Miami field hockey wins 8th MAC title, reaches top 8 in the country

The scoreboard read 1-1 going into the third quarter of the first round of the NCAA field hockey tournament. The Miami University RedHawks were looking to advance to their first Elite Eight in program history. The unranked RedHawks faced the No. 4 University of Virginia Cavaliers.

Virginia scored in the first three minutes of the game, but that would be its only goal for the rest of the night. At the 39-minute mark, freshman midfielder Justina Intzes helped make Miami history.

"I drag-flicked the ball to score the winning goal, and we went to the Elite Eight," Intzes said. "I didn't know that we made history, so I didn't know it was important until my teammates told me."

The team faced Northwestern University in the next round and fell 2-3, but that doesn't dismiss Miami's historic season. The RedHawks went 16-5 overall, their third season with 16 or more wins and first since 2018, and defeated the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Minutemen in double overtime to win their eighth Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship in a row.

Their only loss in conference play came from UMass during the regular season, but head coach Iñako Puzo attributed the team's bounce back to leadership.

"When we lost against UMass early in the season, we knew how crucial that game would be for the rest of the season,” Puzo said. “We could not lose another [MAC] game, or we would not win the championship. It was the leadership on the field in practice, in the locker room and on game day that took us to the championship."

From the beginning, Puzo, who was named the MAC Coach of the Year, fielded a talented mix of veterans and incoming freshmen. The freshmen were led by midfielder Malena Sabez, who was named the MAC Offensive Player of the Year and led the team in goals (25), points (51) and shots (96). Graduate student back Berta Mata represented the seasoned upperclassmen with the second-most assists in the NCAA (22).

Intzes also played a key role on offense and was named the MAC Freshmen of the Year.

She led the team in game-winning shots (six) and followed behind Sabez with 20 goals, 45 points and 82 shots. The midfielder duo generated the majority of the RedHawks’ offense.

"People in the field hockey world have said that we have the best midfield in the nation," Puzo said. "We love to keep possession of the ball. We have a clear understanding of the kind of hockey that we want to play, and everybody's committed to playing that kind of hockey."

Miami averaged the most goals per game (3.99) in the country. On the other side of the field, the defense gave up 26 goals all season – the second-least in the conference – and seven shutouts.

Senior goalkeeper Nicky Sjouken led the defense with a strong performance this season while also playing the fourth-most minutes of all players in NCAA Division I field hockey. She said the field time challenged her to become a leader on the team.

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"As a goalie, you have to be demanding of teammates and put them in their place, which I'm not the kind of person to do," Sjouken said. "Being a goalie put me outside of my comfort zone, but it was good because it required me to speak up and lead."

After their 2-1 victory over Virginia and Elite Eight appearance in the NCAA tournament, the RedHawks have a strong head on their shoulders going into the 2026 season. While Puzo doesn't have an exact prediction of where the team ends up next season, he said Miami will continue to play at a competitive level and be strong ambassadors of the university.

"I have never promised championships," Puzo said, "but what I promise is that we will put together a team for 2026 that is going to be competitive. It's going to be competitive in the MAC, and now I can [say] we are going to be competitive at the national level."

younggm7@miamioh.edu