GNAC Field Hockey Preview: No. 3 Anna Maria vs. No. 6 Mount Ida

PAXTON, Mass.—The Anna Maria College field hockey team has qualified for its second-straight Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tournament, sealing the third seed for the second time following Saturday's 3-2 win against Johnson & Wales.

BRACKETOLOGY

First Round - Saturday, October 31
Game 1: #5 Johnson & Wales at #4 Lasell – 12:00 p.m.
Game 2: #6 Mount Ida at #3 Anna Maria – 10:00 a.m.

Semifinals - Wednesday, November 4
Game 3: Game 1 winner at #1 Simmons
Game 4: Game 2 winner at #2 Saint Joseph's (Maine)

Championship - Saturday, November 7
Game 5: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner (at highest remaining seed)

LIVE COVERAGE

Anna Maria's meeting with Mount Ida will feature live video and live statistics.

NO. 3 ANNA MARIA VS. NO. 6 MOUNT IDA

The No. 3 AMCATS will host No. 6 Mount Ida on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. at AMCAT Field.  Anna Maria holds a 2-0 advantage in the series, following regular season GNAC wins against the Mustangs in 2014 and 2015.

The two teams met in the regular season on September 17^th at home. Anna Maria took the 3-0 win and held the Mustangs to just two shots-on-goal over the 70 minutes of action.

Anna Maria took at 1-0 lead just 1:49 into the contest as Nicole Denver (Springfield, Mass.) registered her fifth goal of the season. Kayla Lapierre (Worcester, Mass.) scored the next two goals in the ninth and 38^th minutes. She also assisted on Denver's goal to have a hand in all AMCAT scoring.

As a team, Anna Maria totaled 19 shots, putting 11 of them on-net. Mount Ida's goaltender Emily McConnell made eight saves in the complete-game effort, while Anna Maria netminders Mary Kate Breen (Londonderry, N.H.) and Bryanna Tobin (Deep River, Conn.) each played a half and recorded one save each.

SCOUTING THE AMCATS

The AMCATS offense is paced by senior Kylie Dalbec (Portland, Maine), who leads the team with 14 goals and 13 assists for 41 points. The defending GNAC Offensive Player of the Year, Dalbec ranks first in the GNAC in points and third in goals. She has netted three game-winning goals this season.

Lapierre is close behind with 34 points from 11 goals and 12 assists. She ranks second in the GNAC in total points. Junior Kaitlyn Moran (Leicester, Mass.) rounds out the AMCATS to points leaders with 28 points from nine goals and 10 assists.

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

In net, Breen has tallied 160 saves on a .808 save percentage. She has started in 17 games this season and has allowed 38 goals for a 2.49 goals-against average.

SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS

Mount Ida has scored 28 goals on the season en route to a 4-12 overall record. The team posted one conference win on the season, a 3-1 win against Rivier on September 26^th.

Lexi Minicucci leads the Mustangs in scoring with 11 goals and three assists. Sarah Hemstock has chipped in with seven goals and three assists, while Hayley Napier rounds out scoring for Mount Ida with five goals.

Suzanne Thibault has two defensive saves for the Mustangs, while McConnell has played every game in net for Mount Ida this season. She has tallied 109 saves on a .637 save percentage while allowing 62 goals for a 3.85 goals-against average.