BEVERLY, Mass. – Endicott College has claimed the top seed for The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC) field hockey championship, which begins with quarterfinal matchups on campus sites the afternoon of Saturday, October 31. The Gulls (11-7 overall) earned the top seed in the conference tournament after being one of three teams to complete the regular-season schedule with a 7-1 record in TCCC play.

Endicott and \#2 seed University of New England (12-2, 7-1) will receive quarterfinal-round byes in the six-team tournament.

Saturday’s quarterfinal matchups will feature \#3 seed Nichols College (14-3, 7-1) hosting \#6 seed Gordon College (4-13, 3-5) and \#4 seed New England College (11-6, 5-3) hosting \#5 seed Salve Regina University (8-9, 3-5). Both matches are scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m.

Two separate three-team tiebreakers were used to determine seeding and/or tournament qualification.

Three teams -- Endicott, University of New England and Nichols -- ended the regular-season with identical 7-1 conference records. In step one, head-to-head play among those three teams, each team posted a 1-1 record. In step two, each team posted identical records against each of the other six TCCC teams. In step three, Endicott allowed the fewest number of goals to common conference opponents (i.e., the other six TCCC teams) - two - of the three tied teams. This solidified the \#1 seed for Endicott, and sent UNE and Nichols back to step one, per conference tiebreaker procedures. UNE defeated Nichols in the teams’ regular-season matchup, thus earning the \#2 seed.

In a similar circumstance, three teams -- Salve Regina, Gordon and Western New England -- ended the regular season with identical 3-5 conference records. In step one, head-to-head play among those three teams, each team posted a 1-1 record. In step two, each team posted identical records against each of the other six TCCC teams. In step three, Salve Regina allowed the fewest number of goals to common conference opponents (i.e., the other six TCCC teams) - nine - of the three tied teams. This solidified the \#5 seed for Salve Regina, and sent Gordon and WNEC back to step one, per conference tiebreaker procedures. Gordon topped WNEC in the teams’ regular-season matchup, thus earning the \#6 seed and the final berth in the conference tournament.

In semifinal round action on Wednesday, November 4, Endicott will host the winner of the New England College vs. Salve Regina quarterfinal game, while University of New England will host the winner of the Nichols-Gordon quarterfinal contest. Both semifinal games are scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m.

Semifinal winners will square off for the conference championship on Saturday, November 7 at 1:00 p.m. at the site of the higher seed.

All published start times for all tournament matches are subject to change.

2009 TCCC FIELD HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
All Start Times Subject to Change

Quarterfinals • Saturday, October 31
\#5 Salve Regina (8-9, 3-5) at \#4 New England College (11-6, 5-3), 1:00 p.m.
\#6 Gordon (4-13, 3-5) at \#3 Nichols (14-3, 7-1), 1:00 p.m.

Semifinals • Wednesday, November 4
\#4 New England College or \#5 Salve Regina at \#1 Endicott (11-7, 7-1), 1:30 p.m.
\#3 Nichols or \#6 Gordon at \#2 University of New England (12-2, 7-1), 1:30 p.m.

Championship Match • Saturday, November 7
Semifinal Winners, 1:00 p.m. (at higher seed) 


                           Release courtesy of The Commonwealth Coast Conference