Nov. 7, 2003
2003 CAA FIELD HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Saturday, November 8
Semifinals
Noon - #1 Old Dominion vs. #4 Virginia Commonwealth
2:30 p.m. - #2 William & Mary vs. #3 Delaware
Sunday, November 9
Championship
1:00 p.m.
* ADMISSION TO ALL GAMES IS FREE. CHAMPIONSHIP GAME PROGRAMS AVAILABLE AT FOREMAN FIELD FOR $1.00
#1 OLD DOMINION
Roster
Schedule & Results
Stats
OUTLOOK:
The eighth-ranked Lady Monarchs come into the tournament riding high after snapping a five-game losing streak with a 8-2 thrashing of Princeton to end the regular season. Although the Lady Monarchs have lost nine games this season, the most since 1995, eight of the nine setbacks to teams ranked at least 11th or higher in this week's STX/NFHCA Division I Poll. Old Dominion has played one of the toughest schedules in the country with nine of their opponents ranks and squaring off against four of the country's top five teams. The Lady Monarchs have won seven consecutive CAA Field Hockey Championships and 12 of the 13 championships ever contested. The only other team to win a CAA field hockey title was James Madison in 1995. Old Dominion defeated William & Mary 2-0 in the 2002 title game. The Lady Monarchs are led by All-American Angie Loy, who leads the conference in scoring at 2.65 points per game. Loy also leads the league with 18 goals and 17 assists. Loy ranks second in the nation in total points with 53. The senior ranks sixth in career goals at Old Dominion (71) and ninth in assists (52). Sophomore midfielder Chilly Banuelos is back from a knee injury, and 2002 All-CAA first-teamer Melissa Leonetti anchors the defense. Senior goalkeeper Tina Walker had a 2.29 goals against average and a .710 save percentage for the Lady Monarchs in goal this season. Old Dominion is looking to avenge its earlier loss to Virginia Commonwealth in the semifinals. The Rams handed Old Dominion its first CAA loss in over seven years, snapping the Lady Monarchs 58 game CAA win streak, with a 5-4 win in Richmond. Against the other two CAA Tournament participants, Old Dominion shutout William & Mary 3-0 and handed Delaware a 6-5 loss in overtime. Both games were played at Foreman Field.
#2 WILLIAM & MARY
Roster
Schedule & Results
Stats
OUTLOOK:
The Tribe has been ranked at #14 for three consecutive weeks and has won nine of their last 11 games dating back to Sept. 26. The two losses came to #2 Duke (3-2) on Oct. 19, and #4 North Carolina (1-0) on Sunday. The Tribe owns non-conference victories over Louisville, Stanford, Virginia and Princeton this season. William & Mary's 6-1 conference record matched its best-ever regular season finish, which was attained last season. Seniors Jordan Steele and Kelly McQuade lead the Tribe's offensive attack, with each player ranking amongst the league's top-10 scorers. Steele and McQuade ended the regular season tied for third in the conference with 12 goals on the season, and Steele ranked fourth in individual scoring with 1.71 points per game, while McQuade was just behind in fifth at 1.65 points per game. McQuade scored the game-winning goal in William & Mary's 3-2 win over Princeton on Friday. Senior goalkeeper Stacey Gaenzle led the conference with a 1.35 goals against average during the regular season. Sophomore Anna Davis led the team with three defensive saves.
#3 DELAWARE
Roster
Schedule & Results
Stats
OUTLOOK:
The Blue Hens entered the STX/NFHCA rankings at #15 on Sept. 22, and have been ranked in the top 20 ever since. Delaware is 9-6 against CAA opponents in its two seasons in the league, including last season's 4-1 semifinal loss to William & Mary. The Blue Hens closed out the regular season with three consecutive 2-0 shutouts against conference opponents Hofstra, Drexel and Towson. Junior Erica LaBar has scored Delaware's last four goals, scoring the only Blue Hen goals against Drexel and Towson. LaBar tied for second place in the conference this season in points per game at 1.74, ranked second in assists with 11 and was fourth in goals with 11. Classmate Jesse Balmer tied for third in the league with 12 goals in the regular season and ranked seventh in individual scoring averaging 1.50 points per game. Freshman goalkeeper Megan Allen was third in the league with a 1.74 goals against average and recorded four shutouts on the season.
#4 VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH
Roster
Schedule & Results
Stats
OUTLOOK:
The Rams are making their first appearance in the CAA Tournament since 2001, when they were eliminated by ODU in the semifinals. VCU is 2-11 all-time in CAA Tournament games. The Rams' 4-3 conference mark was their best showing in CAA play since going 4-2 in 1992. The Rams' 10 wins were most since VCU went 11-9 in 1993, which was also the last year VCU posted a winning record. Senior Jennifer Howard and junior Casey Smith each scored two goals in the Rams' win over Old Dominion on Oct. 26. Howard was the CAA's second-leading goal scorer with 15 tallies on the year. Howard finished the regular season tied for second in individual scoring, averaging 1.74 points per game. Smith was the Rams' second-leading scorer with six goals and five assists for 17 points. Freshman Karlijn Jansen tallied a CAA single-game season-high nine points in the Rams' 9-1 win over St. Francis (Pa.) on Oct. 17. Senior goalkeeper Abby Stiles had the league's fourth-best goals against average during the regular season at 1.87, and had three shutouts to her credit.