Congratulations College 2022 Division III Conference Winners

With post-season conference tournaments taking place this past weekend, USA Field Hockey is highlighting each conference champion in Division III.

Division III Conference Winners:

Atlantic East Conference

Cabrini University

Photo Credit: Cabrini Athletics

Repeating the 2021 final, Cabrini claimed the Atlantic East (AE) title on Saturday, defeating St. Mary’s 3-0. Senior defender Maura Tumelty was named AE MVP of the match.

 

The Cavaliers had fallen to the Seahawks in the regular season, and thus won with an upset as the No. 2 seed. Cabrini will appear in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016.

Centennial Conference

Johns Hopkins University

Photo Credit: Johns Hopkins Athletics

Johns Hopkins won their fourth consecutive Centennial Conference title in a thrilling shootout victory over Bryn Mawr. The contest ended 1-1 after regulation, with both goals coming in the fourth quarter. Hopkins’ Abby Birk scored first on a penalty stroke, while Bryn Mawr’s Novy Geotgeluk tied it up with just 0.8 seconds on the clock. After two scoreless overtimes, the Blue Jays pulled ahead 5-4 in shootouts.

 

Hopkins will make their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, after finishing as runner-up to Middlebury in 2021. The Blue Jays are currently ranked No. 4 in NFHCA Division III Coaches Poll. 

Coast-to-Coast Conference

Salisbury University

Photo Credit: Salisbury Athletic

Salisbury claimed the Coast-to-Coast (C2C) crown for the fourth consecutive time, downing Christopher Newport 2-0. It was the Gulls’ 17th win so far in their perfect season record. 

 

There is no automatic bid for the C2C - unless you’re No.1 nationally ranked Salisbury with the strength to get one anyway. The Gulls will make an NCAA Tournament appearance for the 28th consecutive season, the longest streak in all of NCAA.

Colonial State Athletic Conference

Wilson College

Photo Credit: Wilson Athletics

By a score of 2-0, Wilson took the name of Colonial State Athletic Conference (CSAC) Champions on Saturday against Keystone. This is the third time in the past four title matches that Keystone and Wilson have been the contenders, and Wilson’s third straight conference title. 

 

With the victory, Wilson earns the CSAC’s NCAA Tournament auto-qualifier.

Commonwealth Coast Conference

University of New England

Photo Credit: UNE Athletics

In dramatic overtime fashion, the New England Nor’easters defeated the reigning Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) champions Endicott on Saturday. This is UNE’s first title since 2017, and will be their first time back in the NCAA (thanks to the automatic bid) since that same year.

 

After a gridlocked 2-2 score after regulation, UNE’s Shelly Tremblay made quick work in overtime – scoring the golden goal only 80 seconds in.

Empire 8

Hartwick College

Photo Credit: Hartwick Athletics

Hartwick cruised to the Empire 8 (E8) trophy with a 4-0 victory over Houghton on Sunday. Tournament MVP Leah Tolley tallied one for the Hawks in the victory.

 

Last season, Hartwick fell to Utica in the E8 Semifinal. This time when the two met in the semifinal, the Hawks had a dominant 5-1 win over the Pioneers.

Great Northeast Athletic Conference

Johnson & Wales University

Photo Credit: J&W Athletics

Johnson and Wales return to the NCAA Tournament once again after winning the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) title for the second consecutive year. The Wildcats went undefeated against all conference opponents this season.  

 

JWU downed Simmons 3-1 for the crown. Last season, the Wildcats fell 1-0 to Tufts in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Landmark Conference

Catholic University

Photo Credit: Catholic Athletics

After an upset in each semifinal match, No. 4 Moravian took on No. 3 Catholic in the Landmark Conference championship on Saturday. It was Catholic who came out on top – defeating Moravian 4-2 to hold the conference trophy for the first time since 2015.

Liberty League

William Smith College

Photo Credit: William Smith Athletics

In an inspiring finish, Emily Leonard scored the game-winning shootout for William Smith to finish 1-0 over Rochester and claim the Liberty League title. 

 

The last time William Smith was victorious over Rochester was when they defeated the Yellowjackets to win the conference title in 2015. The Herons receive the automatic bid and make their triumphant return to the NCAA Tournament.

Little East Conference

Castleton University

Photo Credit: Castleton Athletics

Castleton shut down Southern Maine 2-1 to secure their first ever Little East Conference (LEC) title. Goalkeeper Zoe Martin made 11 saves to make the Spartan’s NCAA Tournament dreams a reality.

Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth

Messiah University

Photo Credit: Messiah Athletics

Once again the Mid-Atlantic Conference (MAC) Commonwealth powerhouse, Messiah grabbed their 15th straight conference championship with a 2-0 victory over York. 

 

Last season, the Falcons defeated Stevens in the first round of the NCAA Tournament but fell to Babson in the second.

Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom

DeSales University

Photo Credit: Patrick Jacoby

In an already historic season, DeSales went even further to win their first ever Mid-Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom title in program history. The Bulldogs did it with a 3-2 win over Arcadia, who still awaits their first MAC Freedom title. 

 

DeSales was up 3-0 for the majority of the match – Arcadia attempting to make a comeback with two goals in the final two minutes of the exciting match. 

 

The Bulldogs finally sealed the deal after finishing as runner-ups from 2017 to 2019.

New England Collegiate Conference

Husson University

Photo Credit: Tyler Hewey

Husson claimed their second consecutive New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) title on Sunday by defeating New England College 2-1. Senior Katie Perkins was named MVP, while her sister, freshman Maddie Perkins, tallied a goal in the title match.

New England Small College Athletic Conference

Middlebury College

Photo Credit: Middlebury Athletics/Will Costello

Reigning New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) and NCAA Champions Middlebury asserted their dominance once again on Sunday after shutting out Tufts 2-0 to claim the conference title. The victory brings the Panthers their fifth consecutive NESCAC title – the first of any NESCAC team to do so. They also set the conference record for most titles won by a program at nine.

 

Middlebury scored 11 goals throughout the conference tournament, stopping No. 15 Hamilton, 5-1, and No. 6 Williams, 4-0.

New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference

Babson College

Photo Credit: Babson Athletics

Three different Beavers scored in three separate quarters to give Babson the 3-1 win over MIT and the New England Women’s and Men’s Conference (NEWMAC) championship crown. This was the sixth consecutive conference championship that the Beavers faced the Engineers, with Babson winning the two most recent times. This is Babson’s fourth ever NEWMAC title.

New Jersey Athletic Conference

Rowan University

Photo Credit: NJAC

A stark defensive line and a lone goal on a penalty stroke from Julia Patrone propelled Rowan to their second straight New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) title. The third nationally ranked Profs are now 19-1, their only loss on the season to No. 1 Salisbury. 

 

Runner-up TCNJ gave Rowan a hard fought battle, having advanced to the final after defeating No. 11 Kean 4-3 in the semifinal match. The Profs now have nine overall NJAC titles, chasing TCNJ’s 15.

North Coast Athletic Conference

Ohio Wesleyan University

Photo Credit: NCAC

Ohio Wesleyan secured the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) championship trophy and automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with a 1-0 win over DePauw. The No. 2 seeded Bishops upset the No. 1 Tigers with tournament MVP Veronica Hardman’s overtime goal. 

 

The Bishops now have back-to-back NCAC wins and NCAA Tournament appearances.

Old Dominion Athletic Conference

Washington & Lee University

Photo Credit: ODAC

Reigning Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) champion Washington and Lee defeated Lynchburg 1-0 on Saturday to again take home the crown and try their hand in the NCAA Tournament. The Generals are currently ranked No. 18 in Division III. 

 

Peyton Tysinger scored the contest’s lone goal in overtime to secure the victory for the Generals. The win marks the fourth overall title for Washington and Lee and second consecutive.

Southern Athletic Association

Centre College

Photo Credit: Centre Athletics/Jake Renie

Southern Athletic Association (SAA) tournament host Centre toppled No. 1 seed Rhodes 2-1 to claim the championship. Olivia Broyles tipped the scales in favor of the Colonels with a goal in the final minutes of the match. 

 

In the 2021 championship, it was Rhodes who edged Centre 1-0 to take the crown. In all nine of the SAA Tournaments, only Rhodes or Centre have won the title, with Centre’s previous win in 2019.

State University of New York Athletic Conference

SUNYAC Cortland

Photo Credit: Cortland Athletics

An overtime upset against No. 1 seed Geneseo gave Cortland their first State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) championship since 2017. In the extremely tight matchup, goalkeeper Emma Morgan made a divisive penalty stroke save in the third quarter. It was Lily Fox who had the overtime golden goal for the Red Dragons.

 

Cortland had also made it to the championship match in 2021, but fell 1-0 to New Paltz. The Red Dragons hold the most SUNAYC titles at 16.