NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The Saint Joseph's field hockey team, ranked 11th in the nation, claimed its sixth Atlantic 10 regular season title in seven seasons and earned the top seed for the 2022 Atlantic 10 Championship, which opens on Thursday morning at the Gladchuk Field Hockey Complex in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Saint Joseph's (13-4 overall, 7-0 Atlantic 10) wrapped up a perfect conference season with a 4-0 win over La Salle on Friday afternoon.  The Hawks outscored league opposition 28-0 this season, the first time a team has shut out its entire Atlantic 10 slate since 1992, and the first time it has been done against a seven-game schedule.

The Hawks will meet fourth-seeded VCU (10-8 overall, 4-3 Atlantic 10) in the semifinals at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday.  The Hawks and Rams have met in three of the previous four Atlantic 10 title games, with SJU holding a 2-1 edge.  Saint Joseph's blanked VCU, 2-0, in the conference opener for both teams on September 16.

In the other semifinal, second-seeded and tournament host UMass (13-4 overall, 6-1 Atlantic 10) meets third-seeded Lock Haven (12-5 overall, 5-2 Atlantic 10); the teams also met in their respective conference finales on Friday, with UMass taking a 4-0 win.  The Hawks beat the Minutewomen, 3-0, at Ellen Ryan Field on October 7, and topped Lock Haven, 2-0, at home on September 23.

The semifinal winners will meet in the title game on Saturday, November 5, at noon.  All three games of the Championship will be streamed on ESPN+.