Grantham, PA - The Messiah College field hockey team will enter the MAC Commonwealth Tournament this Wednesday when they take on No. 4-seeded Albright on Anderson Field at 7:00 p.m. The Falcons finished atop the regular season conference standings with a perfect 7-0 record to nab the No. 1 seed.
See below for a preview of the MAC Commonwealth field:
Season SnapshotThe Falcons are ranked No. 14 in the country heading in to the MAC Commonwealth tournament, thanks in part to one of the toughest schedules in Division III. Messiah is 13-5 on the season and has played seven teams ranked in the top-20 in Division III and one ranked in the top-5 of Division II. The Falcons are 3-5 in those games with 3-1 victories over No. 4 Franklin & Marshall and No. 11 Mary Washington as well as a 4-1 victory over No. 5 William Smith to end the regular season this past Saturday.
Messiah has cruised through the MAC Commonwealth regular season winning all seven of their games by at least a two-goal margin.
Entering the MAC Commonwealth Tournament, the Falcons have won 11 of their last 12 games. Their lone defeat in that stretch came to Division II No. 4 Shippensburg, 1-0 in overtime.
.| Scouting the Falcons |
| No. 1 Messiah Falcons - 13-5 Overall, 7-0 MAC Commonwealth |
 | A potent offensive attack and stellar defensive has carried the Falcons this season. The Falcons' offense led by Carissa Gehman (13g, 4a), Taylor Holt (10g, 5a), and Moriah Pfautz (7g, 4a) scored the most goals per game in conference play (3.86 goals per game). In addition to Gehman, Holt, and Pfautz, 15 other Falcons have collected at least one point throughout the season.
Sara Brooks, Shayna Landis, and Hannah Roland anchor a strong backline that allowed a conference best, 0.57 goals per game in conference play. Freshman Shelby Landes (.738 save percentage, 48 saves, 1.02 GAA) protects the cage for the Falcons. Landes has started all 18 games for Messiah this season.
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| Scouting the Field |
| No. 2 Stevenson Mustangs - 11-8 Overall, 5-2 MAC Commonwealth |
 | The Mustangs earned the No. 2 seed and home field advantage for the first round of the MAC Commonwealth Tournament with a 2-1 victory over Lebanon Valley last week. The Mustangs enter the tournament on a tear. They have won seven of their last eight games.
In conference regular season games, the Mustangs put up the second-best margin of victory (1.29 goals per game) in the MAC Commonwealth. Led by Rosemarie Nelva (16g, 4a) and Sara McVey (10g, 5a), the Stevenson offense is scoring 2.86 goals per conference game.
On the defensive end, the Mustangs have used three different goalies with Kim Hahr starting the last five games on the season. Hahr has a 0.90 GAA with a 5-1 record and has collected 3 shutouts.
When they met
The Falcons defeated the Mustangs 4-2 on Oct. 3rd in Owings Mills. It was the lone game that the Falcons allowed more than one goal to a MAC Commonwealth opponent. In the game, Moriah Pfautz tallied twice while Carissa Gehman and Taylor Holt each added a single goal. Rosemarie Neiva and Holli Eppley each scored for the Mustangs as the Falcons outshot Stevenson 12-9 in the contest.
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| No. 3 Lebanon Valley Dutchmen - 10-7 Overall, 5-2 MAC Commonwealth |
 | The Dutchmen held the number two spot in the MAC Commonwealth standings until the final day of the regular season when they fell to Stevenson 2-1. Lebanon Valley dropped two of their final three games to close out the regular season.
Brittany Fleisher (10g, 1a), Lyndee Sheaffer (6g, 3a), and Maddie Fox (7g) have all collected double-digit point totals to lead the Dutchmen offense to a 2.57 goals per game average.
In cage for the Dutchmen is Victoria ByDeLey (1.73 GAA, .792 save percentage, 57 saves). The Dutchmen defense has allowed 1.86 goals per game as a team in conference play.
When they met
The Falcons and Dutchmen met on Oct. 21 in a showdown of the top two teams in the conference. Messiah came away with a 3-0 victory, thanks to goals from Kristin Donohue, Taylor Holt, and Kezia Loht. Messiah dominated possession in the contest, outshooting Lebanon Valley 21-2 in the game.
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| No. 4 Albright Lions - 12-8 Overall, 4-3 MAC Commonwealth |
 | The Albright Lions are making their first ever appearance in the MAC Commonwealth tournament thanks to a 2-1 overtime victory over cross-town rival Alvernia on the last day of the conference regular season. The win gave the Lions the final spot in the tournament. Senior Amanda Smith scored both goals in that victory. Smith (21g, 9a) along with Tracy Snyder (14g, 7a) lead six Lions with at least three goals this season.
Aileen Taylor plays the majority of minutes in the cage for the Lions. She has made 114 saves this season and allows 1.84 goals per game.
When they met
Two days after shutting out the Dutchmen the Falcons traveled to Reading to take on the Lions. Like Lebanon Valley, Messiah took down Albright by a 3-0 final. Lindsay Bower, Carissa Gehman, and Karalyn Schmidt each connected for a goal in the afternoon contest. In the game Messiah held a 14-9 advantage in shots but only a slight edge in corners 10-8. All three of Messiah's goals came in the first-half.
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Conference Championship HistoryLast year the Falcons won the MAC Commonwealth tournament as the No. 4 seed, this year they will look to defend their title from the top. This year marks Messiah's 27th appearance in the MAC or MAC Commonwealth Tournament since joining the conference in 1984. Since joining the conference, Messiah has won 21 titles. Additionally, Messiah has won the conference title in 13 of the last 14 years including eight straight championships dating back to 2007.
