GNAC Field Hockey Semifinal Preview: No. 3 Anna Maria at No. 2 St. Joseph's

PAXTON, Mass.—The Anna Maria College field hockey will appear in its second-straight Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tournament semifinal on Wednesday, traveling to Saint Joseph's (Maine) to take on the Monks at 6:45 p.m. 

The AMCATS clinched a 5-1 GNAC first round win over Mount Ida on Saturday a to advance to Wednesday's semifinal. Prior to joining the GNAC last season, the AMCATS made appearances in three straight NECC championship games, winning twice.

BRACKETOLOGY

NO. 3 ANNA MARIA AT NO. 2 SAINT JOSEPH'S (MAINE)

The No. 3 AMCATS will travel to No. 2 Saint Joseph's on Wednesday for a 6:45 p.m. start at Deering Memorial Stadium. 

Saint Joseph's holds a 5-1 advantage in the series, following regular season wins against the AMCATS in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. The AMCATS picked up a 1-0 victory over the Monks in the GNAC semifinal round last season to advance to the GNAC championship. 

The two teams met in the regular season on September 26th at Saint Joseph's where Anna Maria fell 2-1. The Monks held a 22-8 edge in total shots in the game. They also lead statistics in penalty corners with 13 and held the AMCATS to three.

The Monks commanded the offense as they put together four shots on net within the first 12 minutes of play. As things got messy in front of the AMCAT goal the Monks were awarded a stroke at the 12:25 mark. In the high stakes position the Monks decided to send defender Meghan Williams  to the line as she was able to find the top left corner of the net to put Saint Joseph's up 1-0. The Monks took a total of 11 shots in the first half to Anna Maria's five. The stroke would be the only ball to find its way into the net in the first half.

Both teams came out strong in the second half battling it out in the midfield. The AMCATS were able to tie it up after 10 minutes of play in the second half as Nicole Denver (Springfield, Mass.) received a pass from teammate Kaitlyn Moran (Leicester, Mass.) and put the ball to the back of the net. The Monks responded in the 54th minute of play as Michalia Parent scored off an assist from teammate Amanda Celata to settle the score at 2-1 for the day.

Anna Maria's starting netminder, senior Mary Kate Breen (Londonderry, N.H.) tallied 12 saves in the loss. The Monks goalkeeper, Megan Baker picked up the conference victory stopping four out of the AMCATS five shots on net that day.

SCOUTING THE AMCATS

Kayla Lapierre (Worcester, Mass.) is close behind with 37 points from 12 goals and 13 assists. She ranks third in the GNAC in total points. Sophomore, Nicole Denver rounds out the AMCATS in scoring with 31 points from 15 goals and one assist. She is currently second in the GNAC for total goals as well as fifth for points on the season.

Defensively, senior Shelby Looney (Leicester, Mass.) has tallied 11 defensive saves on the season, good for a top-10 NCAA Division III National Ranking.

In net, Breen has tallied 162 saves on a .810 save percentage. She has started in 18 games this season and has allowed 38 goals for a 2.41 goals-against average. She is first in the conference for total saves and second in save percentage.

SCOUTING THE MONKS

The Monks have scored 38 goals on the season en route to a 12-6 overall record. The team posted five conference wins on the season.

Freshman forward, Michalia Parent leads the Monks in points with nine goals and five assists. Junior Kelsey Dumond has chipped in with 10 goals and two assists, while senior Meghan Williams rounds out scoring for Saint Joseph's with four goals and seven assists.

Chelsea Bordeau has three defensive saves for the Monks, while goaltender Megan Baker has played 15 games in net this season. She has tallied 47 saves on a .758 save percentage while allowing 15 goals for a 1.05 goals-against average.