Field Hockey Looks to Return to the Landmark Conference Championships in 2017
The Goucher College field hockey program looks to seal a second consecutive berth to the Landmark Conference Championships in 2017.
TOWSON, Md. – The Goucher College field hockey program looks to seal a second consecutive berth to the Landmark Conference Championships in 2017.
Head coach, Megan Williams, who was named the 2016 Landmark Conference Coach of the Year, enters her sixth season at the helm of the Gophers with a 35-47 overall record. She is the sixth field hockey coach since Goucher joined the NCAA, and ranks second in wins in program history during that period. Since 2012, the Gophers have placed seven players on the All-Landmark Conference team while Lizzie Barminski was named the Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year in 2013.
"Each year we continue to strengthen our out of conference schedule, play new opponents, and challenge our physical and mental fitness, all in preparation for the Landmark conference games," Williams commented. "We have a strong returning squad with some great incoming players and we look to continue to build on the past few years' success."
Goucher opens the season with three consecutive home games against nonconference opponents. The first to head to Beldon Field is St. Mary's (Md.) on Sept. 1. Johns Hopkins University and Hood will also come to Towson, Md. on Sept. 3 and Sept. 6, respectively. The remainder of nonconference matchups before Landmark play are Neumann on Sept. 8, Gwynedd Mercy on Sept. 10, Stevenson on Sept. 14 and Randolph-Macon on Sept. 16.
The Gophers start up conference play against Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pa. against the Eagles on Sept. 23. Next, Goucher travels to Immaculata, Pa. for a midweek nonconference battle against the Mighty Macs. The final game in September is against Susquehanna at home on Sept. 30.
The month of October is conference-heavy with the first four games against Landmark opponents. First up is Moravian on Oct. 7 when the Greyhounds come to Towson, Md. to participate in the Play for a Cure game at 1 p.m. Four days later, Goucher hosts the Catholic University of America in a midweek showdown on Beldon Field. The next two conference games are on the road against Elizabethtown, the 2016 Landmark Conference Champion, and Scranton on Oct. 14 and 21, respectively.
Goucher wraps up the regular season with a nonconference matchup against Stockton University in Galloway, N.J. on Oct. 24 and Landmark foe, Drew, on Oct. 28 in Towson, Md.
The Landmark Conference Tournament will commence on Nov. 1 with the top two seeds hosting the bottom two seeds. The finals will be hosted by the highest remaining seed on Nov. 4. The 2017 NCAA Tournament will begin Nov. 11.
For a complete look at the 2017 Goucher College Field Hockey schedule, click here.
A few notes on the 2017 opponents:
St. Mary's (Md.): Finished 5-12; lost in Capital Athletic Conference (CAC) Tournament First Round
Johns Hopkins: 7-10; Gophers lost 2-1 on the road in 2016; member of the Centennial Conference
Hood: 3-13; Goucher won 4-0 at home in 2016; defeated by top-seeded Messiah in Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Commonwealth playoffs
Neumann: 10-7; Gophers fell to the Knights 3-2 at home last year; member of the Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC)
Gwynedd Mercy: 13-6; defeated in the CSAC Championship game, 2-1 by Cabrini University
Stevenson: 5-11; Goucher defeated them 5-3 on the road in 2016; member of the MAC Commonwealth
Randolph-Macon: 3-14; Gophers won 4-0 at the USA Field Hockey National Training Center in during 2016 matchup; member of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference
Juniata: 8-10 (3-4 Landmark); Goucher won 2-1 at home in 2016, sealing the fourth position in the Landmark Conference Championships
Immaculata: 7-12; member of the CSAC
Susquehanna: 15-4 (5-2 Landmark); defeated Gophers, 4-0, in Selinsgrove, Pa. in 2016; advanced to Landmark Conference Championship game and fell to Elizabethtown, 1-0
Moravian: 0-16 (0-7 Landmark); Goucher handed Greyhounds a 5-0 loss in Bethlehem, Pa. during 2016 game
Catholic: 10-7 (6-1 Landmark); Gophers fell 1-0 on the road in 2016; Cardinals fell to Susquehanna in Landmark Conference semifinal game
Elizabethtown: 14-5 (7-0 Landmark); beat Goucher 2-0 during regular season and 2-1 in the Landmark Conference semifinal match; defeated in the First Round of the 2016 NCAA Field Hockey Championships by Kenon in OT
Scranton: 5-12 (2-5 Landmark); defeated Goucher 2-1 on Beldon Field in 2016
Stockton: 8-9; Gophers lost to the Ospreys 3-2 at home in 2016; member of the New Jersey Athletic Conference
Drew: 4-13 (2-5 Landmark); Goucher won 3-1 on the road in 2016