Field Hockey Travels to Virginia for NCAA Tournament
11/12/2010 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Nov. 12, 2010
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Corey | Jantine
EAST LANSING, Mich.-After receiving its fourth straight bid to the NCAA Field Hockey Tournament, the No. 11 Michigan State field hockey team (15-5, 3-3 Big Ten) will travel to Charlottesville, Va. to face No. 3 Virginia in a first -round matchup. The Spartans will be making their eighth overall NCAA appearance when they take on host school No. 3 Virginia (16-3) in Charlottesville, Va. on Sat. Nov. 13. Game time is set for 11:30 a.m.
Déjà vu
The Spartans will face the Cavaliers for the second year in a row in the NCAA tournament in Charlottesville. After dominating Delaware, 7-0, in the first round last season, Michigan State was eliminated by Virginia in the regional final, 3-2, in a thrilling overtime match. The Cavaliers hold a 1-2 record overall on the Spartans.
Along with facing UVA for the second consecutive year in the tournament, the Spartans will face off against former MSU coach and current Virginia head coach, Michelle Madison. Madison coached the Spartans from 1993-2005. Head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof began his career as a Spartan as an assistant coach under Madison in 1998 and together they led MSU to two final fours (2002 and 2004) and to a record of 106-46.
Glancing at the Cavaliers
Virginia completed the 2010 season with an overall record of 16-3 and a conference record of 3-2. Virginia lost its most recent game in the ACC Tournament Semifinal against No. 2 North Carolina, 1-0. The third-ranked Cavaliers had three of their top players selected to the 2010 All-Atlantic Coast Conference team. Elly Buckley, Paige Selenski and Michelle Vittese represented the Orange and Blue on the All- Conference squad.
Selenski leads her team with 23 goals and the ACC with seven game-winners. Vittese, a back for the Cavaliers, has scored four goals and tallied two assists. Buckley has scored 14 times and recorded ten assists in her debut season. Kim Kastuk leads the goaltending corps with a 13-3 record, a save percentage of .821 and a GAA of 1.27.
Tournament Time
The Spartans have compiled an 8-7 record in NCAA Tournament games and advanced to the Final Four in both 2002 and 2004. This will be MSU's eighth tournament appearance in ten years. Under head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof, MSU has made it to the second round of the tournament the last two seasons, which included last year's 7-0 decision over Delaware in the first round before falling to Virginia. Van de Kerkhof has led the Green and White to four consecutive tournament appearances.
Wrapping up the Big Ten
Michigan State completed the 2010 Big Ten season in fourth place with a 3-3 record. The Spartans posted victories over Northwestern (3-2), Indiana (2-0) and Iowa (1-0) and fell to Penn State (4-1), Ohio State (5-1) and Michigan (2-1). Ohio State and Michigan clinched a share of the conference title with identical 5-1 records, but Ohio State was named the top seed in the Big Ten tournament thanks to a 2-1 head-to-head victory over the Wolverines. Following Michigan in third place was Penn State, which finished the season with a record of 4-2. Northwestern also had a 3-3 Big Ten record this season, but the Spartans edged them in the standings by defeating the Wildcats on Oct. 31. Indiana claimed sixth place at 1-5, and Iowa finished last after failing to produce a conference win.
Big Ten Tournament
Michigan State fell in the semifinal round of the Big Ten Tournament to top-seeded Ohio State, 2-0. It was the Spartan's second loss to the Buckeyes this season; MSU fell to the Buckeyes, 5-1, in conference play. Michigan State downed tournament hosts, Northwestern (3-1) in the first round of play. It was MSU's third victory over the Wildcats this season.
All Big Ten
MSU's top two seniors, forward Jantine Steinmetz and midfielder Sabine van den Assem, were both selected to the All-Big Ten First Team, while the Spartans were represented on the Second Team by freshman goaltender Molly Cassidy and sophomore forward Kristen Henn. Senior back Meghan Magee was recognized as MSU's Big Ten Sportsmanship Honoree.
 Freshman goaltender Molly Cassidy  | |
Decorated by three Big Ten Freshman of the Week awards and two Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week laurels, freshman goaltender Molly Cassidy received Second Team All-Big Ten honors this season. Cassidy has compiled an impressive resume in her debut season in goal by posting a 1.66 GAA and a save percentage of .750. She has recorded five career shutouts, all at home, with two of her shutouts coming over ranked opponents. Sophomore Kristen Henn was also a Second Team pick. Henn has been a huge part of Michigan State's success on corner plays and has played a part in many Spartan victories. Henn leads the upperclassmen with 21 points which came on nine goals and three assists. Three of her goals have been game-winners.
Leading the Way
The Spartan offense is led by senior forward Jantine Steinmetz. Steinmetz has recorded eleven goals and nine assists so far this season. The Amstelveen, Netherlands native has tallied five game-winning goals, which is good for the team's best. Behind Steinmetz is senior forward Sabine van den Assem, who has also tallied eleven goals this season. Van den Assem has recorded four helpers as well. Following the dynamic seniors is sophomore midfielder Kristen Henn who has scored nine times and assisted on three goals. While these three talented forwards have led MSU throughout most of the season, a total of thirteen different Spartans have scored this season. The Spartan offense has compiled a .189 shot percentage in 2010 and have found the back of the cage 53 times. They have also recorded a .605 shots on goal percentage.
Dynamic Defense
MSU's defensive corps has had an impressive season as well. Senior back Joelle van Ierland has tallied two defensive saves, three goals and eight assists in 2010. Sophomore back Corey Block has also recorded a defensive save for the Spartans. In her debut season, freshman goaltender Molly Cassidy has recorded a GAA of 1.64, a save percentage of .750, and has five career shutouts. All five of Cassidy's shutouts have been at home. She has had a career high 14 saves against No. 20 Stanford and recently recorded 12 saves against Northwestern in MSU's thrilling 3-2 victory. The Michigan State defense has also contributed to the Spartans' goal production with sophomore back Adelle Lever and junior back Holly Sherman each recording one goal each alongside van Ierland's three. Sherman also has two assists this season.
Second Half Scoring
Michigan State continues to bring momentum into their second half of play, as the team has scored most of their goals in the second thirty-five minutes. MSU has scored 32 out of their 53 goals this season in the second half and have shot at their opponent's cage 145 times after the intermission. The Spartan defense has also been stepping up during the second thirty-five minutes of play, with freshman goaltender Molly Cassidy recording 53 of her 96 saves in the second half.
Penalty Strokes
Sabine van den Assem's penalty stroke in the tilt against Ohio State on Oct. 15 was the second stroke opportunity the Spartans have had this season. Senior forward Jantine Steinmetz recorded MSU's only goal against Michigan in this manner when the Spartans visited Ann Arbor on Oct. 1. Michigan State lost the contest against the Wolverines, 2-1. Both penalty strokes wound up being the only tallies for the Spartans in their losses to Big Ten rivals, Ohio State and Michigan.
Shut Out
Goaltender Molly Cassidy has recorded five shutouts over her debut season. Two of her shutouts came over ranked opponents with a 1-0 win over No. 10 Duke and a 1-0 victory against No. 12 James Madison. Cassidy has a good feel for the Ralph Young Field, since all five of her shutouts occurred at home. She posted the rest of her shutouts against Providence (1-0), Iowa (1-0), and Indiana (1-0). Cassidy has recorded a GAA of 1.64 and a save percentage of .750. Her 96 saves are good for second in the Big Ten and she is tied for third with five shutouts.
Conference Laurels
Freshman goaltender Molly Cassidy was awarded five Big Ten Player of the Week awards this season for her outstanding defensive performances. Cassidy was named both the Big Ten Freshman and Defensive Player of the Week for her first career shutout over No. 10 Duke (1-0) on Aug. 29th and recording 14 saves in MSU's 3-2 victory over No. 20 Stanford. She was most recently named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Nov. 1st after posting 12 saves and helping propel Michigan State to a 3-2 victory over Northwestern. Freshman Katherine Jamieson also picked up a Big Ten Freshman of the Week award after scoring the game-winning goal on Sept. 3 against California as the Spartans defeated the Golden Bears, 4-3.
Ranked Opponents
Michigan State is ranked 11th in the Kookaburra/NCFHA Division I National Coaches Poll this week. The Spartans have been ranked as high as sixth in 2010. This season, the Spartans have recorded a 5-4 record against ranked opponents. MSU has posted wins over No. 9 Wake Forest (3-1), No. 10 Duke (1-0), No. 19 Stanford, (3-2), No. 12 James Madison (1-0) and No.13 Boston University, (6-1).
Players Mentioned
