Wednesday, Nov 2, 2011
For the third consecutive season, Rider University will be the site of the Northeast Conference Field Hockey Championship Tournament, held on the Ben Cohen Field November 4-5.
by Brian Solomon
For the third consecutive season, Rider University will be the site of the Northeast Conference Field Hockey Championship Tournament, held on the Ben Cohen Field November 4-5.
Rider (17-1, 7-0 NEC) earned the right to host the tournament by winning its sixth NEC regular season title. “We are extremely proud of this year's team," said Rider head coach Lori Hussong. "They have overcome a lot with injuries and have really come together as a team. We mixed in a lot of younger players early on and it took a little time to mesh all of that together and our chemistry is pretty good right now. They have worked hard to achieve this level of success."
The semifinals on Friday will feature the second seed, Monmouth (14-5, 6-1 NEC), against the third seed, Quinnipiac (11-7, 5-2 NEC), at 11:00 am. Top-seeded Rider will play the fourth seed, Saint Francis-PA (5-14, 3-4 NEC) at 1:30. The NEC Title Game is scheduled for noon on Saturday. Rider has played in nine of the last 11 NEC Title Games, winning four.
Rider enters the tournament on a 13-game winning streak, which ties the team record.
Rider’s semifinal foe, Saint Francis, just lost to the Broncs 2-0 on October 30. That was Rider’s 23rd consecutive NEC regular season victory.
“Having a tough game right before the playoffs I think is a good thing," said Hussong. "We can't expect to show up at the field and assume we are going to walk away with a win. We've experienced the good parts and the bad parts of the playoffs and we have to go into the game focused and ready and I think we will be."
The Broncs have been led by the two-time NEC Player of the Year, senior Virginia Egusquiza (Getxo, Spain), who is expected to win that award for a third time this season. The Rider career leader for points and assists, Egusquiza was recently selected to compete in the prestigious National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division I Senior All-Star game.
"I'm glad we are home for the playoffs," said Egusquiza. "We are comfortable playing on our turf. We do need to come out with more concentration and have a better start to the game Friday. We need to play better to get the win in the playoffs."
Egusquiza currently leads the NEC in points and assists and is second in goals to her teammate and fellow Spaniard, sophomore Sandra Penas (Barcelona, Spain).
Penas enters the tournament with 20 goals, which ranks eighth in the nation.
Also leading the Rider offense, which ranks first in the nation in scoring average, goals per game, scoring margin and points per game, is senior Megan Pisani (Plainsboro/West Windsor Plainsboro-North) and junior Marlaine Schneider (Feasterville, Pa./Neshaminy).
Pisani recently recorded her 50th career goal, fifth most ever at Rider. Schneider ranks second in the nation in assists per game and is fourth in points per game.
At the other end of the field, Rider ranks second in the nation in shutouts and ninth in save percentage, led by senior goalie Rebecca Lotito (Oceanport/Shore Regional), who recently recorded her 30th career win. Lotito has eight shutouts this season and 15 in her Rider career. Last year she led the entire nation in goals against average and ranks third in Division I this year.
The winner of the NEC Tournament will play the winner of the Ivy League on Tuesday, November 8, for a berth in the NCAA Tournament. Princeton is favored to win the Ivy League.