Usually, our site will dedicate the run-in to the national semifinals of Division I to a detailed preview of the two games.
This year, we’re going to spread the love around to the 12 teams playing their semifinal matches over the course of tomorrow, with our own flavor and perspective.
DIVISION III
Location: Hartford, Conn.
Semifinals: Christopher Newport vs. Tufts
Johns Hopkins vs. Babson
WHO SHOULD WIN: Tufts left the field a year ago this weekend having lost the national title match, and they were not happy about it. But the Jumbos have won 17 games this year and are the lone NESCAC team in the bracket. Hannah Biccard is an absolute goalfest waiting to happen; she had an amazing golazo in the quarterfinals.
WHO WILL WIN: Christopher Newport has been a school reknowned for its offensive prowess. This year was a little down for them on the offensive side, but the Captains have been a defensive juggernaut, Behind All-America goalkeeper Lily Kerr, the Caps have yielded exactly seven goals this season. Thanks to the defense, Newport has been able to win a number of close contests. Indeed, in the last 10 games of the season, all but one of the games was won by three goals or fewer.
THE BEST STORY: Johns Hopkins is in an amazing era of women’s athletic prowess. The school’s last 10 NCAA championships have been by women’s teams — led by the cross-country team. Hop has been agonizingly close to adding a field hockey title to those ranks. How close? The Blue Jays have made the national semifinals six out of the last seven times that championships were on offer. They were in three straight title games from 2021 to 2023. Could this be the year?
DIVISION II
Location: Bloomsburg, Pa.
Semifinals: Newberry vs. West Chester
Shippensburg vs. Kutztown
WHO SHOULD WIN: Kutztown is used to being in pressure situations: the Bears have been in the national title game in 2023 and 2024, winning one national title. Here’s the thing, though: in more than 50 varsity seasons, Kutztown has never won the postseason Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Tournament. The team got agonizingly close this year but fell by a goal. The semifinal is going to be a true test of wills as Kutztown and Shippensburg have split two matches this season
WHO WILL WIN: West Chester is a team with an incredibly proud history and heritage, winning three AIAW national titles in the 70s and winning three Division II championships since 2011. They are a team who knows how to focus and shut out all of the pageantry and distractions. They also have sophomore Veerle Hersman, who has 20 goals on the season.
THE BEST STORY: Newberry, if only for the slogan “Growing The Game.” This team from South Carolina could bring everything full-circle if they won the title this year; Newberry is only about a two-hour drive from Misenheimer, N.C., where the inaugural NCAA Division III title match was played, and won by host Pfeiffer College. A win by the Wolves would make them the southernmost NCAA field hockey team ever to win a national championship.
DIVISION I
Location: Durham, N.C.
Semifinals: Northwestern vs. North Carolina
Harvard vs. Princeton
WHO SHOULD WIN: The North Carolina Tar Heels are strong in every position, are the No. 1 seed in the tournament, have immense talent in the attack end, and are very good at winning close games. In their last 14 games of the season, half of them were one-goal victories. A major story in this game will be the play of sisters Ryleigh and Kara Heck, both of whom have a penchant of coming through in big moments in games — no matter what level.
WHO WILL WIN: Northwestern has to be madder than a shaken hornets’ nest for having been seeded fifth in the NCAA Tournament. They have been playing extremely well behind the attacking prowess of Olympians Ashley Sessa and Maddie Zimmer, as well as national-team hopeful Olivia Bent-Cole. And you also have Ilse Tromp on the attack penalty corner unit, dragging in 13 goals on the season. But who has been playing the best recently? Why, it’s Grace Schulze, a graduate transfer from Princeton.
THE BEST STORY: Harvard is the only team in this year’s Final Four never to have won an NCAA title — despite being the first American college to have been exposed to the sport. It was in the summer of 1901 when Constance Applebee came over to Radcliffe College to study. Her name was actually printed in Boston-area newspapers in the travel section — something which would be unthinkable today. While in the U.S., Applebee taught the game of field hockey to her schoolmates on a patch of land where Harvard Law School stands today. The Crimson of today, with a roster including 14 offshore athletes, would be the ultimate dark horse if they were to win the title this weekend; very few fan polls have them winning.
