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Trinity, coached by Katy Dissinger (3rd Season), improved to 17-4 on Sunday, ousting F&M from the NCAA Tournament for the third year in a row, after falling behind, 6-1, in the first half, and racing to a 9-0 lead over York on its way to the quarterfinal victory at home. The Bantams are making their 10th trip in the last 11 years to the NCAA Tournament and also participated in 1995, 1997, and 1998. Owning a 29-11 all-time record in the tourney and reaching the NCAA Quarterfinals all but once including the last eight seasons, Trinity recovered from a 7-6 loss to Amherst in its regular-season finale in 2012 to win the NESCAC and NCAA Championships with eight consecutive wins, and rattled off 21 triumphs in a row before falling to Salisbury in the 2013 championship game. In 2014 at Gettysburg, the Bantams edged undefeated and top-ranked Cortland State, 8-7, in the semifinals before a 9-6 NCAA Finals loss to Salisbury. Cortland State avenged three consecutive losses to the Bantams in the tournament semifinals with its 17-6 finals victory in 2015, before last spring's setback to New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) rival Middlebury. Trinity earned an at-large bid to this NCAA Tourney, after finishing tied at the top of the NESCAC standings and reaching the league finals, and downed Babson, 16-5, on the opening weekend of NCAA play on May 15.
"Our Sweet 16, Elite Eight was a tough bracket to survive through," Dissinger said. "I think that made us mentally strong for what we're going to be facing next weekend, which is a similar Saturday-Sunday competition. The semis and finals, we can do this.'"
Trinity, ranked No. 2 in the New England Region and No. 10 nationally, came storming back from deficits of 6-1 in the first half and 8-4 in the second stanza to stun Franklin & Marshall in the NCAA Third Round, before jumping out to a 9-0 lead en route to its quarterfinal victory over York (Pa.) on Sunday. Senior tri-captain midfielder Karly Simpson (South Hadley, Mass.) had four goals and two assists, including the game-tying tally, and junior attacker Kiley Coffey (West Newbury, Mass.) recorded a hat trick in the win over Franklin & Marshall. Against York, Coffey and classmate Grace O'Donnell (Yarmouth, Maine) had three goals apiece, while junior Zoe Ferguson (Ridgewood, N.J.) had nine saves in the Bantam goal while holding the Spartans scoreless for the game's first 45 minutes. O'Donnell added an assist to her three goals to lead all scorers with four points, while Coffey notched four draw controls in addition to her hat trick, Simpson scored twice, and senior tri-captain attacker Clare Lyne (Concord, Mass.) added one goal and an assist to become the 11th Bantam to record 200 career points (145g, 55a). Seniors Lara Guida (Mendham, N.J.) and Nicole Stauffer (Cheshire, Conn.) had two ground balls and a caused turnover apiece for the Bantams on Sunday.
Trinity ranks third in the NESCAC in scoring defense (7.29 GAA), while Ferguson, an All-American this spring, ranks second in the conference in save percentage at .520 (24th in nation) and third in GAA at 7.13 (19th in nation) to go with 158 saves in 1,212 minutes of play. Senior tri-captain attacker Clare Lyne (Concord, Mass.), a three-time All-American, leads the Bantams in scoring with 73 points on 48 goals and a team-best 25 assists in addition to being Trinity's all-time leader in draw controls with 229 including 51 this season. Coffey has a team-high 58 goals and ranks second on the Bantams with 59 total points, while junior attacker Abby McInerney (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) adds 36 goals and 13 assists and Simpson has 28 goals and 15 assists. Trinity junior midfielder Allie Barrett (Concord, Mass.) and classmate Grace O'Donnell (Yarmouth, Maine) have totaled 58 points between them to give the Bantams six players with 25 or more points this spring. McInerney and Lyne have combined for 104 draw controls, Guida has a team-high 30 ground balls, and junior All-American defender Clara Nowlan (Needham, Mass.) adds a team-high 24 caused turnovers. Guida and Nowlan, and first-year Sarah Montalbano (Huntington, N.Y.) have been consistent all spring on the Trinity back line, while senior Kathryn DeLillio (Wilmington, Del.) has come back strong from an injury to round out the Trinity defense. Ferguson, Lyne, and Nowlan were named to the 2017 All-NESCAC First Team, while all three joined Coffey on the IWLCA All-Berkshire Region First Team, and McInerney and Simpson both also graced the All-Berkshire Region Second Team.
Gettysburg, coached by Carol Cantele (25th Season), is making its 17th appearance in the NCAA Tournament overall and won the national title in 2011. The Bullets are 19-3 this spring, having downed Salisbury, 10-2. and won its three NCAA games by a combined score of 42-8. Gettysburg, whose three setbacks this spring have all come by a single goal, received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tourney, are in the.NCAA Final Four for the first time since its 2011 title run. Katie Landry is the top Bullet scorer with 32 goals and 40 assists, while Caroline Jaeger adds a team-high 43 goals, and Shannon Keeler has 107 saves and a 5.07 GAA in the Gettysburg goal. Saturday's game will be the fourth meeting between Trinity and the Bullets, but Trinity won the most recent match-up, 16-8, on the road in the 2014 NCAA Quarterfinals.
