NEWPORT NEWS, VA – Top-ranked Middlebury scored early and then added an insurance goal to beat the fourth-ranked Johns Hopkins field hockey team in the 2023 NCAA Championship Sunday.
 
The Blue Jays finish the season with a 21-2 record, marking the program's second 20-win season in the last three years. This was JHU's third straight appearance in the national championship game.
 
The Panthers jumped on the board just 1:24 into the game thanks to a quick counterattack. Katie George carried the ball into the circle and passed across to Audrey Lazar, who scored from in-tight.
 
The Blue Jays had a great opportunity at the end of the first to level the score with four straight corners, but shots from Jenna Halpin and Liz Falterer couldn't find the back of the cage.
 
Middlebury added the insurance goal at the 39:02-mark. Caroline Segal dribbled to the top of the circle and sent a hard hit towards the cage and Lazar was able to get a stick on it and tip it around Alexis Loder.
 
Hopkins had four straight shots early in the fourth, but KK Netwon was able to turn away three and the fourth was blocked. Midway through the period, the Blue Jays had another good look at cage with a pair of penalty corners but couldn't convert.
 
Middlebury finished with a 12-11 edge in shots, while Hopkins had an 8-3 advantage in corners. Loder finished with six saves while Newton made five for the Panthers.
 
Falterer, Mikayla Schoff and Emily Knight were named to the All-Tournament Team for Hopkins. This is Falterer's second appearance on the all-tournament team.
 
Notes: Loder finishes with a school-record 45 saves in 12 career NCAA Tournament games • She also boasts a program record seven career shutouts in the NCAAs • The senior class, which missed the 2020 season due to Covid, finishes their career with a record of 62-7 • Hopkins is now 15-13 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, with 13 of those wins coming under head coach Jane Wells.