STANDISH, ME – The 2012 Saint Joseph's field hockey schedule has been announced. The Monks will play 17 contests this fall with a docket that features nine North Atlantic Conference (NAC) games and eight non-conference tilts.
St. Joe's has enjoyed unprecedented success in four years as a NAC member, posting an incredible 27-2 (.931) record in conference play with three trips to the NAC Championship game since the start of the 2008 campaign. Head Coach Rupert Lewis looks to notch the program's first conference crown, and subsequent NCAA Tournament appearance, with the help of a formidable non-league slate in his eighth season at the helm.
Such opponents include a quartet of Little East Conference foes in Eastern Connecticut State, Southern Maine, Salem State and Plymouth State, and other quality counterparts in Kean University, Anna Maria College, University of New England, and Endicott College.
The 17-game schedule features eight home contests, as St. Joe's faces off against Lasell, Anna Maria, Simmons, USM, Endicott, Salem State, Castleton, and Colby-Sawyer at Mercy Field this fall. The Monks' 17 opponents combined to post a 153-168 (.477) record in 2011 and Saint Joseph's owns an all-time record of 85-95 (.472) against the group, collectively.
The 2012 season begins with a trip to Eastern Connecticut State University on Saturday, September 1st. The game, which starts at 1:00 PM, will mark the first time the two teams have ever met in a field hockey match. The Monks continue on a southward trek with a game at Kean University two days later.
The team's home-opener takes place on Saturday, September 8th when NAC-rival Lasell College comes to town for a 12:00 PM start. The Monks take on the AMCATS of Anna Maria College at home the following day in a non-conference tilt slated to start at 1:00 PM.
The Monks then travel to Biddeford for a rivalry match against University of New England on September 12th. This contest figures to be hotly contested, as each of the previous five meetings versus the Nor'easters, an 18-4 team last fall, have been decided by just one goal.
Saint Joseph's returns home four days later to take on NAC-foe Simmons College and remains at Mercy Field for a September 20th contest against Southern Maine. The Monks than take to the road for a pair of conference weekend games, facing New England College on September 22nd and Rivier College the following afternoon.
The Monks then face 2011 NCAA Tournament qualifier Endicott College at home on September 25th before traveling for three straight conference games, beginning with a trip to Maine-Farmington on September 29th.
Up next should prove to be one of the most important contests of the year: an away game versus in-state rival Husson University at 6:00 PM on October 3rd. The Monks have enjoyed success against the Eagles during the regular season with a 4-0 record in in-season games versus the Eagles since joining the NAC in 2008. Husson has had the Monks' number in postseason play, however, as the Eagles have defeated the Royal Blue in the playoffs in each of the last three seasons - including a pair of gut-wrenching NAC Championships setbacks - en route to capturing three consecutive conference titles, as well as a trio of NCAA Tournament berths.
The season continues three days later when Saint Joseph's travels to Thomas College for another conference contest. A non-league home game versus Salem State takes place on October 9th and, after 10 days off, the Royal Blue hosts perennial NAC power Castleton State on October 20th at 12:00 PM. Conference-rival Colby Sawyer comes to town the following afternoon in what will be the Monks' final NAC regular-season game.
St. Joe's closes out the year at Plymouth State on October 24th in a game that should be a good primer for the Monks heading into the NAC Tournament. The Royal Blue tipped the Panthers, who posted an impressive 18-4 record last fall, by a 2-1 margin at Mercy Field last season.
The NAC Tournament begins with a quarterfinal round on Saturday, October 27th and continues with the semifinals, which will take place on Wednesday, October 31st. The conference championship takes place on Saturday, November 3rd. The higher seed hosts throughout the tourney and the NAC champion claims an automatic berth into the NCAA DIII Field Hockey Tournament.
Saint Joseph's went 13-6 overall and 8-1 in NAC play last fall under the guidance of Head Coach Rupert Lewis. The second-seeded Monks advanced to the conference championship game for the third time in four years as a NAC member, but suffered a 2-1 penalty-stroke loss at the hands of #5 Husson University in the title match on Saturday, November 5th.
2012 Schedule Synopsis:
