Trinity Field Hockey Returns To NCAA Tourney For First Time Since 1998
Bantams Host Neumann Wednesday in First Round Game
Hartford, Conn., Nov. 10, 2008 - The Trinity College field hockey team, which has a record of 12-4 and reached the semifinals of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Championship Tournament for the first time last weekend, was awarded an at-large bid to the 2008 NCAA Division IIII Field Hockey Championship Tournament. The Bantams will host the Neumann College Knights in the opening round of the NCAA Tourney on Wednesday, November 12 at 2 p.m. Tickets for the game will be $5 for adults and $3 for student's with ID and seniors. The game will also be webcast live at www.teamline.cc (team code 2055).
The winner of Wednesday's game will play against Rowan University at Messiah College in the second round on Saturday, November 15, followed by a possible quarterfinal game on Sunday, November 16 at Messiah. Neumann, which started the year with six losses, finished with an 11-10 record and defeated Cabrini, 3-0, on Saturday to earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament out of the Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC). Trinity is making its fifth trip in a row to the NCAA Tournament and also participated in 1993, 1996, 1997, and 1998. The Bantams advanced to the NCAA Final Four in 1993 and 1998.
Trinity, coached by Anne Parmenter (8th Season), joins 2008 league champion Bowdoin, Middlebury, and Tufts as representatives from the NESCAC to make the tournament field. Trinity won, 1-0, at Amherst in the NESCAC Quarterfinals on Nov. 2, before losing by the same score in overtime at then-top-ranked and undefeated Tufts in the league semis on Saturday. Trinity has a 3-4 record against the 24-team tournament field, having won at Keene State, 5-1, and against Springfield, 3-0, lost at Middlebury, 3-2, split with Amherst (1-0 regular-season loss in overtime), and lost twice in overtime against Tufts by 1-0 scores. Trinity and Neumann did not share a common opponent this year. The Bantams were ranked No. 9 in the nation in last week's National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division III Poll.
In the NESCAC Semifinal loss at Tufts, the Bantams defense successfully defended 35 Jumbo penalty corners while holding the Jumbos scoreless for 79 minutes. Bantam freshman GK Gina DiNallo (West Hartford, Conn.) had six of her eight total saves in the second half when the Jumbos were awarded 24 penalty corners. In the 7-on-7 overtime, Trinity used its speed to produce opportunities and saw its best scoring opportunity by sophomore Robyn Williams (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe) barely saved by the Tufts goalie.
Trinity ranks second in the NESCAC statistically on defense with 0.75 goals allowed per game (12, 3rd in nation). Trinity's two goalkeepers, sophomore Payden Sra (Pewaukee, Wisc.) and DiNallo, rank 1-2 in the league in save percentage and 1st and fifth, respectively, in goals against average. Sra saw the majority of the playing time early in the season, while DiNallo has taken over as the starter over the latter half of the schedule. Sra has 21 saves (.875 save percentage) and three goals allowed (0.50 GAA) in 421 minutes, while DiNallo boasts 62 saves (.873 save percentage, 2nd in nation) and nine goals allowed (0.87 GAA, 8th in nation) in 727 minutes in the cage. DiNallo has four shutouts, Sra has two, and the pair has combined for two more (eight team shutouts ranks 6th in nation). Senior co-captain Emily Skipp (Middlebury, Conn.) and senior Megan Hannigan (Rye, N.Y.) have anchored the defense in front of both goalies, holding opponents to less than 10 shots per game, and Hannigan leads the conference in defensive saves with six.
Senior co-captain forward Karli Del Rossi (Mantua, N.J.) is fourth the league lead with 0.87 goals per game (13) to go with two assists for 1.75 ppg (28, 6th in NESCAC). Sophomore forward Christina Bradley (Wellesley, Mass.) and Williams rank fourth and sixth, respectively, in the conference in assists with 0.53 per game (8) and 0.47 per game (7), while Bradley also has eight goals for 24 points and Williams also adds 0.67 goals per game (10, 10th in NESCAC) for 1.80 ppg (27, 8th in NESCAC). Junior F/M Carrie Wolcott (Hamilton, Mass.) has five goals and five assists for 15 points and senior M/D Christine Mwatarura (Helensvale, Zimbabwe) has three goals and two assists for eight points.
Neumann, coached by Sarah Kurpel (3rd Season), has won six straight games including two shutouts last week to take the CSAC Tournament crown. Senior forward Rachel DiCicco (South Dennis, N.J.) leads the Knights in scoring with 20 goals and 13 assists for 43 points, while junior forward Lauren Hood (Norristown, Pa.) adds nine goals and 10 assists for 28 points. Freshman goalie Jordan Haviland (Aurora, Colo.) has 103 saves and 45 goals against for a .696 save percentage and a 2.78 GAA. The Knights lost their lone regular season game against an opponent that made the NCAA Tournament, 8-0, at Rowan on Sept. 16.
