November 11, 2002

SALISBURY EARNS NINTH STRAIGHT NCAA FIELD HOCKEY BID
Sea Gulls (15-2) Host New England College (16-2) in Saturday’s Opener

Salisbury begins play in the 2002 NCAA Division III Field Hockey Tournament this Saturday, November 16 at home against New England College. A victory would move the Sea Gulls into Sunday's national quarterfinals against either SUNY-Cortland (14-3) or Lynchburg (17-3).

The schedule for the regional hosted by Salisbury (with records noted)
Saturday   10 am    Salisbury (15-2) vs. New England College (16-2)
                    1 pm    SUNY-Cortland (14-3) vs. Lynchburg (17-3)
Sunday      1 pm     Regional Championship Game

Ticket Information
Tickets for the Salisbury regional are priced at $5 for adult general admission and $3 for students from the competing schools with a valid ID. One ticket is valid for both games on Saturday. A new ticket is required for Sunday’s game.

Salisbury’s NCAA History 
Salisbury is making its 18th trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last 19 years. The Gulls qualified for the NCAA Championship Tournament nine straight times from 1984-92 and have now returned to the field for another nine straight years after missing out in 1993.  The Sea Gulls won the national championship with a 21-0 record in 1986, and have advanced to the national semifinals on four other occasions: 1987, 1988, 1992 and 2000. Last year, Salisbury received a first round bye, then lost a 2-1 overtime decision against Lynchburg in the tournament’s second round. SU is 21-17 all-time in NCAA Tournament games, including 12-5 in its opening contest. Salisbury’s 18 tournament appearances is tied for second highest in NCAA Division III history.

Gulls Capture Eighth Straight CAC Crown in 2002
For the eighth straight year, Salisbury enters the NCAA Tournament as champion of the Capital Athletic Conference. While the CAC does not receive an automatic berth into the tournament, both Salisbury and runnerup Mary Washington received at-large invitations into this year’s championship field. The Gulls defeated Mary Washington 6-1 in Saturday’s title match. Senior Jessica Manzone paced Salisbury in the championship with three goals. The Gulls enter the NCAA Tournament ranked third in the nation in the most recent NFHCA poll, released on November 5. SU is riding a five-game winning streak and has won nine of its last 10 contests entering the NCAA Tournament. Junior Lindsey Elliott is the team’s leading scorer with 17 goals and 39 total points. Seniors Jill Cressor (15g-6a) and Manzone (11g-2a) are second and third, respectively, in scoring.  Sophomore Melissa Webster leads the team with 12 assists, while seniors Lindsay Bard and JacQui Aliberti anchor a defense that has recorded seven shutouts. SU averages 3.9 goals per game and has outscored opponents 68-13 this season. Junior goalie Melissa Taylor has a 0.76 goals against average.

NCAA Tournament Notes
This year’s18-team field includes 11 automatic qualifiers as conference champions. The Sea Gulls were one of seven at-large selections.  Four teams begin play in first round games on Wednesday, November 13. The two winners, along with the remaining 14 teams, will compete at four regional sites this weekend. Winners of the four regionals advance to the semifinals and finals on November 23 and 24, hosted by Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts.  Salisbury has never played New England College. The Sea Gulls are 6-9 all-time against SUNY-Cortland and 2-2 all-time against Lynchburg. Cortland is the defending national champion, winning their third NCAA crown with a 1-0 victory over Messiah in last year’s championship game.

Quoting Coach Chamberlin
“We set our goals at the beginning of the season and we have reached each one of them up to qualifying for the NCAA tournament.  At this point, we are just taking it one day at a time. We are very pleased with our performance. It has been a total team effort.  We are very excited about our [CAC] championship and reaching the NCAA Tournament. We are as prepared and playing as well as we can be. If we continue to play at a high-level, we will be a very tough team to beat.”  

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