Field Hockey | 11/30/2018 8:35:00 PM
The Shippensburg University field hockey team will compete for the 2018 NCAA Division II National Championship on Saturday in Pittsburgh, with the Raiders set to face Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) rival East Stroudsburg at 1 p.m. from Rooney Athletic Field on the campus of Duquesne University.
Saturday marks the fourth meeting of the season between Shippensburg (18-4) and East Stroudsburg (16-4). The Warriors won both regular-season matchups by shutout (4-0 on Sept. 19, 3-0 on Oct. 3) – marking the only times that SU has been held scoreless this year. The Raiders won the third meeting of the season with a 3-0 shutout in the PSAC Semifinals.
It is the first time that two PSAC teams will meet in the NCAA Division II Championship game since 1998.
It is also the third straight season that the two teams are meeting in the NCAA Tournament. Last year, in the national semifinals, Shippensburg got first-half goals by
Jazmin Petrantonio and
Mary Spisak to key a 2-1 victory. Two years ago, Shippensburg notched a 2-1 victory in the national quarterfinals at ESU – which resulted in the 300th career win for coach Bertie Landes.
Shippensburg enters Saturday having won eight consecutive games in the NCAA Division II Field Hockey Tournament dating back to 2016. The Raiders are 13-10 all-time in the national tournament. SU is seeking to become the first team to win three consecutive NCAA Division II titles since Bloomsburg won four-in-a-row from 2006-09.
Overall, Shippensburg has won three NCAA Division II Field Hockey Championships (2013, 2016, 2017) and the 1979 AIAW Division III Field Hockey Championship.
With four goals in Thursday's NCAA Semifinals, Petrantonio became the all-time leading goal scorer in the NCAA Division II Tournament with nine tallies through five career matches.
Saturday marks the ninth career postseason meeting between Shippensburg and East Stroudsburg. The Warriors are seeking their second NCAA Division II National Championship to accompany the 2015 crown.
