CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--The numbers one and two seeds will meet in the 2007 America East Field Hockey Championship title game on Sunday, November 4 at 1:30 p.m. The top-seeded Boston University Terriers upended fourth-seeded New Hampshire, 5-2, in the first semifinal on Friday, while it took the Great Danes 8:05 of overtime to pull out a 2-1 win over the third seed, Vermont, at Jack Barry Field on the MIT campus.
The Terriers got the scoring started at 2:40 when senior Hadley Adams tipped in a hard shot by classmate Hayley Hamada. Boston University ran the score up to 3-0 when senior Pam Spuehler scored twice, both unassisted, at 12:51 and 18:36. Spuehler finished the game with five points when she added an assist in the second half. Two more tallies in the second stanza gave the Terriers a 5-0 lead. The Wildcats fought back, though, beginning with a Sam Geary goal at 58:37 off a penalty corner. Four minutes later, Geary and UNH ran the same exact play off a corner to bring the score to 5-2. Senior Shauna Sellenger earned an assist on both of Geary's goals. Freshman Kim Kastuk earned the win for Boston U., while UNH senior goalkeeper Margaux Shute made 13 saves, including a penalty shot by sophomore Suus Dekker.
In a physical second semifinal, a pair of unassisted goals by senior Great Dane Michelle Simpson gave Albany their first America East Field Hockey Championship win. Simpson drove to the net from the right side untouched at 5:35 and sent a shot past Catamount sophomore goalkeeper Kristen Heavens. Albany retained a 1-0 lead until the 53rd minute. About midway through the second half, Vermont's senior Kate Lipton sent a hard pass into the circle where senior Kelly McClintock was able to redirect the ball past junior netminder Ashley Ross to tie the game at 1-1. Once the game was tied once again, the intensity increased resulting in a rare yellow card on Albany at 56:57. Despite being down a player for five minutes, the Great Danes were able to hold off the surging Catamounts and force an overtime. With 6:55 remaining in the first overtime period, Simpson struck again, her 13th goal of the season and her third game-winning tally.
Sunday will mark Albany's (15-4 overall record) first appearance in the America East Field Hockey Championship final, while Boston University (16-5) has won the past two championships and appeared in the past three finals. Earlier this season, the Terriers defeated the Great Danes, 3-1, on Jack Barry Field.