Athletics

Field hockey heads to NCAA Tournament

The Penn State Nittany Lion field hockey team has received an at-large bid to the 2018 NCAA Field Hockey Championship Tournament.  Penn State (12-5) will take on Harvard (16-1) on Friday, Nov. 9, as part of the regional in Princeton, New Jersey. 

Penn State and Harvard will face off at 2:30 p.m. while host Princeton will take on Virginia at 12 p.m. in Friday's first game.  Harvard will enter the game with a 16-1 overall record and as champions of the Ivy League. The winner of Saturday's games will meet on Sunday, Nov. 11, for a right to head to the national semifinals.
 
Penn State has never played Harvard, making this Friday's NCAA contest the first ever meeting between the two schools.  The Lions split with the other two teams in the regional, downing Virginia 1-0 in the season opener in Happy Valley on Aug. 26 and then falling to Princeton 2-1 in double overtime in a game also played at Penn State.

Penn State is making its third straight appearance in the NCAA tournament and its 12th in the last 14 years.  Head coach Char Morett-Curtiss is fifth all-time in NCAA history in leading teams to the NCAA tournament as this year marks the 28thtime she has led her squad into NCAA tourney action.  Penn State has been to the NCAA tournament 33 times overall, the second most in NCAA history.

The 2018 NCAA Championships will be hosted by the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky, on Nov. 16-18.  Sunday's winner will advance to the national semifinals in Kentucky.

Last Updated November 9, 2018