For years, DII field hockey has been a PSAC party. From 2011 to 2023, Shippensburg won the PSAC school DII field hockey state championship each year, winning five of them. Last year, St. Anselm, a longtime field hockey powerhouse in the NE10, finally won and ended its PSAC reign.
Now that the Hawks have lost quite a few national championship rosters to graduation, they will look to defend their first title with a host of new faces. Kutztown, which has made back-to-back championship appearances, will also lose five of its top eight scorers from its storied program and undergo roster changes.
Most notably, Shippensburg, West Chester and East Stroudsburg compete every year. Since 2011, each has won at least two national championships. But are there any real contenders other than the big three PSAC powers poised to go St. Anselm’s way and win their first-ever national championship with top-ranking changes?
4 teams that can surprise in 2025
Southern New Hampshire: A big season is coming for the audience with the most wins since 2019. It was the first DII field hockey championship since the 2019 season. It’s a program that bounced back in 2014 and had a lot of bumps and bruises to get here, but head coach Julie Munson seems to be steering them in the right direction. Despite losing a lot of talent over the weekend of September 19-21, they were the only NE10 to win. They have the most scoring offense in the conference, with Minke van de Poll leading the conference with five goals, while forward/midfielder Zoe Demers has four goals, one goal shy of her career high.
Newberry: If you think 2024 won by a team outside of the PSG is a stretch, wait until you hear about the teams in the Northeast. They rarely make it to the tournament, never mind winning a national title. Although the Wolves were founded in 2013, they are still a relatively young field hockey program, but they haven’t had a losing season since 2018. You have to think that in the eight-team field (new from last year), SAC teams will continue to be represented in the bracket, and the Wolves are as good as any. They went 29-8 over the past two seasons, finishing as one of the highest scoring teams in DII each year.
They lost their top scorer this season, but Emma Westbrook, the team’s leading scorer and DII’s seventh-leading scorer (14), Parker Keeler and Vibien Daman, who had 15 goals and nine assists, all return. There will be a new full-time face in the Nets, but it looks like he has enough talent to make a run at the bracket. Wolves are going to a 4-0 started better than competitors 22-2 along the road.
Wingate: Bulldogs are an interesting case. They are a young program that has made big strides, going from a 4-win team last season to a 13-win team. They lost one of the best players in program history in Wingate’s first All-American, Riley Cordrid, but return a host of players who played important minutes, including Emma George, who scored 16 goals, Grace Gerner and Audrey Proulx. The defense has been one of DII’s best, boasting the fifth-best goals against average (1.03). If the Bulldogs want to take another step forward, they have the backfield to do it.
Bloomsburg: I know what you mean. Aren’t the Huskies a PSAC power? In the grand scheme of things, they are the best ever, with a record 13 national championships. The Huskies’ last national championship, however, was in 2009, and until last year, their last playoff appearance was in 2011. It could be the start of a new era for the Huskies.
Despite losing their top two scorers, the Huskies trailed by one 7-0 start. They return seven of their top 10 scorers, including Genna Bush and Kate Ferguson, who scored 17 goals. Bloomsburg has very little turnover when you look around competitors from other years, such as Bentley or Southern New Hampshire. After a while, this team could make a splash.
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