The Middlebury field hockey team will make its 18th-consecutive and 21st overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament when it hosts a regional on November 13-14 on Kohn Field. First-round games take place on Wednesday with Vassar hosting Endicott and SUNY New Paltz entertaining Wilson, Tufts and Johnson & Wales (JWU). 

NCAA INTERACTIVE BRACKET

The Panthers will play the Vassar/Endicott winner on Saturday at 11:00 a.m., while the winner of the SUNY New Paltz/Wilson contest will battle the Tufts/JWU winner in the day's second contest at 2:00 p.m. The victors meet on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. with a trip to the final four on the line. Tickets prices will be announced later in the week.

Top-ranked and three-time defending national champion Middlebury enters the weekend with an overall record of 45-16 in NCAA Tournament play. The Panthers won national titles in 1998, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019, while advancing to the finals in 2003, 2004, 2007 and 2011.

Middlebury earned its way into the NCAA Tournament with the NESCAC's automatic bid after claiming the league title on Sunday over sixth-ranked Bowdoin 4-3. The Panthers became the second team in conference history to win eight titles and four-consecutive championships and enter the tournament with an unblemished 18-0 mark. 

Middlebury is led by a strong group of seniors, a veteran coaching staff and several All-NESCAC honorees.

Erin Nicholas (Scarsdale, N.Y.) became the first field hockey player to win three-straight NESCAC Player of the Year honors and the fifth Panther overall. Nicholas has racked up a conference-high 51 points this season, while leading the NESCAC with 22 goals and ranking fifth with seven assists. Her point and goal totals both rank in the top-10 in the country. Nicholas helped lead Middlebury to its eighth NESCAC Championship on Sunday. Trailing 3-0, Nicholas notched a hat trick, including the game-winning goal to help propel the Panthers to the crown. She ranks first in the conference with eight game-winning goals this season. Nicholas was also named to the All-NESCAC First Team for the third-consecutive year. 
 
Amy Griffin (Wilmette, Ill.) was the fifth Panther to earn NESCAC Rookie of the Year laurels and the second-straight honoree for Middlebury. She is enjoying a banner first-year with the Panthers, leading the team with 10 assists, while ranking second in the conference. She has played in 17 of 18 contests this season, and scored once and assisted on another tally in Middlebury's 4-0 shutout against Trinity in the NESCAC Semifinals. 
 
Katie George (North Kingstown, R.I.) earned All-NESCAC First Team honors for the first time, after being named to the second team in 2019. She is third on the team with 27 points and 12 goals. George tallied a season-high four goals in Middlebury's 4-1 victory over then-#12 Babson earlier this year. She also scored a pair of tallies in two NESCAC games this year, including a regular-season 4-2 triumph at then-#9 Trinity. 
 
Isabel Chandler (Denver, Colo.) repeated as a  second-team all-conference selection and is fourth on the team with 23 points (7G, 9A). She has started all 18 games this fall and her nine assists are second on the team. 
 
CharlotteMarks (Manchester, Mass.)  is lauded with her first All-NESCAC Second Team citation. The defender has started in all 18 contests for Middlebury and has played the most minutes (1,037) of any player this season. In 14 of the 18 games, Marks has played 60 or more minutes of action. She is part of a defensive unit that has held its opponents to just 13 goals, ranking fifth in the country.
 
Audrey Lazar (Orchard Park, N.Y.) has had a strong presence on the field this season, ranking second on the team with 29 points (13G, 3A). Goalie Grace Harlan (Groton, Mass.) has a goals against average of just 0.77 this year and has posted five shutouts. 
 
Head coach Katharine DeLorenzo became the first head coach to win NESCAC Coach of the Year honors in four-consecutive seasons. She led Middlebury to its fourth-straight NESCAC title on Sunday, and eighth overall. DeLorenzo and her coaching staff guided the Panthers to their first undefeated regular season (15-0) since 2012 this year.