Field hockey falls in conference tournament final

Richmond field hockey was defeated by Massachusetts in the Atlantic 10 championship final Saturday.

The second-seeded Massachusetts offense proved to be the pivotal factor in its 3-0 victory over the one-seeded Richmond. Forward Izzie Delario and defensive back Melanie Kreusch scored twice early in the first period, both off of penalty corners, to put Massachusetts up 2-0 by the 24th minute. The Richmond offense was relatively inactive in the first half, only recording three shots, but caught its stride going into the second half.

Richmond did not give up in trying to erase the deficit created in the first half, outshooting Massachusetts by three in the second half. Overall, Richmond logged the same total number of shots on the game, only one less on goal. Massachusetts’ final goal came in the 50th minute, scored by Kreusch, giving her two goals on the afternoon.

Kreusch was joined by Massachusetts’ Delario, Sarah Hawkshaw, Sam Carlino, Anne Dijkstra and Cliodhra Loughlin on the A-10 all-tournament team.

Richmond defensive back and captain Amy Cooke had the most shots in the game, the majority of which came from the top of the circle after a penalty corner. Richmond had five corners in the game, only one fewer than Massachusetts, reflecting the intensity of both teams throughout the game.

Cooke was named to the A-10 all-tournament team, A-10 all-conference team and was also named conference defensive player of the year. Taylor Deitrick was also named to the all-tournament team and Kelly Quinn to the all-conference team. Emily Braunewell was named to the A-10 all-freshman team and had two saves in the final game.

With the win, Massachusetts claims its 15th conference title and qualifies for the NCAA tournament ,which begins later this week on Nov. 11. The Spiders finish their season with a record of 12-9, a conference record of 8-2, and as regular season A-10 champions.

Contact sports assistant Colby Wilcox at colby.wilcox@richmond.edu