overcome an early Limestone goal to advance to the semifinals, 3-2. Limestone took a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute but Ship answered right away, with Agus Garibaldi scoring her 17th goal of the season to make it 1-1. Another goal from Garibaldi on a penalty stroke made it 2-1 in the 27th minute, and the flurry of Raider goals continued just three minutes later, with Nya Gilchrist putting one home to make it 3-1. Limestone made things interesting with another goal in the 37th minute, but the game went scoreless the rest of the way as Shippensburg advanced to the next round.
No. 4 seed Kutztown defeats No. 5 seed Southern New Hampshire, 2-1 (2OT)
It took until overtime, but fourth-seeded Kutztown survived Southern New Hampshire, 2-1 to keep its season alive. The Golden Bears trailed 1-0 after just six minutes thanks to a SNHU goal, but equalized courtesy of Sierra Jester's first goal of the season in the 43rd minute. The game-winner followed from Juliana Donato from a penalty stroke in the second overtime period.
No. 3 seed East Stroudsburg defeats No. 6 seed Bloomsburg, 3-2 (2OT)
Another double overtime thriller took place in the All-PSAC quarterfinal between ESU and Bloomsburg. Bloomsburg's Kara Koch opened the scoring in the seventh minute, but East Stroudsburg fought back right after the second half whistle, as Emma Friend scored just 22 seconds later. Bloomsburg again took the lead in the 42nd minute from a Jessica Serafin goal, but East Stroudsburg again responded, with Kerry Kaufman making it 2-2. In the second overtime period, Minke Klijn scored the golden goal for the Warriors to eliminate Bloomsburg and send ESU to the NCAA Division II Field Hockey semifinals.
INDIANAPOLIS – Four Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference field hockey programs were selected to compete in the 2024 NCAA Division II Field Hockey Championship, the NCAA announced Monday afternoon. 2024 PSAC champion Shippensburg, East Stroudsburg, defending 2023 NCAA Division II National Champion Kutztown, and Bloomsburg will all begin play in the tournament on Nov. 16.
Shippensburg, the No. 1 seed, will play No. 8 Limestone while No. 4 Kutztown faces No. 5 Southern New Hampshire, with all those games in the top half of the bracket.
In the bottom half, a pair of PSAC squads face off – as No. 3 East Stroudsburg battles No. 6 Bloomsburg. No. 2 Assumption and No. 7 St. Anselm round out the bracket. The remaining four teams after the first round will meet at Saints Field in Gaffney, South Carolina on Nov. 22 and 24 for the semifinals and national championship game.