St. Joe’s field hockey team finished their regular season with a 15-3 record, ending the historic season with a 3-0 shutout win against local Atlantic 10 competitor La Salle. 

Looking ahead to the postseason, the team is seeded second for the upcoming A-10 tournament and ranked fifth nationally in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Division I Coaches Poll. 

Head coach Hannah Prince said the team is in high spirits and is looking to keep the momentum going as they host the A-10 tournament and go for their fourth consecutive A-10 title.

“As always, our expectations are to win, take it game by game, focus on our opponent, which is Richmond on Thursday,” Prince said. “Take care of business Thursday, and then go into Sunday with an attitude that we know that we can beat anyone, and that if we play our best hockey, that we will make that happen.” 

Winning the A-10 and earning a bid to the NCAA tournament would mean everything, Prince said, adding that the athletes have been working hard all season and putting in extra work off the field to maintain their winning attitudes. But what’s most important to Prince is that the athletes give all their effort on the field and support their teammates through it all, she said.

“I think winning this year with the leadership and the returners that we have would be really special for them, and our goal from the beginning of the season has been to do that, so it would be a great thing for us to achieve,” Prince said. “If they’re having fun playing, I’m going to be happy. [They are] giving 100% effort and being good teammates, that’s the bottom line. That’s what’s most important.” 

This year is different from previous ones as the team consists of nine fifth-years, something that is a big motivating factor for the younger members of the team, said sophomore forward Erika Culp. 

The drive to win for the graduating class with their last chance at A-10 glory has made the team more motivated than in previous years.

“They’re just trying to give it their all, and we’re all trying to give it our all, and I think we’re just connecting well this year, and it’s working out pretty good,” Culp said.

For the athletes who will be playing for St. Joe’s in their final postseason, this tournament means leaving everything out on the field. Fifth-year back Kate Crist said this will be her last season playing field hockey for St. Joe’s, and the pressure is on to make a statement.

“It’s a little bit of a bittersweet moment. It’s your last postseason, for me and for a lot of us, and obviously, we want to go out on top,” Crist said. “There’s a lot of pressure on us, but pressure makes diamonds, and I think we’ll come out on top.”