Championship Central
Conshohocken, Pa. – No. 1 seed Connecticut and No. 3 seed Old Dominion advanced in the BIG EAST Field Hockey Championship presented by JEEP. The Huskies defeated No. 4 seed Temple, 4-0, in the first semifinal on Thursday, while the Monarchs moved on with a 2-1 victory over No. 2 seed Liberty. The championship is being held at The Proving Grounds hosted by Villanova.
The Huskies are making their 19th consecutive BIG EAST Championship game looking to win their ninth straight title. Old Dominion returns to the title game for the third time, as the Monarchs were runner-up in 2019 and 2013. The Huskies won both titles.
The BIG EAST championship game will start at Noon ET on Saturday. It will be carried on the BIG EAST Digital Network.
No. 1 Connecticut 4, No. 4 Temple 0
Box Score |
Video Highlights
BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year Sophie Hamilton posted her sixth multi-goal effort this season as the seventh ranked Huskies defeated Temple, 4-0. With the win, the Huskies improved to 10-1 overall this season. Although the Huskies had not played a game since defeating Villanova on April 4, Hamilton picked up right where she left off by getting UConn on the board just 5:04 into the contest. Hamilton took a feed from league Co-Freshman of the Year, Claire van den Noort, and found the back of the net to give the Huskies a lead it would not relinquish. UConn sophomore Claire Jandewerth gave the Huskies some insurance when she converted on a penalty stroke, sneaking the ball into lower righthand corner and past a diving Cristina Carotenuto. Hamilton's second goal of the game, and her 17th this season, came at the 42:10 mark when she found the back of the net off a feed from Lindsay Dickinson. Hamilton would then add an assist off of van den Noort's goal just over 12-minutes later. The Huskies put forth another dominant effort, outshooting Temple by a 12-4 count and holding a 9-0 advantage in penalty corners. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Cheyenne Sprecher nailed down her ninth shutout in 11 games this season and stopped two shots by the Owls.
No. 3 Old Dominion 2, No. 2 Liberty 1
Box Score |
Video Highlights
Old Dominion held off a late charge from Liberty to win 2-1. The Monarchs, ranked 16th nationally, improved to 9-4. BIG EAST Co-Freshman of the Year Marlon de Bruijne showcased her scoring prowess yet again, netting both goals of the game for ODU. The native of Den Bosch, Netherlands, now has 15 this season – the most by a Monarch since First Team All-American and CAA Player of the Year Emma Batten scored 27 in 2011. Old Dominion jumped ahead in the 18th minute. De Bruijne finished off a penalty corner routine by depositing the ball in the lower right corner of the Liberty goal. Jessica Gabriel and Alice Demars provided assists for the opening goal. The Lady Flames (13-3), the No. 2 seed in the tournament, threatened to tie the score some seven minutes later when Jodie Conolly's shot beat Cam MacGillivray but struck the far post. Just over a minute later, MacGillivray came up with a big save to keep LU off the board. With the first half close to expiring, the third-seeded Monarchs scored what would be the match-winning goal. Rina Tsioles progressed the ball down the left flank before passing into the heart of the Liberty circle. The ball found Jolene Ulichney, who then shoveled it across to de Bruijne. With Flames goalkeeper Azul Iritxity Irigoyen closing down hard, de Bruijne kept her nerve and finished the opportunity with just 17 seconds remaining in the first half. The Monarchs kept Liberty at bay in the third quarter, thanks to a MacGillivray stop following a penalty corner, but the Flames finally broke through early in the fourth quarter when Jill Bolton set up Charlotte Vaanhold for her 10th of the season. From there, LU had one more solid chance to tie the game with a penalty corner in the 53rd minute. The Flames got off a shot, but MacGillivray stepped up with her fifth save of the day.
BIG EAST Field Hockey Championship Presented by Jeep
All games will be broadcast on the BIG EAST Digital Network Presented by SoFi
Semifinals – Thursday, April 22
No. 1 UConn 4, No. 4 Temple 0
No. 3 Old Dominion 2, No. 2 Liberty 1
Finals – Saturday, April 24
No. 1 UConn vs. No. 3 Old Dominion, Noon
All Times are Eastern.