FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- With 18 regular-season games in the book, the Fairfield University field hockey can now set its focus on the upcoming Northeast Conference Championship, a tournament with a four-team field that will be hosted by Wagner College this weekend. The semifinals will take place on Friday with third-seeded Fairfield playing second-seeded Wagner at 2 pm. Top-seeded Rider University will take on fourth-seeded Saint Francis University in the first semifinal at 11 am. The two winners will face each other at noon on Sunday with a berth to the NCAA Tournament on the line.

The Stags are in familiar territory when it comes to the NEC Championship, winning both the regular-season and tournament titles in 2019 and 2021. This year, Fairfield will need to come from the unfamiliar placement of being the third seed in the tournament. The team owns a 5-2 overall record in the NEC tournament with four of those victories coming as the top seed in 2019 and 2021. Regardless of seed, the Stags have to face a field that has a combined winning percentage of just under .600. 

Fairfield has received a boost from the addition of graduate student Nora Amme, who received the NEC Player of the Year award based on the vote of the conference's head coaches. She has been a force up front for the Stags with her seven goals and 10 assists for 24 points which place her among the top five in most offensive categories. Carmel Van Dijk, a second-team All-NEC student-athlete, is next in line with three goals and seven assists for 13 points which is just ahead of Julianna Kratz and Alex Senior's 12 points off five goals and two assists each. Goalkeeper Payton Rahn continues to provide steadiness to the Stags defense with her 1.92 goals against average and .711 save percentage.

Rider holds the top seed in this year's tournament after posting a 13-5 overall record and a 6-1 mark in conference play. The Stags have faced the Broncs more than any other team in the NEC tournament, holding a 2-2 record in the four matched played. This year, Rider secured a 3-1 win in the regular-season match up in Lawrenceville. The Broncs feature two major award winners from the NEC with Indy Zoontjens garnering rookie of the year honors and Kaitlyn Tomas collecting defensive player of the year accolades. Tomas led the NEC in goals against average, shutouts, and save percentage. Her .794 save percentage also ranks in the top 10 for Division I. Zoontjens posted 11 goals and a conference-best 12 assists for 36 points, scoring a point in 13 straight games during the season.

Wagner shared the regular-season NEC title with Rider after earning an 11-6 overall record and a 6-1 NEC slate which included six wins over the final seven matches. The Seahawks boast the talent of Julia Cruces Pastorino who captured the NEC offensive player of the year award after putting up 11 goals and nine assists for 31 points, leading the team in all three categories. Goalkeeper Daisy Ruhle remains a formidable force in the Wagner goal, sporting a 1.43 goals against average which is aided by her three shutouts. The graduate student also has impressive save numbers with a .764 save percentage based off 81 saves in her 17 appearances this season.

Saint Francis finished up the regular season with an 8-11 overall record and a 5-2 NEC mark after winning their its final four regular-season matches which included three conference opponents. Eva Valentini has excelled inside the circle this season with her team-leading 12 goals and six assists for 30 points in 19 games this season. The sophomore also performed well as a defender with her team-leading five defensive saves in 2022. Chloe South (1.82 goals against average and .735 save percentage) and Amber Bryan (3.34 goals against average and .607 save percentage) have shared a good part of the goalkeeper duties this year.