Field hockey falls to Catholic, 2-1, in Landmark semifinals

WASHINGTON, D.C. – For the first time since the league's inception in 2007, the Landmark Conference Field Hockey Champion will not be Juniata College.

Juniata, four-time defending Landmark champions and no. 4 seed of the 2011 Landmark field hockey tournament, carried 10th-ranked Catholic University of America into overtime before dropping a 2-1 decision to the Cardinals, in Wednesday night's tournament semifinal at Cardinal Stadium.

Catholic's Tracey Scanlon scored unassisted with 8:19 remaining in the first sudden-death overtime period, following a Cardinal penalty corner. That goal sent the Cardinals into Saturday's championship game against the winner of the University of Scranton-Drew University semifinal.

Juniata (10-8) forced the extra session with just 2:12 remaining in regulation, when Shauna Deschenes (Duncannon, Pa./Susquenita) scored on a penalty stroke to knot the game at 1-1.

Neither team was able to score through the first 35 minutes of play, with Catholic outshooting Juniata 10-5 in the first half. 

The Cardinals finally broke the scoring drought just 1:16 into the second half, when Katie Bertrand beat Eagle goalie Janelle Howard (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) off an assist by Colleen Harwood. Catholic tried to double its lead by finding the back of the cage amidst a flurry of shots over the 10 minutes following Bertrand's goal, with Howard logging five saves in that short span.

Catholic (15-1) outshot Juniata 28-10 over the course of the match, with Howard finished with a career-high 12 saves in the Eagle cage.  Cardinal goalie Megan Comunale tallied six saves in the Catholic goal.

The Cardinals finished with a commanding 21-8 advantage in penalty corner opportunities.

Juniata will have to wait to see if its post-season will continue with the ECAC Division III Mid-Atlantic Tournament. That tournament bracket should be announced on Monday, Nov. 7.

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