DURHAM, N.H.-- The 2011 America East Field Hockey Championship begins Fri., Nov. 4 at University of New Hampshire's Memorial Field. No. 1 UNH, No. 2 Boston University, No. 3 University of Maine and No. 4 University at Albany will all contend for the 2011 title and the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA Championship.
All three games will be streamed live for free and will be available on America East All-Access. Links to the live broadcasts, as well as live stats and a live blog provided by UNH are available on Championship Central.
New Hampshire and Boston U. shared the regular season championship, each with 4-1 records in league play. The Wildcats earned the top seed and the right to host the tournament by virtue of their head-to-head win against the Terriers during the regular season.
Maine and Albany also tied for the three seed with records of 3-2 during America East play. The Black Bears earned the higher seed due to the head-to-head matchup earlier this season. Maine defeated Albany 4-3 in overtime at Orono.
Albany, seeded fourth this year, is the defending champion after winning the title game last season 3-2 in overtime against UNH. The first semifinal game this year will be a rematch of that 2010 final.
The top seed has won the tournament 12 times overall, while the two seed has won it eight times. The only time a team has won the conference tournament seeded lower than second was the first league tournament in 1990. Northeastern won as the third seed, downing both the two and the one seed.
The Great Danes have won two of the last three titles, while the Terriers have won four of the last six. The last time a team other than Boston U. or Albany has won the tournament was Northeastern in 2004.
This is the fourth straight year with the same four-team lineup. Each team has something different on the line:
- New Hampshire is looking for its second crown and first since 1998.
- Boston U. is looking for its ninth title and first since 2009.
- Maine is hoping to win its first America East Championship.
- Albany is in search of its third league crown and the its first repeat.
All four tournament participants are nationally ranked. New Hampshire is the highest at #10 and then Albany at #12. Maine is ranked #13 for the third straight week. Boston U. comes in at #17 nationally.
The NFHCA Top-20 Poll isn't used for selecting and seeding teams for the NCAA Tournament, however the RPI is used by the committee. In the latest RPI results, three America East teams are in the top 20. Albany leads the group at 11th, while New Hampshire is 14th and Boston U. is 18th. Maine is 22nd in the ratings.
Admission to the 2011 America East Field Hockey Championship is free of charge. Championship merchandise is available onsite, as well as online at the America East store.
2011 America East Field Hockey Championship
All games at University of New Hampshire's Memorial Field, Durham, N.H.
Friday, November 4
#4 Albany at #1 New Hampshire, 1 p.m. l Live Stats / Live Video / Live Blog
#3 Maine vs. #2 Boston U., 4 p.m. l Live Stats / Live Video / Live Blog
Sunday, November 6
Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.