Nov. 6, 2001

NORFOLK, VA -- The Lady Monarch field hockey team (17-4, 3-0 CAA) will travel to Princeton, NJ, home of the Princeton Tigers, for the first and second rounds of the NCAA Field Hockey Championships. The Lady Monarchs, who begin defense of the 2000 NCAA title, will play the University of Massachusetts on Saturday, November 10th. Should Old Dominion advance, they will face the winner of Princeton and Northeastern on Sunday.

The Lady Monarchs have appeared in 20 NCAA Tournaments dating back to 1981 and have won the crown a record nine times (1982, 1983, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1998, 2000 ).

Old Dominion has faced the Minutewomen (11-9, 6-0 A-10) 19 times over the last 20 years. The most recent meeting, occurring back in 1995, saw Old Dominion drop a 1-0 decision. The Lady Monarchs hold the all-time series record 15-4. The two teams have faced each other in NCAA action before, both times with the Lady Monarchs emerging victoriously. In 1989, the NCAA national-runners up defeated Umass 2-1 in the opening round of play, while the 1990 championship team downed the Minutewomen 4-0 in the opening round as well.

Princeton (15-2, 7-0 IVY) will enter the NCAA tournament with the nation's leading scorer in Ilvy Friebe (29 goals, 11 assists, 69 points) The Lady Monarchs hold a 6-2 series advantage over the Ivy League school. Should both the Lady Monarchs and Tigers advance, it will mark the second meeting between the two schools this season. Earlier this year, Princeton handed Old Dominion a 1-2 loss on their home turf. The two schools have played each other in two NCAA Championship games. Old Dominion and Princeton squared away at the 1998 NCAA Championship game, as the Lady Monarch won their eighth national title with a 3-2 win. They also faced each other in 1996, as Princeton halted Old Dominion's quest for the title with a 4-3 overtime win in the championship game.

Northeastern enters the tournament with a 16-6 overall record and a 9-0 conference, earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by winning the America East Conference Tournament Old Dominion holds a 10-2-1 series advantage over the Huskies. The Lady Monarchs have won the last three straight meetings, a 6-0 victory on Foreman Field to close the 2001 regular season. The last Northeastern victory was in 1998 (1-0) in a year the Lady Monarchs lost just two games.

CAA Player of the Year and Tournament MVP Adrienne Yoder (Coopersburg, PA) will look to lead the Lady Monarchs back to the final four. Yoder has collected 35 points on 12 goals and 11 assists, leading the squad in assists and ranking second in points and goals. Junior midfielder Tiffany Snow (Econdido, CA) will also be another offensive threat to watch. Snow currently leads her team with 36 points and 14 goals and has also added in eight assists. In goal, stalwart Marybeth Freeman will check in as one of the nation's top goalkeepers posting a 1.01 goals against average and a .774 save percentage.