The No. 2-seeded Shippensburg University field hockey team will face No. 3 seed Kutztown in the NCAA Division II Semifinals at 5 p.m. Friday at Grappone Stadium on the campus of Saint Anselm College.
 
The Raiders (15-4) are back in the NCAA Final Four for the third straight season, and in their way is a familiar opponent. This is the third meeting between SU and the Golden Bears (17-3) this season.
 
"The team's mindset is focused and united as we head into Friday's game," said head coach Tara Zollinger. "Continuous improvement to our play is always at the forefront and the student athletes have taken extra time this week to refine their individual skills and collectively make the adjustments to our team play needed to play better hockey."
 
Shippensburg won the first meeting between the two sides, a 3-2 win at KU's Andre Reed Stadium late in the season. They later topped the Golden Bears in the semifinals of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament, 1-0 in overtime. Junior Tess Jedeloo scored the game-winner in both contests.
 
"We will prepare by watching both of those games to see what worked against them and what didn't," Coach Zollinger noted. "Kutztown is a great opponent and a conference rival for us. We are going to have to play great hockey, compete with heart and toughness in order to be successful."
 
The Raiders boast one of NCAA Division II's most talented attacks, entering Friday's contest fourth in the classification in goals per game (3.37). Jedeloo ranks second in Division II in points scored (47) and third in goals (19). Sophomore Agus Garibaldi is second in DII in assists (12) and also ranks among the DII leaders in goals scored (13).
 
Kutztown, meanwhile, leads NCAA Division II in shutouts by a significant margin. The Golden Bears have held their opposition without a goal 14 times, five more than any other school in the nation.
 
Kutztown downed No. 6 seed Pace 2-1 in an NCAA Division II First Round matchup Saturday evening.
 
No. 1 seed East Stroudsburg (17-2) will play No. 5 Assumption in the other semifinal Friday at 2 p.m. The winner of both semifinals will advance to the NCAA Championship game, which will be contested Sunday at 1 p.m.
 
All games will air on NCAA.com.
 
NCAA Tournament Notes:
* Shippensburg is in the NCAA Tournament for the 16th time in school history (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023).
* Shippensburg is 17-11 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and has won five NCAA Division II national titles (2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021).
* The Raiders are making their 13th NCAA Semifinals appearance (2003, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023) and have a 7-5 all-time record in the NCAA Semifinals.
* Shippensburg has won six total national championships – the team's first national championship in school history came in 1979, when the Raiders claimed the AIAW Division III national championship to complete a 16-2-3 season that included a school-record 14 shutouts.
* Last year's 1-0 loss to East Stroudsburg in the NCAA Championship Game ended a streak of 11 consecutive NCAA Tournament game victories for the Raiders that dated back to 2016.