Bloomsburg Field Hockey Advances to NCAA Division II Title Game

Story courtesy of Jason Eichelberger, NCAA

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Despite being dominated statistically, the No. 1-ranked Bloomsburg University field hockey team won its 23rd consecutive game, edging fellow PSAC rival Indiana (Pa.), 2-0 in the national semifinals of the 2006 NCAA Division II Field Hockey Championship at Brosnaham Park on Thursday evening.

The game was played in Pensacola, Florida as part of the NCAA Division II national sports festival where championships in six different falls sports will be decided.

Even though IUP held a significant advantage on the stat sheet, holding a 17-5 edge in shots and a 10-3 margin in penalty corners, Bloomsburg (23-0) made the most of its few, but quality scoring opportunities.

After being held without a shot for the first 19 minutes of the game, the Huskies converted its first scoring opportunity when sophomore Jamie Vanartsdalen (Huntingdon Valley/Lower Moreland), the nation's leading goal scorer, finished on a breakaway, netting her 26th goal of the year to give Bloomsburg a 1-0 lead with 14:56 remaining in the first half.

"We were looking to get some breakaways today," Bloomsburg head coach Jan Hutchinson said. "Thankfully for us, Jamie converted and got us on the board."

Even though IUP (15-6) held a +12 margin in shots, only six were on goal, all of which were stopped by Husky All-American goalkeeper Tracey Hudak (Sweet Valley/Lake-Lehman). For Hudak, she earned her fifth shutout of the season and the eighth for Bloomsburg this season.

"She's the difference in the game," said Hutchinson. "She and Maribeth Brozena (Larksville/Wyoming Valley West) played excellent defense for us today."

The Huskies all but sealed the victory in the 43rd minute when Ashley Heckard (Millerstown/Greendwood) redirected a Brozena shot from inside the circle to give Bloomsburg a 2-0 lead on just its third shot of the game.

IUP, who was making its third semifinal appearance in the last three seasons, had plenty of chances to reduce its deficit by firing eight shots and recording three penalty corners in the game's final 26 minutes, but Hudak was up to the challenge each time, totaling five of her six saves.

"(Hudak) made several outstanding saves," said IUP head coach Rutger Wiese. "We played well, created opportunities and had shots. There's not much more you can ask for."

Bloomsburg advances to its 15th national championship game where it will be looking for its 10th Division II title on Saturday when the Huskies meet Bentley at 1:30 p.m., in what will be a rematch of the 2004 championship game. That year, Bloomsburg defeated the Falcons, 3-2 in overtime at UMass Lowell. The Huskies also beat Bentley in the title game in 2002 (5-0) and in 1999 (2-0).

Bloomsburg also owns three NCAA Division III titles from a time when the NCAA did conduct a Division II championship. The Huskies can also tie the school record for most wins in a season (24) with a victory in the title game.