2017 Patriot League Field Hockey Tournament - Semifinals
Date & Times	Friday, Nov. 3  #1 Boston University vs. #4 Holy Cross - 12 p.m.  #2 American vs. #3 Bucknell - 3 p.m.  FREE ADMISSION
Venue	New Balance Field | Boston, Mass.
Watch on PLN	BU vs. Holy Cross | American vs. Bucknell
Live Stats	GoTerriers.com
Twitter	@BUGameDay | @BU_FieldHockey

    
BOSTON - Aiming for a fifth straight appearance in the Patriot League title game, the No. 20 Boston University field hockey team (11-7, 6-0 PL) will kick off this year's conference tournament on Friday (Nov. 4) with a semifinal match-up against fourth-seeded Holy Cross (7-10, 3-3 PL). Game time at New Balance Field is set for noon and all fans will receive a Patriot League water bottle.

BU is hosting the tournament for the third consecutive year after rolling through the league with a perfect 6-0 record. American, the No. 2 seed, will take on third-seeded Bucknell in Friday's second semifinal at 3 p.m. The winners will face off on Sunday (Nov. 5) at noon in the championship game. All three contests will be broadcast live on the Patriot League Network. 

BU is 6-2 all-time in the PL tournament with the losses coming against American in the 2013 and 2016 championship games.

This wil be the first-ever postseason meeting between the Terriers and Crusaders. They first met in 1980 and have faced off 22 times with BU holding a 19-2-1 advantage, which now includes 19 straight wins after going 0-2-1 in the first three meetings. 
 
Earlier this season, BU traveled to Holy Cross and came home with an 8-1 victory, including two-goal efforts from junior Ally Hammel and freshman Miya Denison. Another Turnpike Trophy point will be on the line in Friday's contest. The Terriers leads the Crusaders, 4-1, thus far this season in the all-sports rivalry competition. 
 
The Terriers will face the conference's leading scorer on Friday as senior Maureen Connolly, a unanimous All-Pl First Team selection, has 47 points on 19 goals and 9 assists this season. She was joined on the league's first team by junior Emily Loprete, who has tallied nine goals and four assists for 22 points. Senior defender Rachel Lapar was named to the All-PL Second Team. 

In goal, sophomore Marcia LaPlante ranks second in the league in save percentage at .751 to go along with a 3.07 goals-against average. 
  
Led by junior Ally Hammel - the 2017 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year - the Terriers placed five players on the All-PL teams with Hammel, senior Kali Shumock and junior Allie Doggett on the first team and sophomore Kiley Gallagher and freshman Ailsa Connolly earning second-team accolades.
 
The BU offense is supported by 10 players with nine or more points and 12 players with at least one goal. Connolly leads the team in points (20) and goals (10) while Shumock has a squad-best nine assists. Senior Grace Boston has registered 16 points (7g, 2a) while Shumock (3g, 9a) and junior Kara Enoch (4g, 7a) have added 15 points apiece.

The Terriers have used both of their goalkeepers all season long and currently have freshman Millie Baker playing in the first half and junior Kathleen Keegan taking over at halftime. Keegan has a league-best 1.42 goals-against average while Baker's .833 save percentage in league play was tops in the PL.