Field hockey loses in NCAA battle vs. Virginia

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In the blink of an eye, it was all over.

The No. 6 MSU field hockey team battled No. 2 Virginia to the very end and forced overtime, but a goal less than two minutes into the extra period lifted Virginia to a Final Four berth and ended the Spartans’ successful season.

Although Sunday’s loss in Virginia was a heartbreaking way to finish, the team can be pleased with an 18-4 final record and Big Ten regular season and tournament championships.

Virginia jumped out to an early 1-0 lead, but MSU tied it up when sophomore forward Chantae Miller recorded a score about halfway through the opening frame. However, the Cavaliers retook the lead going into the break, scoring about five minutes later.

Although Virginia doubled the Spartans’ shot total in the first half, MSU came out firing in the second half and scored the tying goal less than five minutes into the frame, when junior forward Jantine Steinmetz drilled home her first of the game.

MSU outshot the Cavaliers 8-6 in the second half, and although both teams recorded a few chances late in the half, neither could convert them into goals and the game went into overtime.

Cavalier midfielder Paige Selenski ended it less than two minutes in by knocking home a shot from the top of the circle.

Despite the loss, the team’s three seniors can feel proud after having completed outstanding careers and accomplishing two of their major goals this season. MSU won the Big Ten regular season title outright for the first time in school history, then capped a perfect 6-0 Big Ten regular season by winning the conference tournament championship for the first time since 2003.

The Spartans have reached the 16-team NCAA Tournament each of the past three seasons and are continuing to establish themselves as a power team in the NCAA.

The Spartans fell in the first round in 2007 against Wake Forest, then advanced to the second round last season only to lose a heartbreaker against Iowa.

Players were hoping to press a step further this year and reach the Final Four, but they ran into an elite Virginia squad and gave them a good matchup.

Senior midfielder Floor Rijpma was the Big Ten’s Offensive Player of the Year this season, leading the team with 24 goals and 52 points. Fellow senior midfielder Jeamie Deacon recorded 11 goals and 28 points and was third on the team in scoring despite missing four games.

Senior goalie Elissa Unger started every game for the Spartans and allowed an average of just 1.35 goals per game, including four shutouts.

The three seniors will be sorely missed next season, but MSU should have plenty of key players coming back, including freshman forward Manouk Vernij, who was second on the team in points, and likely the entire Spartan defense, which stepped up and played big this year.

MSU defeated Delaware 7-0 in Saturday’s NCAA first round matchup behind four goals from Rijpma. Virginia defeated MSU 3-0 on Sept. 20, but the Spartans had reeled off 13 straight wins since then.

The Cavaliers improve to 20-3 and advance to face North Carolina in next weekend’s national semifinal in Winston-Salem, N.C.

The rest of the Spartans can think back on this season’s accomplishments as they prepare for next season.

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