Kutztown beat Shippensburg to reclaim No. 1 rank in DII women’s field hockey poll: NFHCA

Kerry Kaufman (ESU), Tess Adolf (Kutztown), and Taylor Tory (Assumption) have contributed to their team’s overall Division II field hockey ranking.

The Kutztown women’s field hockey team reclaimed the No. 1 spot in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association poll this week after Shippensburg suffered from their first loss of the season.

The NFHCA poll was published earlier this week. Both Kutztown and Ship are in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), one of the toughest conferences in Division II field hockey.

The Golden Bears extended their program-record winning streak to 12 games. Goalkeeper Tess Adolf has allowed only six goals on the season.

Shippensburg’s unbeaten run came to an end in a hard-fought 3-2 loss to East Stroudsburg, marking the Raiders’ first defeat of the season.

The Warriors scored first in the second quarter and twice in the third. The Raiders also scored in the third and fought back in the fourth with a goal scored by Elaina Fragassi, but it wasn’t enough.

The game winner, which was scored in the third was scored by Kerry Kaufman and assisted by Emma Friend.

ESU also defeated Bloomsburg this week in an overtime thriller increasing the team’s cache in the PSAC, as both ESU and Bloom also play in that conference.

In individual achievements, Newberry College’s Emma Westbrook made history by becoming the program’s all-time leader in career points with 111. The hat trick against Lander not only secured the win, but also earned her South Atlantic Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors.

Assumption reentered the national rankings at No. 9, following a close 1-0 victory over Saint Anselm. The lone goal came early in the second quarter from Taylor Tory, assisted by Elle Murray.

Goalkeeper Paige Gillette recorded her third shutout of the season, making nine saves to preserve the win.

According to the NFHCA, the poll is voted on by designated NFHCA member coaches from each conference and has no bearing on selection to the NCAA Division I Field Hockey Championship.

Bolded teams have moved positions higher or lower from week-to-week.

10. Saint Anselm, 8-5 (9)

9. Assumption, 7-5 (unranked)

8. Lander, 7-3 (7)

7. Millersville, 7-5 (8)

6. Bloomsburg, 11-1 (6)

5. West Chester, 8-3 (5)

4. East Stroudsburg, 11-2 (4)

3. Newberry, 10-0 (3)

2. Shippensburg, 11-1 (1)

1. Kutztown, 12-0 (2)

Thank you for reading Female Athlete News. Sydney Madden is a student-intern at Penn State University.