Northeast-10 Field Hockey Quarterfinals          #5 Bryant at #4 St. Michael's

Bryant Season Stats / St. Michael's Season Stats

COLCHESTER, VT. - The Bryant Field Hockey team will take on the fourth seed St. Michael's Wednesday (1:30 p.m.) in the quarterfinals of the Northeast-10 Tournament.

The Bulldogs are the fifth seed in the NE-10 Tournament and are ranked tenth in the latest 2006 STX/NFHCA Division II National Coaches Poll. It is the first time they have been nationally ranked all season. St. Michael's is ranked eighth nationally.

These two teams met earlier this season in Colchester, VT. with the Purple Knights winning 1-0 on a late goal by Molly DiMasi on a penalty stroke at 67:26. Kundayi Mawema (Hare, Zimbabwe) made six saves for the Bulldogs.

Laynie Sadler (Rehoboth, Mass.) leads the Bulldogs in all major offensive numbers. Sadler has 12 goals and 12 assists (42 points), as well as 44 shots-on-goal and five game-winners. She is second in the conference in scoring.

Sadler is flanked offensively by junior Shana Libman (Attleboro, Mass.) (six goals, four assists), freshman Caitlan Johnson (Walpole, Mass.) (eight goals, two assists) and co-captain Michaela Dwyer (Buskirk, N.Y.) (five goals, three assists).

Kristin Tighe (North Easton, Mass.) and Deanne Viveiros (Tiverton, R.I.) anchor the defense for the Bulldogs, while the freshman Mawema will start in net. Mawema has started 19 of 20 games this season, posting a 10-9 record and a 1.99 goals-against, along with a .790 save percentage.

The Bulldogs won five of its final seven games to finish the 2006 regular season with an 11-9 record, 9-7 in the Northeast-10. Their top victories included a 3-1 win over UMass-Lowell, ranked third in the NE-10, and a 2-0 victory against Merrimack, seeded sixth.

The Purple Knights finished the season with an 11-7 record, 10-6 in the Northeast-10. They are coming off a 2-0 loss to UMass-Lowell that resulted in the River Hawks garnering the third seed. St. Michael's is 4-1 this season in overtime, including two overtime wins against Merrimack.

Andrea Slaven leads the Purple Knights with 11 goals and 26 poitns, while Lindsay Brancaleone is second with six goals and 17 points. Slaven has five game-winners. In goal, Tina Nardi has posted a 9-6 record and a 1.47 goals-against, along with three shutouts.

St. Michael's is 8-2 at home this year, while the Bulldogs are 3-5 away from Smithfield.

The winner will face the top-seed Stonehill Saturday at 11 a.m. in Easton, Mass in the Northeast-10 Semifinals.

Below is the 2006 Northeast-10 Tournament Schedule:

Nov. 1 Quarterfinals

            #4 BRYANT at #5 St. Michael's 1:30 p.m.

            #6 Merrimack at #3 UMass-Lowell 1:00 p.m.

Nov. 4 Semifinals (Easton, Mass.)

            Winner of Bryant/St. Michael's vs. #1 Stonehill 11:00 a.m.

            Winner of Merrimack/Lowell vs. #2 Bentley 2:00 p.m.

Nov. 5 Championship (Easton, Mass.) 12:00 p.m.