RICHMOND, Va. – Saint Joseph's junior goalkeeper
Avianna Wagner stopped Richmond's Maura Seeger in the eighth round of a shootout to propel the Saint Joseph's field hockey team to a 2-1 victory in the championship game of the 2026 Atlantic 10 Field Hockey Tournament at VCU's Cary Street Field on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, the Hawks once again punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Richmond (12-7) was on the front foot early and cashed in just six minutes into the contest as Maia Dechiario converted on a penalty corner.
• Saint Joseph's (11-9) settled into the game in the second quarter, earning its first penalty corner early in the frame.
Milou Kluyt had her effort saved, but
Erika Culp batted the rebound out of the air and past Mairead Carey to tie the game with 10:30 to play in the half and send the teams into the break on level terms.
• The Hawks took control in the second half, peppering the Richmond cage with shots while denying any opportunities at the other end; Saint Joseph's ultimately outshot Richmond by a 12-0 mark in the half, but the game remained tied thanks in large part to six saves by Carey.
• In overtime, the Hawks had an early chance, but Kluyt fired wide. Wagner was then forced into a pair of saves midway through the extra frame before the Hawks fended off four Richmond corners. Another chance at the other end was foiled by Carey to send the game to a shootout.
• Wagner made consecutive stops on the Spiders' first two attempts, while
Alison Buffington and
Lily DeWan staked the Hawks to a 2-0 lead in the shootout. Clara Larripa and Seeger then converted their opportunities to level things after four rounds.
• After a miss by the Hawks in the sixth round, Larripa had a chance to win it for the Spiders, but Wagner stifled the league's Offensive Player of the Year and the nation's leading scorer to extend the shootout.
• DeWan then made her second attempt before Valen Luna Paratore equalized and pushed the shootout to an eighth round. Culp found the back of the cage to put the Hawks in front, 4-3, and set up one last chance for the Spiders. Seeger's initial effort was stopped, but Wagner was called for an infraction and the attempt was retaken; this time, Wagner forced Seeger wide and held her ground to make the save and set off the championship celebration.
BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
• Wagner finished the day with six saves, while Carey made seven.
• The Hawks held a 17-9 advantage in shots on the day, while the Spiders held the edge in penalty corners, 10-7.
• The title-game win over the Spiders is the Hawks' third in the last decade, with all three coming in Richmond; the Hawks won the crown on Richmond's campus in 2019 and 2025 before defeating the Spiders at VCU on Saturday.
• It's also the third time the Hawks have beaten a team in the championship game a year after doing the same; SJU beat UMass three years in a row from 2022 to 2024 as well. Saint Joseph's has won seven consecutive postseason games against Richmond, topping the Spiders in the semifinals in 2017, 2018, 2021, and 2024.
• The six consecutive tournament titles tie the conference record set by UMass between 1996 and 2001 and breaks a tie with Richmond (2002-06) for the most consecutive Atlantic 10 championships for a program that is still an active member of the conference.
• The Hawks have also won nine of the last 10 conference tournament titles, with the lone defeat in that span coming to VCU in the COVID-19-affected 2020-21 season. The Hawks have won the last nine Atlantic 10 tournaments that were contested at the end of a full fall season.
• Saturday's title game appearance was the 11th in a row for the Hawks, matching Miami (Ohio) for the longest active streak of conference championship game appearances in the country.
• Wagner was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament and was joined on the All-Championship Team by Buffington, Culp, Kluyt, and
Kiki Bruning.
UP NEXT
The Hawks will learn their NCAA Tournament assignment on Sunday evening when the NCAA Division I Field Hockey Championship Selection Show goes live at 10:00 p.m. Eastern on NCAA.com.
