School for many is back in session this week, and the start of a new school year also means the start of Division III field hockey. Last season ended with another championship title for the undefeated Middlebury Panthers – their sixth consecutive crown. That left Centennial Conference powerhouse Johns Hopkins as the national runner-up for the third straight season. This year – anything could happen.
Needless to say, Division III play is highly competitive and fun, with a plethora of strong athletes and teams. Check out some of this year’s teams to watch.
Middlebury
The No. 1 Panthers hope to pick up right where they left off last season – undefeated with a national title. Middlebury returns 23 players to this 2024 squad, all of whom have at least one year or more of NCAA tournament experience. Despite the loss of goalkeeper KK Newton, who started all 22 games for the Panthers last season, Middlebury has three strong choices in junior Thea Rosenweig, sophomore Izzy Redzic, or first year Madeline DiLemme.
Back at Peter Kohn Field for her senior season is 2023 New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Defensive Player of the Year and National Field Hockey Coaches Association’s (NFHCA) National Player of the Year Amy Griffin. Griffin is a two-time NFHCA All-American midfielder and is quintessential in both the offensive and defensive circles for the Panthers. Also returning are seniors Caroline Segal and Lilly Branka, both of whom showed up quite frequently in the scorebook last fall. The Panthers’ stacked cast of returners also includes Shawna Ferraro, Katherine Lantzy, and Hanna Medwar. Middlebury welcomes four first year field players, hoping to find someone to fill the void left by the graduation of NFHCA First-Team All American and NESCAC Offensive Player of the Year Katie George.
Head Coach Katharine DeLorenzo returns for her 24th season with Middlebury. In this time, she has guided the Panthers to seven total National Championship titles, winning the past six. Middlebury continually strives to be the best – often with success – and this season will be no different.
Johns Hopkins
The Blue Jays return hungry for a National Championship title after losing to Middlebury in the NCAA final the past three years. A recently defined powerhouse, Johns Hopkins ranked second in the 2024 Penn Monto/NFHCA Division III Preseason Coaches Poll and was the unanimous favorite in the Centennial Conference Preseason Poll. Last season, the Blue Jays went 21-2, losing an early match to York and then not again until they met Middlebury in the tournament final.
This fall, Johns Hopkins returns 19 players and welcomes a large incoming class made up of ten freshmen. Like Middlebury, the Blue Jays will have a new starter in net this fall, with either sophomore Aubrey Kilgore or freshman Jessica Lapidus stepping up to fill the shoes of recent graduate Alexis Loder. Johns Hopkins returns a confident and experienced back line led by senior Liz Falterer. Falterer was an NFHCA All-American in 2023 as well as the Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Year. A force on both ends of the field, Falterer also had nine goals last season, the second most on the team. Staples to the midfield Ava Balacek and Jenna Halpin will also return for the Blue Jays, while new to the squad is Lila Slattery, a graduate student from Northwestern University who appeared in six games for the Wildcats in her senior season.
Johns Hopkins is a consistent, tough, and talented team that understands what it means to compete at the highest level. They are definitely a team to watch this season, and a team that can be expected to make another run in tournament play this fall.
Babson
The Beavers sit atop the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Preseason Poll to start the season and came in at third in the Penn Monto/NFHCA Division III Preseason Coaches Poll. Babson closed out their 2023 campaign 9-0 in conference play and 22-2 overall, losing to Middlebury College, 3-0, in the NCAA semi-final. The Beavers were the Panthers’ biggest threat last year, being the only team to come within a single goal when they fell 3-2 in regular season play.
Babson welcomes back 17 players and has brought in ten new faces, including three graduate students. Defender Brooklyn Lamb joins this Beaver squad from Boston University, along with midfielder Katie Guden of The College of Holy Cross, and forward Sophie Croci from Rhodes. In terms of returning players, there is midfielder Camille Marsh and forward Jessica Evans, a senior duo who combined for 37 points last season. Additionally, the Beavers return two-time NFHCA All-American Berit Sharrow, whose leadership in the backfield was crucial in limiting opponents to only 17 total goals last fall. Sharrow is back alongside goalkeeper Bayla Furmanek, who finished out the 2023 season with a .779 save percentage. With all of this new and returning talent, Babson is expected to once again go far in tournament play.
Salisbury
In their final season in the Coast to Coast Athletic Conference (C2C), the Sea Gulls look to improve upon their 14-5 record from 2023. This squad is capable of playing against the top teams in the country, felling opponents like Williams and York last fall while taking Johns Hopkins to a shootout. In their 2024 campaign, Salisbury will come face to face with these teams again in the regular season, a strategy which will hopefully prepare them for when they inevitably return to the NCAA tournament in November.
The Sea Gulls return 19 athletes, including sophomore Marli McDorman. In her rookie season, McDorman led the team in points (26), was named an NFHCA Second Team All-American, and was the East Coast Athletic Conference and C2C Rookie of the Year. Other familiar faces for Salisbury this fall include NFHCA All Region Selections McKenna Horner and Isabel Larrabee. With the talented youth in this squad, the Sea Gulls could very well find themselves back in tournament contention.
Other Teams to Watch:
Bates
The NESCAC is always a conference to watch, with powerhouse Middlebury and a group fighting each other for the second place spot – teams like Tufts, Williams, and Bates. A potential dark horse for Division III, Bates comes into the season ranked ninth in the Penn Monto/NFHCA Division III National Coaches Poll, a spot behind Williams. After taking down the Ephs 2-1 in conference play last fall, the Bobcats then fell by that same scoreline in the NESCAC semifinal, but went ahead with an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The season ended for Bates with a 1-0 overtime loss to Babson in the Second Round. The Bobcat offense will look to fill the void of senior captain Paige Cote, with good options like Cote’s younger sister Anna Cote, who tallied 12 goals and 3 assists last fall.
Messiah
Despite strong records and impressive wins over the past few years, an NCAA Final Four appearance has been elusive for Messiah. Ever since they won the National Championship in 2016 and finished as a runner-up in 2017, the Falcons have continually fallen in the NCAA Second or Third Round. Last fall, it was Middlebury who stomped out Messiah’s season with a 3-0 shutout in the Third Round. That loss, plus a 2-1 overtime defeat at the hands of Johns Hopkins earlier that season, were the only two blemishes on the Falcon’s 2023 record (18-2). Returners include 2023 MAC Commonwealth Rookie of the Year Aubrey Clark. Messiah was ranked first in the Mid Atlantic Conference (MAC) Commonwealth Preseason Poll, and fifth in the Penn Monto/NFHCA Division III National Coaches Poll.
Ohio Wesleyan
The Bishops were on a tear last season when they went an undefeated 16-0 in regular season play. It wasn’t until the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) final that Ohio Wesleyan ended their season with their first defeat, a heartbreaking 1-0 overtime loss to Denison. This athletic and quick team managed to score a total of 71 goals in 2023, while keeping opponents to a total of five. Goalkeeper Meg McCarthy returns for her senior season after finishing off 2023 with a 0.905 save percentage, ranking second in Division III. Offensive leader Olivia Danley is also back for the Bishops, after recording a team high 14 goals and 7 assists last season. The prowess of Ohio Wesleyan will be tested this fall with a slight increase in strength of schedule, as the Bishops will take on Christopher Newport and York in September.
Stay tuned for a Division II season preview!
By USWNT
