WILKES-BARRE, PA. (October 22, 2018) – The King's College field hockey team will play its final regular season game on Wednesday as they take on DeSales University at McCarthy Stadium at 7 p.m. in their last MAC Freedom bout of the regular season. The Monarchs need a win and some outside help to clinch the final playoff berth in the MAC Freedom. Meanwhile, DeSales is seeking its fourth straight win as they gear up for the conference playoffs.
 
Event Details
Opponent: vs. DeSales University (8-7, 5-1 MAC Freedom)
Date: Wednesday, October 24, 2018
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Wilkes-Barre, Pa. – McCarthy Stadium (Directions)
Live Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)
 
Last Time Out: Against a powerful FDU-Florham attack, the Monarch defense held their own. Dervla Mcerlean stopped the first 16 shots against her in her first collegiate start, while captain Natalie Muscatell made two defensive saves, but FDU-Florham finally solved the puzzle with an overtime goal, sending King's to a heartbreaking 1-0 loss.
 
The Book on the Monarchs (8-10, 3-3 MAC Freedom):

• King's has surrender 2.01 goals per 70 minutes, good for third best in the MAC Freedom.
• King's has had 5 shutout wins (4 by Brianne Maluda and 1 combined between Maluda and Mcerlean), the second most in the MAC Freedom.
• Captain Kelsey Gabriele leads the MAC Freedom with 80 shots, and second with 4.44 shots per game.
• Gabriele is also second with 12 goals on the season.
• Sophomore Jolee Treslar is second on the team with 6 goals and 16 points.
• Treslar and senior Kelley O'Keefe each have 4 assists on the year to lead the team.
• Mcerlean's 16 saves in one game are the most by a Monarch since Megan Withrow had 18 saves on Sept. 13, 2012 at the University of Scranton.
• Mcerlean's .962 save percentage is far and away the best in the MAC Freedom, as she has allowed just one goal on 26 shots against her.

 
The Book on the Bulldogs (8-7, 5-1 MAC Freedom):

• DeSales is locked in as the No. 2 seed in next week's MAC Freedom tournament, and will host Wilkes in the conference semi-finals on Oct. 31. So this game will serve as a tune-up for the playoffs.
• The Bulldogs are fourth in the conference with 2.33 goals per game.
• Katarina Polyvlou has allowed just 1.37 goals per 70 minutes per game, good for second best in the conference.
• DeSales has benefitted from a well-oiled attack; four different players have scored at least 6 goals this season.
• Christie Hansen and Hannah Williams each recorded a hat-trick in the team's 9-1 victory over Manhattanville last Wednesday.
• Hansen and Williams also scored their team-leading eighth goals of the season in the team's win against Wilkes on Saturday.
• Hansen leads the team with 23 points and 7 assists.
• Williams is tied for second in the MAC Freedom with 3 game-winning goals.
• Kylie Honnick-Payne is second on the team with 18 points and 6 assists, and is tied with teammate Erin Chioffe for third with six goals.

 
Up Next: King's needs a win over DeSales and an Eastern loss at Delaware Valley to secure the fourth and final playoff berth in the MAC Freedom. Both King's and Eastern have the same conference record, but Eastern has the head-to-head tiebreaker, thanks to a 4-2 victory over King's on Oct. 5.
 
If King's does win the final playoff spot, they would play at top-seeded FDU-Florham on Oct. 31 in the MAC Freedom semi-finals.