Field Hockey | 11/7/2024 8:12:48 PM
Top-seed SUNY Geneseo (17-2) and No. 3 seed Hartwick College (11-7) will meet for the 2024 Empire 8 Field Hockey Championship after earning semifinal victories on Thursday evening. The Knights defeated No. 5 seed St. John Fisher University, 1-0 from College Stadium, while two-time defending E8 Champion Hartwick went on the road and defeated No. 2 SUNY Brockport, 2-0 from Linda A. Arena and Class of 1969 Field.
SUNY Geneseo will host Hartwick in the championship game on Sunday, Nov. 10 at 12 p.m. from College Stadium. Geneseo defeated Hartwick by a score of 3-0 from Wright Stadium in Oneonta, NY on Sept. 28. Katrina Clare scored a pair of goals for the Knights, while Ella Greico also tallied. Geneseo held a 13-3 edge in shots and 19-0 advantage in penalty corners.
Hartwick is attempting to win its third straight league title and seventh overall in program history, while SUNY Geneseo, in its first season as an Empire 8 member is looking for its is looking to win its fourth conference crown in program history. The Empire 8 Champion will receive an automatic berth into the 2024 NCAA Division III Championship Tournament, which starts on Nov. 13.
NO. 1 SUNY GENESEO 2, NO. 5 ST. JOHN FISHER 0
The No. 18 SUNY Geneseo field hockey team was victorious in the Empire 8 semifinals over St. John Fisher University on Thursday afternoon, winning 2-0. Geneseo advances to the Empire 8 Championship game with the win and improves their record to 17-2 on the season. St. John Fisher had its season come to an end with a 9-11 record.
The Knights dominated play in the first quarter, out-shooting Fisher 5-0 and a 4-1 advantage in penalty corners. However, neither team was able to find the back of the goal and the game entered the second quarter tied at 0-0.
Geneseo broke the deadlock three minutes into the second quarter off a well executed penalty corner.
Sam Lewis sent a pass into
Shannon Cunningham, who ripped the ball towards the goal where
Hailey Roethel was able to redirect it past the defense to give the Knights the 1-0 lead.
With the fourth quarter winding down and the Cardinals pressing to find the equalizer, Lewis gave Geneseo an insurance goal off a pass from Cunningham.
The Knights out-shot the Cardinals 29-2 and totaled 20 penalty corners to just five from the Cardinals.Lewis tallied her ninth goal of the season and Roethel her fifth. Cunningham picked up her seventh and eighth assists of the season.
Lilly Spitz recorded her 10th shutout of the season in goal while stopping both shots that reached target by St. John Fisher
NO. 3 HARTWICK 2, NO. 2 SUNY BROCKPORT 0
Hartwick (11-7) advanced to the E8 Championship for the third straight season and fifth time in the last six years, earning a 2-0 road win over No. 2 SUNY Brockport Thursday. Brockport fell to 13-6 on the season.
After conceding an early penalty corner to the Golden Eagles, the Hawks immediately went on the offensive firing off two consecutive shots after a penalty corner in the fourth minute of play. Hartwick put six of their seven shots on goal throughout the quarter, but came up empty.
The Hawks took complete control in the second quarter, outshooting Brockport 7-1.Hartwick's efforts paid off in the 27th minute, when
Katelyn Klotz (South Glens Falls, N.Y.) deposited a rebound from
Danielle Hand's (Queensbury, N.Y.) initial shot into the back of the cage to take the 1-0 advantage.
The visiting Hawks nearly gave themselves a two-goal lead early in the third quarter as they were granted a penalty strike. Unfortunately,
Jessica Betts (South Glens Falls, N.Y.) missed just high and left to keep the score at 1-0 in favor of Hartwick.
The Hawks eventually gained the two-goal lead just over four minutes later when Hand forced her way into the right side of the circle and slipped a shot just past the Golden Eagles' keeper Ella Buchanan for the tally.
Senior goalkeeper,
Ashley Luppens (Wading River, N.Y.) earned the shutout victory in the cage for the Hartwick, collecting three saves across the 60 minutes of action.
Brockport goalkeeper Ella Buchanan was tremendous in net, stopping 19 shots, as Hartwick out-shot Brockport, 25-6 in the game.
2024 Empire 8 Field Hockey Championship Schedule
Monday, November 4 – First Round
No. 3 Hartwick defeated No. 6 Houghton, 4-1 – BOX SCORE
No. 5 St. John Fisher defeated No. 4 Nazareth, 3-0 – BOX SCORE
Thursday, November 7 - Semifinals
No. 1 SUNY Geneseo defeated No. 5 St. John Fisher, 2-0 – BOX SCORE
No. 3 Hartwick defeated No. 2 SUNY Brockport , 2-0– BOX SCORE
Sunday, November 10 - Championship Final
No. 3 Hartwick at No. 1 SUNY Geneseo -– 12 p.m. -– VIDEO/LIVE STATS
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
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