The 11th ranked University of Mary Washington field hockey team used a pair of first half scores from All-America senior Haley Kane as well as two from senior Carlee Budd to defeat York College, 4-1, in the Capital Athletic Conference semifinals on Wednesday at the Battleground. The Eagles improve to 14-4 on the season, and will host the 2015 CAC Championship on Saturday.
Kane put the Eagles on the board early, taking a pass from sophomore Allegra Massey-Elim in a crowd following a penalty corner with 4:38 elapsed. Kane scored in a similar fashion with 21:57 elapsed, this time on an assist from senior Kathleen Namey.
The Eagles closed the half with a goal from Budd with 5:06 left in the frame, and led, 3-0, at halftime.
In the second, Budd scored her second goal of the day with 15:27 remaining, on an assist from Christine Loehr on a penalty corner. York spoiled the shutout with a goal from Autumn Mallory with 7:01 left.
"We're very excited about the win", said UMW head coach Lindsey Elliott. "We're looking forward to hosting the CAC Championship, the second for the seniors, and we're happy to get to experience a championship game and chance to get to the NCAA Tournament again."
The Eagles led in shots, 24-7, and in penalty corners, 15-5. Freshman Jessica Cavolt had two saves and Budd and Christina Malave added defensive saves for the Eagles, while Eve Hauptle had 11 saves and Alexa Taylor had a defensive save for the Spartans.
Mary Washington will host second seeded Salisbury in the final on Saturday. Game time has been announced as 2:00 p.m. The Eagles defeated the Sea Gulls, 2-1, in the regular season.