Wake Forest University
Maryland
Field Hockey Wins First-Ever ACC Championship
11/10/2002 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Nov. 10, 2002
Durham, N.C. - The Wake Forest field hockey team made history on Sunday afternoon, shutting out Maryland, 4-0, in the Finals of the 2002 ACC Championship. With the win over the four-time defending ACC champs, the Deacons (16-2) bring home the first ACC Championship trophy in team history.
The game started out even, as each team squandered an early scoring chance. It was a defensive battle through most of the first half, but then, with less than four minutes remaining in the first, the Deacons broke through. Senior Heather Aughinbaugh found Kelly Dostal off a penalty corner and the All-ACC sophomore blasted it past Maryland keeper Kerry Hearsey to put the Deacs ahead 1-0 going into halftime.
Wake Forest came charging out in the second half. Less than three minutes in, Dostal fired the ball into the circle and freshman Maeke Boreel tipped it into the roof of the cage to give the Deacons the 2-0 lead. In the 51st minute, Aughinbaugh took a penalty corner and fed it to Dostal, who passed the ball right back to Aughinbaugh, who beat Hearsey on the far post. Aughinbaugh capped things off with seven minutes remaining when she rattled the cage for the second time in the game, scoring an unassisted goal to give the Demon Deacons the 4-0 victory.
Wake Forest head coach Jennifer Averill was proud of her squad. "We've had this mission in the back of our heads for a long time," Averill said. "Our motto for the season has been to act like champions whenever we step onto the field and we definitely did that today."
The Deacs outshot the Terps, 10-3 and earned four penalty corners to three for Maryland. Ridd made one save, while Hearsey made three.
Four Demon Deacons were named to the ACC All-Tournament team. All-ACC sophomore Kelly Dostal was named tournament MVP, recording two goals and two assists in the tournament. ACC Player of the Year Kelly Doton also made the squad, along with Aughinbaugh (two goals, two assists) and junior goalkeeper Katie Ridd.
The Championship for the Deacons is not only the first in team history, but it also ends Maryland's streak of four straight ACC Championships. It is also the first time a team other than Maryland or North Carolina has won the Championship. The 4-0 margin was the worst the Terrapins have endured since the 1998 season.
The Demon Deacons will begin play in the 2002 NCAA Division I Championship on Saturday, November 16. The site of competition will be announced via a live internet broadcast on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. To view the broadcast, visit www.ncaasports.com.
