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Field Hockey wins fifth consecutive Mid-American Conference title

Junior goalkeeper Isabelle Pareese (pictured, No. 28) defends a shot during a Spring 2021 match vs. Ohio University.
Junior goalkeeper Isabelle Pareese (pictured, No. 28) defends a shot during a Spring 2021 match vs. Ohio University.

Miami field hockey defeated Longwood University 2-1 Saturday in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship to claim its fifth consecutive conference title. The win also earns Miami a berth to the NCAA Tournament.

To make it to Saturday’s game against Longwood, the number-one seed RedHawks had to take on 4 seed Ohio University on Friday. 

Miami eked out a win in the game, beating OU 1-0. The RedHawks scored the game’s lone goal early in the fourth quarter when sophomore striker Paula Peña roofed a shot off an assist from senior forward Lexi Nugent. Miami outshot the Bobcats 19-12 in the contest.

In the championship game, Longwood jumped out to an early lead when senior midfielder Jamie Wright scored after a penalty corner just over a minute into the first quarter. The score would stay tied until the fourth quarter. Nugent scored just over three minutes into the fourth off an assist from sophomore forward Claudia Negrete-Garcia.

Peña tallied the winning goal with about four minutes remaining in the game.

Next, Miami hosts Maine on November 10, at 2 p.m. in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. This will be the first time ever that Miami hosts an NCAA tournament game.

@jacksmerz

schmelj2@miamioh.edu