ANN ARBOR, Mich. — St. Joe’s field hockey reaching the NCAA Championship game might have felt like a dream to some at the beginning of the season, but head coach Hannah Prince knew her team was capable of making it there.
“I knew it would take an insane amount of work, and I knew that it wasn’t going to be easy, but I did, from the beginning of the season, truly believe that this was something that our group was capable of,” Prince said.
Goal after goal became a reality as the months went on: finishing the season ranked third in the country with a record of 20-4, winning a fourth consecutive Atlantic 10 title, setting a program record for most wins in the season, hosting the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history and becoming the first St. Joe’s team to make it to a national championship game. The dreams seemed surreal, but never impossible.
Until they were.
St. Joe’s fell to Northwestern 5-0 in the NCAA title game Nov. 24.
“Not coming out on top today, it stings and it hurts, but just being able to be on this field today speaks for itself,” Prince said.
Even after the heartbreaking loss, Prince saw the bigger picture of what a season like this means in the grand scheme of things for the players and the program.
“It honestly teaches you so much, and those lessons are things that they’ll carry with them the rest of their lives,” Prince said. “This will be a memory that they have forever, and they can say they played in the national championship. Even me saying that out loud right now, I’m still in a ‘pinch me’ mode.”
St. Joe’s gave up five goals across the first two quarters in the title game. Despite holding off the Wildcats in the second half, the Hawks were unable to find the back of the cage down the other side of the field, tying the record for the fewest shots allowed in a national championship game. The only shot on goal came from fifth-year midfielder Celeste Smits in the first quarter.
The win also marked the second-highest margin of victory in a national championship game, giving Northwestern their second national championship. The first came in 2021 when the current seniors were in their first year with the program.
“Obviously couldn’t be more excited today to have eight or nine seniors out there in a great surrounding cast and bring home a second national championship in field hockey to Northwestern,” said head coach Tracey Fuchs. “St. Joe’s had an amazing season. You always want to bring your best when you come to a Final Four. I think we did that today and saved our best for the last, so really excited for us but want to congratulate them on a great season as well.”
While the seniors from Northwestern went out on top, the nine fifth-years and two seniors from St. Joe’s faced a more bitter reality as they came to terms with the end of their collegiate careers.
“They had an amazing career. The program has continued to grow over the last few years, and they have to hold their heads high,” Prince said. “They have to know they did everything in their power to put this program and themselves and each other in the best position possible. Our goal at the beginning of the season was to have a legendary one, and I can walk off the field saying we did just that.”
But with this chapter now closed, Prince is looking to what history the Hawks can write in future seasons.
“Everyone keeps saying we made history this year, and that’s incredible,” Prince said. “And I love having the mentality of: Let’s continue on that path. Let’s keep trying to make history and doing everything in our power as coaches, as support staff, as players, as even recruits who are committed to the program, just being extremely bought in to what we’re trying to achieve, and have some fun with it and stay as humble and hungry as possible.”
