Temple University Athletics
Field Set For A-10 Field Hockey Championships At Geasey Field, Owls Set To Face Richmond
11.5.08 | Field Hockey
Nov. 5, 2008
PHILADELPHIA - The field has been set for the Atlantic 10 Field Hockey Championships, which will be held at Geasey Field this Friday and Saturday. The host Owls (8-11, 4-2) will face No. 2 Richmond (9-9/5-1) at 11:00 a.m on Friday while top seeded Umass (14-4/6-0) will take on fourth-seeded Saint Joseph's (11-8/3-3) at 2:30. The championship game is set for Saturday at 2:00 p.m.
Ranked No. 17 in the STX/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll. The Minutewomen were riding a seven-game winning streak, the defending champion Minuteowmen having won 11 of their last 12, before dropping their season finale in overtime to Providence, 3-2. With 14 wins, they have matched their win total from last season, when they reached the NCAA Tournament. UMass is led by senior forward Katelyn Orlando (Manchester, Mass.), whose 14 goals and 29 points pace the Conference. Orlando is aided by a balanced offensive attack which tops the A-10 in nearly every offensive category and a defense anchored by freshman goalkeeper Alesha Widdall (Whitney Point, N.Y.), who ranks in the top-10 nationally in goals against average (1.14).
Vying for its sixth A-10 crown in seven years, Richmond enters the Championship having won six of its last seven matches.
After claiming a share of the regular season title last year, the Owls clinched the third seed after besting Saint Joseph's, 2-1 in its regular-season finale. The Cherry and White enter the Championship boasting a 6-2 home record on the year.
No. 4 Saint Joseph's seeks its first A-10 Championship since 1995 after reaching the finals a year ago.
For complete coverage of the 2008 Atlantic 10 Field Hockey Championship, including live video streaming of all three contests, log on to www.atlantic10.org or owlsports.com
