Nov. 3, 2008

Championship Bracket

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - After finishing the regular season with its most wins since 2000, defending champion Massachusetts is the top seed for the 2008 Atlantic 10 Field Hockey Championship, which gets underway on Fri., Nov. 7 at Geasey Field on the campus of Temple University.

The Minutewomen (14-4/6-0) will take on fourth-seeded Saint Joseph's (11-8/3-3), while No. 2 Richmond (9-9/5-1) squares off against third-seeded Temple (8-11/4-2). Ranked No. 17 in the STX/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll, the Minutewomen were riding a seven-game winning streak, 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, Temple clinched the third seed after besting Saint Joseph's, 2-1 in its regular-season finale. The Owls enter the Championship boasting a 8-2 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.

The Championship commences on Friday, Nov. 7, with Richmond taking on Temple at 11:00am, while the Massachusetts-Saint Joseph's semifinal will begin at 2:30pm. The finals of the 2008 A-10 Championship will take place on Saturday, Nov. 8, at 2:00pm.


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