On Saturday, November 4, Field Hockey took on DeSales University in the MAC Freedom Championship Game, where they secured a 1-0 victory and were declared conference champions.
The Ducks, seeded first, were 16-2 in their season on Saturday, but upped their win streak to 14 games in a row, to become 17-2, and 9-0 in their MAC games. During the championship, 17 shots were made with six being on goal. Yet, it was a shot just one minute into the first quarter that would win the Ducks the title. First-year midfielder and forward Sophia Cozza, assisted by graduate Lynda Farinella, scored the sole goal of the game, and her seventh goal of the season. Sophomore goalie Lily Wierzbicki made seven saves during the game, and following their win, was named the MAC Freedom Tournament MVP.
The Ducks’ battle against DeSales was the second game of the MAC Freedom Championship, with the first being against No. 4 Arcadia University on Wednesday, November 1 in the semifinals. Despite the team taking 29 shots, and 10 being on goal, it was only in overtime that the first and final point of the game was secured. First-year Molly DiCampli, assisted by Cozza, took the winning shot 65 minutes into the game and secured their place in the MAC Freedom Finals.
On Sunday, November 5, it was announced that the Ducks would be taking on No. 13 seeded Cortland on Wednesday, November 8, as their first opponent in the NCAA DIII Field Hockey Tournament.
On Wednesday, November 8, the Ducks traveled to Cortland, NY., where they were defeated 3-1 by SUNY Cortland in the first round of the NCAA DIII tournament. The team had six shots, with two landing on goal, but in the end it was graduate Lynda Farinella who scored the lone point of the game just under seven minutes into the game. Assisted by first-year Sophia Cozza, Farinella’s goal was her 14th of the season, Cozza’s assist being her ninth, both team leading statistics. Further, sophomore goalie Lili Wierzbicki made a career high of 12 saves during the game.
The Ducks finished the MAC Freedom Conference 7-0, and the season 17-3, with a program record 14 win streak.
