Field Hockey Meets Maryland For Championship
11/20/1999 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Nov. 20, 1999
BOSTON (AP) - Michigan has never come close to an NCAA field hockey championship. Maryland has been expected to win it all season.
Those two teams square off for the title on Sunday.
Michigan has won respect with seven straight wins, including six against opponents ranked in the nation's top 12. Their last victory came Friday when they upset the previously undefeated Connecticut 4-3 to advance to the final.
But the Wolverines (20-6) will have to beat a No. 1-ranked Maryland team Sunday to take their first-ever national title, and the first women's national title in Michigan history.
"We are clearly the underdog," Wolverine coach Marcia Pankratz said.
Maryland (23-1) was the highest-scoring team in the nation this season, averaging 5.43 goals per game. The Terrapins won a national championship in 1993, and are competing in the sixth final four in school history.
Maryland earned the trip to the final when their leading scorer, Rachel Hiskins, netted the game-winner in double-overtime to give the Terps a 2-1 victory over Iowa.
The Wolverines will counter Maryland's powerful offense with an impressive attack of their own. Michigan has scored a school-record 75 goals, led by Kelli Gannon's 18 goals.
"Every single person fully believes with every ounce of their being that we can win it all," Wolverine senior Ashley Reichenbach said.