Cal at America East Championships

Nov. 3-6 | Pacific Field Hockey Turf | Stockton, Calif.
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BERKELEY -- After posting a 4-12 regular-season record, the slate has been cleared for California field hockey with the 2016 America East Championships. The Golden Bears head to nearby Stockton, Calif. for the annual conference tournament after earning the No. 3 seed in the league's West Division.

Cal will open the tournament against Maine on Friday, Nov. 4 at 12 p.m. from Pacific Field Hockey Turf. Should the Bears advance, they will meet the winner of the Stanford vs. UMass Lowell game on Saturday at noon to compete for a spot in Sunday's championship game.

Each game of the America East Championships will be broadcasted on AmericaEast.com. Visit Championship Central for links to the live stream and live stats links, plus more information from the tournament. Follow @CalFieldHockey on Instagram and Facebook.com/CalFH for a behind-the-scenes look at gameday and more.

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FAST FACTS

• Cal earned the No. 3 seed in the West Division after going 1-5 in conference play. Pacific and Stanford each posted a 5-1 record against West Division opponents.

• The Bears have faced two opponents who stand in their path to the America East Championship game. Cal defeated Maine, 3-1, on Oct. 21 in Orono, Maine, and went 0-2 against Stanford this year. Cal did not play UMass Lowell this season.

• Cal's five goals against UC Davis on Oct. 2 were a season-high.

• Janaye Sakkas is one goal away from matching her season-high total of seven that she set as a freshman.
 

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HOW THE TOURNAMENT WORKS

The America East Championships follow a single-elimination tournament format. The schedule is as follows:

Quarterfinals - Thursday, Nov. 3
Game 1 – #1W Stanford vs. #4W UMass Lowell, 12 p.m. PT
Game 2 – #1E Albany vs. #4W UC Davis, 2:30 p.m. PT
 
Quarterfinals – Friday, Nov. 4
Game 3 – #2E Maine vs. #3W California, 12 p.m. PT
Game 4 – #2W Pacific vs. #3E New Hampshire, 2:30 p.m. PT
 
Semifinals – Saturday, Nov. 5
Game 5 – Game #1 Winner vs. Game #3 Winner, 12 p.m. PT
Game 6 – Game #2 Winner vs. Game #4 Winner, 2:30 p.m. PT
 
Final – Sunday, Nov. 6
Game 7 – Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner, 1 p.m. PT

HEAD COACH SHELLIE ONSTEAD'S TAKE

On mindset heading into the tournament:
"Now, it's looking foward. We're going to play Maine, and we're familiar with Maine, and we're going to play Maine with a goalkeeper. We won't hesitate to play without, and it's just getting us recovered and rested with confidence back before Friday."

On tournament field overall:
I think the conference as a whole has a ton of parity. It's anybody's tournament. It's who shows up ready to play.

AMERICA EAST ACCOLADES

A quintet of Bears picked up end-of-year honors at the America East's annual awards banquet before the championship event. Femke Delissen led the way with two honors -- a spot on the All-Rookie squad and the Fans' Choice Player of the Year Award with 507 votes from fans around the world. Katrina Carter joined Delissen as an All-Rookie recipient, and Mara Gutierrez and Janaye Sakkas were voted to the league's West Division All-Conference team. Kori Griswold, who owns a 3.72 cumulative GPA as an Art History and Media Studies double major, picked up an All-Academic nod. Every Bear except Griswold was a first-time award winner. Griswold was also an America East All-Academic selection last season. 

COACHES  CORRECTLY PREDICT THIRD-PLACE FINISH FOR BEARS

The coaches of the America East West Division correctly predicted a third-place finish for the Golden Bears in the America East. Stanford, who received three first-place votes to be named the favorite in the West, was correctly predicted as the divisional champion, along with Pacific Both the Cardinal and Tigers ended the season with a 5-1 record in conference play.