Division II Quarter-Finals: Assumption Make History 7-0, Adelphi Cruise, Converse and Lander Advance

Seven goals. No reply. And a record nobody in the Northeast-10 has ever touched.

Assumption didn’t just beat Southern New Hampshire on Tuesday night, they rewrote the conference’s playoff history book. The 7-0 win at Brian Kelly ’83 Stadium in Worcester is the largest margin of victory in an NE10 playoff game, and the most goals in a playoff game since Stonehill upset LIU Post 7-1 back in the 2018 quarter-finals.

It was over early, really. Nova Rijks broke through at 7:20 of the first quarter, Daisy Stone with the assist, and Mieke Rentsch doubled it six minutes later. Marta Brzoska scored 32 seconds into the second quarter. Addison Daddona got her first collegiate goal at 25:42, Elly Schofer added an unassisted one at 28:27, and it was 5-0 at half-time. Rentsch got her second at 48:44 and Ella Holtman capped it at 57:29.

The numbers are silly. Assumption outshot SNHU 24-1, 15-1 on goal, and won the penalty corner count 7-0. Carolyn Durand needed one save for her fifth shutout of the year. SNHU finish 8-10, and they never got a look in.

For our money, the scary part for everyone else is the spread of it. Seven goals from seven different scorers, with Stone setting up two. That’s not one hot stick, that’s a team humming. Assumption are 14-4 now, and this is their fourth straight year in the NE10 semi-finals. They host Adelphi on Friday, and on this form they’ll take some stopping.

Geels does it again for Adelphi

Adelphi’s night was quieter but just as convincing. The Panthers beat American International 4-0 at home in Garden City, and Jena Geels was at the heart of it again.

Geels scored her ninth and tenth goals of the season, her fourth brace of the year. Her second came one minute into the second half and made it 3-0, which pretty much ended the argument right out of the break. Tayla Szmak made four saves for the shutout.

Adelphi are 13-6, and they’re playing for a first NE10 final appearance since 2022. To get there they’ve got to go to Worcester and beat the side that just scored seven. That’s the tie of the round on Friday, no question. AIC finish 5-11.

Swaan’s double sends Converse through

Down in Spartanburg, Converse are heading back to the final site of the South Atlantic Conference Championship for the first time since 2022, the year they won the second of back-to-back titles. They beat Wingate 3-0 at Weisiger Stadium, and it was Edith Swaan’s night.

Converse had most of the ball in the first half without breaking through, until Swaan opened the scoring a minute and a half into the second quarter. Brooke Burgin doubled the lead about eight minutes later, and Swaan got her second just before half-time, Vania Toranzo with the assist.

Then nothing. Neither side managed a shot in the third quarter. Wingate finally got their first attempt in the fourth and finished with three, but the 3-0 scoreline held. Converse improve to 9-8, Wingate finish 4-12.

The reward is the hardest draw in the conference. Converse face top seed Newberry, 15-1 and unbeaten in the SAC, on the Wolves’ own field at 2pm ET on Friday. Newberry are the favourites, obviously. But Converse have already won a title at this stage before, and they’ve got nothing to lose.

Freshmen fire Lander past Coker

The night’s other SAC quarter-final belonged to two freshmen. Avrie Arnfeldt and Floor Mulder scored twice each as Lander beat Coker 5-1 at Frank Hill Stadium in Greenwood.

Mulder opened the scoring inside 90 seconds, Talia Packham driving down the right wing to find her in front of goal. Arnfeldt doubled it later in the first quarter, then completed her brace in the second after Shannon MacAngus found her in front of the cage. Three-nil at half-time, and Coker barely had a sniff.

Amelia DiBattista pulled one back for Coker just over a minute into the second half. Lander’s answer took about three minutes. Mulder finished her brace off a penalty corner, the shot deflecting off a defender’s stick and into the top of the cage, and Puck Hoenderdos capped the scoring in the final period.

Five goals is a Lander programme record for a single postseason game, and it matched their whole total from last year’s SAC tournament run. They’re 10-7 now, four straight seasons with double-digit wins, and this is their fourth SAC semi-final in five seasons.

Friday brings Belmont Abbey at 5pm ET at Setzler Field in Newberry. Lander are 3-0 against the Crusaders in the postseason and beat them 2-0 in last year’s semi-final. The catch? Belmont Abbey swept both regular-season meetings this year. Something has to give.

Friday’s semi-finals

All four conferences settle their finalists on Friday 13 November. In the NE10, top seed Saint Anselm host Pace at 4pm ET, while Assumption host Adelphi at a time still to be confirmed. In the PSAC, Shippensburg face IUP at noon ET and Kutztown take on East Stroudsburg at 2:30pm ET. In the SAC, Newberry meet Converse at 2pm ET and Belmont Abbey play Lander at 5pm ET.

The finals are Sunday 15 November, PSAC at noon ET and SAC at 1pm ET, with the NE10 final time still to be set. Then Sunday night brings the Division II selection show at 8pm ET on NCAA.com, when the eight-team national bracket is revealed. For viewers in Pakistan, Friday’s noon ET starts mean 10:00pm PKT, with the 4pm and 5pm ET games in the early hours of Saturday.