By Pat Mariboe
Senior Writer
Washington College field hockey clinched a spot in the Centennial Conference Tournament for the first time since 2014.
While some fans may have seen this season as a rebuilding year for the Shorewomen due to the transition of first-year Head Coach Annie Kietzman, the team proved the naysayers wrong.
The team secured their playoff spot on Oct. 11 in a 3-2 overtime victory against Haverford. Clinching the playoff spot early was a weight off the Shorewomen’s shoulders.
“A guaranteed place in the post-season was awesome. We could go into every game knowing we were already going to be playing in November, which gave us an edge,” said junior Clare Ingersoll.
The Shorewomen faced off against visiting Ursinus in the first of their two divisive games this past week on Oct. 25.
WC scored the first goal of the game when freshman Megan Ritchey scored from a penalty stroke following a goalkeeper infraction. Shots were limited for both sides in the first half, and the Shorewomen kept the 1-0 lead at halftime, after defending a flurry of penalty corners late in the half.
The Bears kept up their momentum and came out firing in the second half, scoring two goals to take the lead.
The Shorewomen almost equalized the score near the end, but couldn’t find the finishing touch, and the Bears went on to take the 2-1 victory.
In their second game of the week, the Shorewomen battled against Muhlenberg in their last regular season game. The Shorewomen visited the Mules in Allentown, Penn. on Oct. 28 at 7 p.m.
The Mules got on the board first from a well-executed penalty corner and ended the half with the 1-0 lead. The Shorewomen added a goal of their own, after an unassisted shot by freshman Kailyn Brandt found its way into the back of the net following a short-range blast. Muhlenberg struck again off another penalty corner and solidified the 2-1 win.
The Shorewomen attempted to tie the game on three occassions, but the shots went wide.
With these results, the Shorewomen are scheduled to face off against Haverford in the first round on Tuesday, Oct. 31 at 7 p.m. at Roy Kirby Jr. Stadium.
The Shorewomen clinched their playoff spot with the 3-2 overtime win against Haverford last time they met and will be looking for a similar result this time around.
Providing the Shorewomen win against the Fords, their next game will be on Friday, Nov. 3 vs. Johns Hopkins, the No. 1 seed. The game is scheduled to be played at Johns Hopkins University.