SALISBURY, MD – The tremendous 2024 York College field hockey season came to a close in dramatic fashion on Saturday afternoon as they fell to the #6 Christopher Newport Captains 1-0 in overtime in the 2024 NCAA Division III Second Round.
The Spartans have seen their last two seasons end in overtime in the Sweet 16 as they fell to Lynchburg last year in double overtime.
The Spartans see their record-breaking year conclude with a record of 17-6. The Captains advance to face host Salisbury on Sunday for the right to advance to the 2024 Division III Final Four in Lexington, VA.
 
How It Happened
• There wasn't much offense in the first quarter but the Captains had the best chance of the opening 15 minutes. The Captains drew a corner and got a shot from Courtney Hughlett but Spartan keeper Belle Fields made a stop as the game remained scoreless.
• The Spartans got their first shot five minutes into the second quarter but Riley Buschert's attempt was wide. The Captains again got a late penalty corner but this time the shot was blocked as the two teams headed to the break without a score.
• The third quarter action picked up as the Spartans got their first penalty corner 4:18 into the period. Buschert ripped a shot that was blocked as the Captains avoided any danger. The Captains responded with a torrent of five penalty corners and six shots covering a mere 1:29 of play. Fields made four saves while senior Libby Wild cleared another one off the line to keep the Captains off the scoreboard. Fields had another save with less than four minutes left in the quarter for the Spartans.
• The Spartans recorded their lone shot on goal in the 47^th minute as Kelbie Linebaugh had her shot stopped by Captain goalie Lily Kerr. The Captains had just one shot and that was wide as the squads headed for overtime to decide the winner.
• The Captains pressured the Spartan defense immediately at the start of overtime. The Captains got their first overtime shot 41 seconds into the period which was stopped by Fields. A Captain penalty corner led to three more shots, two of which were saved by Fields while Wild recorded another defensive save. After a foul, the Captains hit a shot wide but CNU drew a penalty corner on their ensuing possession. CNU's Ellie Nucklols hit a shot that was saved and Lainey Pratzner collected that rebound and hit a second shot in the flurry. Pratzner's shot was saved by Fields. Unfortunately for York, the rebound went right to Pratzner who hit a second shot that skimmed off Fields and just crossed the line before Wild could clear it off, ending the game and giving the Captains the dramatic win.
• The Captains out shot the Spartans 19-3 including 14-1 in shots on goal. CNU also had a 9-1 margin in penalty corners. Fields was fantastic, as was the Spartan defense, with 11 saves while Wild recorded two defensive saves.
 
Spartan Notes
The Captains now lead the Spartans in the all-time series 8-3 as they have won five straight including two in overtime this year … the Spartans lost six games this year and they were all by one goal and they were all to teams who were nationally ranked this year … York finished the campaign with the second toughest schedule in the country and set a school record with 17 wins, breaking the record of 16 set in 2022 and again in 2023 … the Spartans are now 3-3 all-time in the NCAA Tournament … York has won their opening game in all three of their tournament berths (2022, 2023, and 2024) and lost in the second round in each year … York has lost all three of those second round tournament games by scores of 1-0 with one loss against Salisbury (2022), one to Lynchburg in double overtime (2023) and this one to CNU in overtime … the Spartans are now 5-6 in games against nationally ranked opponents … York was 5-5 against NCAA Tournament teams this year … CNU is the only team to beat York twice as they downed York in Newport News on September 22 (2-1 in OT) and Saturday … York had avenged two of their season losses last week in the MAC Commonwealth tournament … the loss snaps York's season-high seven-game win streak … the Spartan senior class finishes their careers with a school-record of 62-22 … senior Belle Fields, the two-time MAC Commonwealth Defensive Player of the Year lived up to that billing on Saturday as she tied a career-high with 11 saves in the game … Fields finished her career with a career record of 48-16 in 71 career games … she played 3,963:29 with a 0.62 goals against average and an .830 save percentage as she goes down as the greatest goalie in Spartan field hockey history … Fields also had a school record 30 shutouts … Fields ends her career with school records in save percentage, goals against average, wins, shutouts while she is third in goalie games played and goalie games started … senior Libby Wild concluded her career with an outstanding game as she recorded a pair of defensive saves to finish with 11 for the season, setting a new single season record … Wild, a first-team MAC All-Commonwealth pick, finishes her career tied for third with 18 career defensive saves.
 
Up Next
The Spartans now must say good bye to their outstanding senior class. Belle Fields, Riley Buschert, Libby Wild, Maggie Spadafora, Delaney Mitchell, Billie Francis, and Sophia Holtzner close out their careers as the winningest class in school history.