Kent State clinches No. 1 in tournament, CMU fights for No. 2 spot
The second place Mid-American Conference field hockey lockup was inevitable on Sunday.
The Chippewas took care of Missouri State on Saturday, moving their MAC record to 3-1. Miami (Ohio) clashed with first place Kent State.
The Golden Flashes defeated the RedHawks 3-1, despite Miami taking an early 1-0 lead. The Kent State victory clinches the No. 1 spot in the tournament and the MAC regular-season title.
The win also means CMU's match against Miami (Ohio) means close to nothing to the seeds for the MAC tournament. The two will play each other in the tournament six days after their regular season matchup.
“The game is big because we can still finish 4-1," said head coach Cristy Freese. "It would have been nice to play Miami knowing that game could win it for you. The two and three seed will only make a difference on what jersey you wear.”
Kent State plays their rival Ohio University, a matchup that has a lot of meaning for the Golden Flashes. If Kent State is victorious it secures the MAC title outright, an undefeated MAC season and a win against its' biggest rival.
If Ohio loses to Kent State and Ball State defeats last place Missouri State, the Cardinals secure the No. 4 seed and the Bobcats see no postseason. Any other result would put Ohio with the No. 4 seed against Kent State in the first round of the tournament.
When the Chippewas faceoff with Miami, they will play on the same field for both the conference matchup and the Mid-American Conference tournament.
“It will be nice to go down there and play on the field the weekend before, but it is six hours down, six hours back the next week,” Freese said. “Last year we had to do the same thing when we finished here with Kent (State) and saw them in the first round. It’s nice to see what you can do and what you can hide and use the next weekend.”
