The Shippensburg University field hockey team, the No. 3 national seed, will face East Stroudsburg, the No. 2 national seed, in the 2017 NCAA Division II Field Hockey Semifinals at 10 a.m. Friday from Owsley B. Frazier Stadium on the campus of Bellarmine University.
 
The winner will advance to the NCAA Division II Field Hockey National Championship game at 11 a.m. Sunday and face either LIU Post or Millersville. That game will be hosted by the University of Louisville at Trager Stadium.
 
All three of the remaining games of the NCAA Field Hockey Championships will be streamed live online; SU's games are linked above for both video and statistics.
 
The matchup features the Top 2 teams from the Atlantic Region – three teams from the Atlantic and the East Region qualify for the NCAA Division II Field Hockey Championships. East Stroudsburg, by virtue of its No. 1 seed in the Atlantic Region, earned a bye into the semifinals.
 
While each region earns three national qualifiers, this is the first year the NCAA committee has been tasked with seeding the national qualifiers one through six. Under the previous "true regional" setup, each region would have a maximum of two teams in the national semifinals. This year, three of the four teams in the semifinals are from the Atlantic Region via the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).
 
SEMIFINALS
Shippensburg is in the national semifinals for the second consecutive year and the third time in the last five years. A victory on Friday would mark the fourth NCAA Championship game appearance in school history for the Raiders (2010, 2013, 2016).
 
The last time Shippensburg played in Louisville was in 2010, defeating Bloomsburg in the national semifinals before falling to Massachusetts-Lowell in the national championship game. Both of those games were played at Louisville's Trager Stadium, the site of Sunday's finals.
 
FACING THE WARRIORS
Shippensburg and East Stroudsburg have an outstanding rivalry that, most recently, has featured both teams ranking among the nation's best. The two teams have split this season's series, each winning on the other's home field (2-0 ESU on Sept. 6, 4-1 SU on Sept. 27).
 
In NCAA Tournament history, Shippensburg won at East Stroudsburg in last year's NCAA Quarterfinals, 2-1. Back in 2009, SU hosted the Warriors and posted a 3-0 victory in the NCAA Quarterfinals.
 
In the last four regular-season meetings between the two teams, both squads have been ranked either No. 1 or No. 2 in the country per the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division II National Poll.
 
SHIP AT-A-GLANCE:
 
Shippensburg is making its 13th NCAA Tournament appearance and is 9-10 overall in NCAA postseason play.
 
Shippensburg is making its ninth NCAA Semifinals appearance (2003, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2016)
 
Shippensburg leads NCAA Division II in penalty corners per game (13.42). SU matched its season high with 20 penalty corners in its national quarterfinal victory over Stonehill (achieved four times this season) and has recorded double-digit penalty corners in 15-of-19 matches.

Among national statistical rankings, Shippensburg ranks fifth in goals per game (3.68) and fourth in assists per game (2.26).
 
Senior forward Emily Barnard is the 2017 PSAC Athlete of the Year. Barnard has scored a career-high 20 goals this season, the most by a Raider since Kristina Taylor had 23 in 2011. Barnard ranks fifth nationally in goals per game (1.05).
 
Midfielder Jazmin Petrantonio is the 2017 PSAC Freshman of the Year. Petrantonio set the NCAA Division II single-game assists record this season by assisting on all six of Shippensburg's goals in a 6-1 win over Millersville on Sept. 12. This season, she has scored 10 goals and recorded 11 assists to rank second on the team in scoring. Petrantonio ranks second nationally in assists per game (0.69).
 
Senior midfielder Kylie Huffman ranks sixth nationally with six defensive saves this season.
 
Shippensburg has a starting lineup which includes six seniors, a redshirt-junior, two sophomores and two freshmen. Its forward rotation also includes two additional seniors, making for an experienced and veteran unit out on the field.
 
Shippensburg boasts three NFHCA All-Americans (GK Ally Mooney (2016 First Team, 2014 Second Team), F Emily Barnard (2015 Second Team), M Brooke Sheibley (2016 Second Team).
 
Shippensburg boasts seven All-PSAC performers among its 11 starters: F Emily Barnard (2017 First Team, 2016 Second Team, 2015 Second Team), D Mikayla Cheney (2017 Second Team), M Kylie Huffman (2016 Third Team, 2015 Second Team), GK Ally Mooney (2016 First Team, 2014 Second Team), M Jazmin Petrantonio (2017 First Team), M Brooke Sheibley (2017 Second Team, 2016 Second Team), F Mary Spisak (2017 Second Team).
 
Shippensburg is 15-0 when it scores at least one goal this season and 0-4 when it does not (all four losses in 2017 have been shutouts).
 
Head coach Tara Zollinger is in her first season directing the Raiders following the retirement of NFHCA Hall of Famer Bertie Landes (302-77-1 in 18 seasons at SHIP). Zollinger's squad has been ranked among the Top 3 teams in the country all season long per the NFHCA national poll.
 
RECENT HISTORY (SHIP vs. ESU)
9/27/17: at #2 SHIP 4, #1 ESU 1
9/6/17: at #2 ESU 2, #1 SHIP 0
11/12/16: #1 SHIP 2, at #3 ESU 1
10/22/16: at #2 ESU 2, #1 SHIP 1 (OT2)
9/17/16: #1 ESU 1, at #2 SHIP 0 (OT1)
10/21/15: at #5 SHIP 1, #1 ESU 0
11/5/14: #3 SHIP 1, at #7 ESU 0
9/13/14: at #2 SHIP 2, #8 ESU 1