INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The East Stroudsburg field hockey team was ranked third in the recent NCAA Division II Atlantic Region poll, announced Wednesday afternoon.
 
The Warriors were listed alphabetically in last week's ranking, and with one game remaining in the regular season, were slotted behind Kutztown and Newberry at the top of the list. East Stroudsburg holds the tiebreaker in the current PSAC standings to put them in second place, just ahead of Shippensburg, who is fourth in the region, and West Chester, fifth in the region. Lander and Bloomsburg round out the sixth and seventh spots in the Atlantic Region.
 
Eight teams qualify for the NCAA Division II Field Hockey Championships, as the top five in the Atlantic will receive invites, as well as the three highest-seeded teams in the East Region. The conference champions of the PSAC, NE-10, and SAC will also receive automatic bids.
 
The Warriors have won their last eight games, picking up wins against Shippensburg and Bloomsburg over that stretch. The Warriors also defeated four of the five ranked teams in the East Region in Assumption, Saint Anselm, Adelphi, and Bentley. On the season, ESU ranks second in the conference in goals per game (3.7), penalty corners (189), and third in scoring margin (2.7). Offensively, East Stroudsburg is led by junior Minke Klijn, who ranks second in the conference in score with 34 points (13 goals, eight assists), and Emma Friend, eighth in the conference with 25 points (nine goals, seven assists). On the back end, Sydney Pope (PSAC Defensive Athlete of the Week, Oct. 14) and Jet Vermeulen have been steady in net as a goalkeeper tandem, and Alex Eagles has been a two-way force contributing eight points and recording a defensive save.
 
The Warriors conclude their regular season at 1 p.m. Saturday against Frostburg State and will not know until after if they will be playing in the PSAC Quarterfinals on Nov. 4 or go straight to the PSAC Semifinals on Nov. 7. The NCAA Tournament begins Nov. 15 with the top four seeds hosting their quarterfinals matchup.