After winning its first America East title since 2000 and fifth in school history, the Boston University field hockey team would have expected to be a shoo-in for an NCAA Tournament berth in past years. This year however, the Terriers will have to play an NCAA play-in game Tuesday at Jack Barry Field against Central Michigan University to qualify for the national tournament.
The Chippewas won the Mid-American Conference title last Saturday, beating Miami University 3-1 for their first title since 1990.
“We know they are very athletic and very aggressive,” said BU coach Sally Starr.
The Terriers were ranked No. 18 in last week’s STX/NFHCA National Coaches Poll – which would have them on the outside, looking in on the tournament – but with their championship run, the Terriers should move up in today’s poll.
But the play-in game has nothing to do with records or rankings. Traditionally, the winner of the America East Tournament is given an automatic bid, but the conference lost its automatic bid when Northeastern University left for the Colonial Athletic Association – weakening the strength of the conference. Now, the league champion advances to a play-in game against the winner of another lower-level league.
This year, that team is Central Michigan.
“It’s been too close of a turnaround for video, so I’ve basically been making a lot of phone calls today,” Starr said of her time-limited efforts to scout the Chippewas.
Due to the America East’s higher conference ranking, the Terriers host the contest against the MAC champs. Central Michigan was the fourth-ranked seed in its tournament, and the Chippewas take their 11-11 record into Tuesday’s game against a 15-5 Terrier squad.
“[Central] Michigan is a team that plays hard and with a lot of emotion,” Starr said. “We need to come with a passion to play and be prepared to compete – just come out and play attacking hockey.”
The Terriers go into the match-up backed by America East Offensive Player of the Year Sarah Shute, who scored two goals in Saturday’s victory over the University of Maine.
If the Terriers win, they will have three days to prepare for their next game – the NCAA Big Show. The NCAA Tournament begins Nov. 12-13 for the first two rounds at a site to be determined. The semifinals and championship games will take place Nov. 18 and 20 at the University of Louisville.