GRANTHAM, PA – The York College field hockey squad made their first MAC Commonwealth championship game appearance on Saturday. Unfortunately, the match didn't go the way of the Spartans as top seeded Messiah University picked up a 2-0 win to earn the title and the conference's automatic NCAA Tournament bid.
The Spartans fall to 15-5 overall while the Falcons improve to 16-2.
 
How It Happened
• The first quarter was bereft of many offensive opportunities for either team. The Falcons did squeeze off two shots in the opening 15 minutes with one of those chances coming on goal. Messiah started to gain some momentum as the quarter was coming to a close.
• The Spartans got a big defensive play from Libby Wild as she recorded a defensive save 2:19 into the quarter. The rebound off the save came to the stick of Carrie Bair who converted the rebound into the game's first goal. The goal was Bair's fifth of the season.
• Spartan goalie Belle Fields made four straight saves before the Spartans were whistled for an infraction that resulted in a penalty stroke attempt. Lauren Seubert's stroke attempt was saved by Fields as she lunged to her left to make the stop. The Falcons got a second goal with 1:35 left in the half as Hailey Womer collected the ball inside midfield, drove the ball down the right sideline and served a pass into the circle. Makayla Malcolm corralled the pass and finished off the chance in front of the cage for her seventh goal of the year as the lead grew to 2-0. The Falcons out shot the Spartans 8-0 in the second quarter while Fields made five saves in the quarter.
• The third quarter saw the Spartans try to get back into the game but the Messiah defense was up to the task. Neither team mustered a third quarter shot while each team had a corner in the period.
• The fourth quarter provided with more offensive frustration for the Spartans as they could never really mount sustained offensive attack. The Spartans got their first shot of the game with 2:15 left in the game as Katie Martino had a break away that was spoiled by Messiah goalie Catie Brubaker. The Falcons finished the game out shooting York 12-1 including 10-1 in shots on goal. The Falcons also held a 10-1 bulge in penalty corners.
 
Spartan Notes
The Spartans fall to 3-15-3 all-time against the Falcons as Messiah has won nine straight in the series … the Spartans fall to 9-3 on the road … the loss snaps York's six game win streak … the Spartans are now 0-3 all-time in conference championship games … York's previous two conference championship game losses came in the Capital Athletic Conference against Salisbury in 1996 and 2000 … the Spartans will now await the announcement of the NCAA Tournament field on Sunday night at 10:30 pm … York entered conference tournament week ranked third in Region V behind Johns Hopkins (Centennial Champion) and Messiah (Commonwealth Champion) … sophomore goalie Belle Fields finished the year with a record of 14-5 with six shutouts, a goals against average of 0.64 and a save percentage of .804 … Fields ranks first in the MAC Commonwealth in goals against average, save percentage and shutouts … the Spartans' goals against average of 0.55 is a new school record … sophomore Libby Wild tied a career-high with two defensive saves in the game, matching the total she had in the first match up with the Falcons.
 
Up Next
The Spartans now must await the verdict of the NCAA Field Hockey Division III committee as the 2022 tournament field gets announced on Sunday night. York is hoping for their first-ever NCAA Tournament selection when the field gets unveiled.