Wednesday
April 24, 2024 
Two area field hockey standouts recently competed for NCAA titles; four more could do the same.
Warrington sophomore Kennedy Cliggett and her North Carolina Tar Heel (21-0) teammates won their program’s 10th national crown on Nov. 20 in Storrs, Conn., with UNC’s 2-1 win over Northwestern.
Cliggett, a Hill School graduate, played in every game for UNC, including 50 of 60 minutes in the national championship. Her seven goals were fourth best on the Heels. Cliggett was chosen for the U.S. national U-21 team at the 5 Nations Tournament in Ireland this past summer.
UNC beat Penn State (17-4) 3-0 and Northwestern topped Maryland (19-4) 2-1 in the national semifinals. Graduate student defender Riley Donnelly (CB East) started 13 games for the Terrapins this year, ranking fifth on Maryland with nine goals. Donnelly’s fellow Patriot, Sophia Mannino, played most of the Final Four game and appeared in 16 games for the Nittany Lions.
Johns Hopkins (19-4) fell to Middlebury 1-0 in overtime in the Division III Nov. 20 national championship. It was the Blue Jays’ second straight appearance in a national title game. Pennridge sophomore Emily Amsden appeared in 16 games for Hopkins, scoring two goals. Amsden was credited with a shot on goal in the national semifinal.
Three area East Stroudsburg Warriors (18-2) are in the Division II Final Four. The top seeded Warriors face No. 4 Assumption on Thursday in the national semifinals. Freshman Julia Cooper (CB South) scored twice in 13 games for the Warriors this season. Cooper teams with a pair of CR South grads – sophomore Karlie McCloskey and freshman Kerry Kaufman.
Freshman Bella Aulisio (CB West) and No. 3 West Chester (15-4) advanced to the other national semifinal to face Shippensburg after the Golden Rams’ 10-1 waxing of Adelphi in Sunday’s opening round.
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