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#8 Old Dominion 5, #17 Delaware 0

November 9, 2003

Monarch Dynasty Continues as Blue Hens Fall in CAA Finals
Leah Geib (above) was named to the All-Tournament Team
NORFOLK, VA -- The University of Delaware's quest for a Colonial Athletic Association field hockey championship was thwarted Sunday as top seed and host Old Dominion scored two first half goals and never looked back on the way to a 5-0 victory in the CAA championship game at Foreman Field.

The No. 8 ranked Monarchs (13-9) to two goals and an assist from Chilly Banuelos and a goal and two assists from tournament Most Valuable Player Angie Loy on the way to claiming its eighth straight title and its 12th in the 13-year history of the championship. The win earned Old Dominion an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

No. 17 ranked and No. 3 seed Delaware, which advanced to its first league championship game since 2001 by way of a 2-1 overtime win over William & Mary Saturday, had a four-game win streak snapped to fall to 14-7. The Hens, who were making their eighth straight postseason tournament appearance under head coach Carol Miller, will now hold out hope for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The complete pairings will be announced Tuesday night, Nov. 11. Delaware had lost to Old Dominion 6-5 in overtime during the regular season.

The Monarchs, who outshot the Hens 14-2 and held an 8-2 advantage on penalty corners, opened the scoring just 13 minutes and 53 seconds into the game when Darcy Pinchbeck scored an unassisted goal. Old Dominion made it 2-0 heading into intermission when Dana Sensenig scored unassisted with just 1:15 left in the first half.

Old Dominion, which advanced to the final with a 7-2 semifinal win over Virginia Commonwealth, pulled away in the second half as Loy scored off an assist from Banuelos off a penalty corner 13 minutes into the second half for a 3-0 lead. Banuelos iced the victory with two goals in the final 10 minutes with Loy assisting on both.

Delaware's leading scorer, All-American Erica LaBar (11 goals, 11 assists) played sparingly during the game due to a foot injury suffered in the semifinal win over William & Mary. Freshman goalkeeper Megan Allen posted seven saves in goals for the Hens.

Loy was named the tournament MVP and was joined on the All-Tournament team by Delaware's Jessi Balmer, Amanda Warrington, and Leah Geib, VCU's Jennifer Howard and Casey Smith, William & Mary's Anna Davis and Jordan Steele, and Old Dominion's Jenna McLane, Melissa Leonetti, Banuelos, and Dana Sensenig.

AGATE:

Delaware............0.......0.......0 (14-7)
Old Dominion...2.......3.......5 (13-9)

Scoring Summary: 1st Half - ODU - Darcy Pinchbeck (unassisted), 21:07 left; ODU - Dana Sensenig (unassisted), 1:45; 2nd Half - ODU - Angie Loy (Chilly Banuelos), 20:24; ODU - Banuelos (Loy, Melissa Leonetti), 8:19; ODU - Banuelos (Loy), 5:15.

Shots: D - 2, ODU - 14; Penalty Corners: D - 2, ODU - 8; Saves: D - 7 (Megan Allen), ODU - 1 (Tina Walker).

- DDD -