SELINSGROVE, PA - The Landmark Conference field hockey championship remained in Selinsgrove Saturday afternoon after a three-goal fourth quarter from Susquehanna propelled them to a 3-2 win over Scranton. The Royals, looking to exact revenge on the River Hawks after coming up short in last year's championship game to SU, appeared to be in that position from the early going when Annie Shaw put the purple and white up by two with her opening goal just over three minutes in, followed by another to start the second half barely two minutes into the third quarter. But the tide turned overwhelmingly in the fourth quarter as the River Hawks fired off three scores, including the last two delivered by first-year Mady Quigley on her way to being crowned Landmark Championship MVP. 

The parallels between Susquehanna's 2023 and 2024 Landmark championship seasons continued to shine through on championship Saturday. With Susquehanna and Scranton entering the fray as the first and third seeds, respectively, like their 2023 matchup, the Royals made the first move as they did last year with the game's first goal. The River Hawks played into the same narrative tying the game late into the contest, only this year they didn't require a shootout to determine a winner. Nor overtime for that matter. Trailing 2-0 after three quarters Scranton had plenty of reason to be excited about. The River Hawks were unable to capitalize on the 17 penalty corners or 20 shots they were afforded in the first 45 minutes as Royals goalie Gianna Travia totaled 13 saves on the day. The only challenge remaining was to keep the River Hawks at bay all fourth quarter. 

This proved to be challenging as early in the period Susquehanna finally broke through to cut the lead to one after Riley Corbett poked a ball through to Taylor Rothermel, who gathered the loose ball in front of the cage and sneaking it in past the left post with 10:35 to play in the game. It was bend, but don't break time for the Royals, who took complete advantage of their eight shots with six on goal to have the lead they had. Standing in their way were any of the River Hawks' four penalty corner chances throughout the fourth. They succeeded in directing away the first two, but the third proved to be the equalizer. Senior Lydia Hidlay inserted, sending it to the top of the arc for fellow senior Alli Kiley. As Hidlay snuck to the far post, first-year Mady Quigley passed right behind her. Kiley passed it through a crease, which found the waiting Quigley to bury it in for a whole new ball game with 6:37 to play. Before fans could begin to ponder another potential overtime situation to determine the league champions, Susquehanna used the momentum to carry out the final blow. This again would come from Quigley, this time with a little help from the top. Earning a free position deep in Scranton's end, Schmidt sent a ball in from the top of the arc, getting past a few sticks toward Quigley's, who sent a dribbler through more sticks and past the outstretched right leg of Travia with the game-winner that showed 1:33 on the game clock.

The Royals' last gasp in their lone 93 seconds trailing in the contest came with a free position with just under 55 seconds left when Taylor Rothermel was handed a yellow card. Their attempt to move past the River Hawks' line of defense came and went as Susquehanna regained possession, moving it safely up the field as time ran out to declare themselves champions of the Landmark Conference for another year. Moreover, counting all their conference regular season and postseason matchups, Susquehanna is 21-1 against their league foes between 2023 and 2024, including 4-0 ledgers against Moravian and Scranton, who they were paired up in their respective semifinals and finals contests during both playoff runs. The Royals finished with an 18-4 record, with three of those defeats coming against Landmark foes, twice to Susquehanna and once to Catholic. The one remaining was a 2-1 defeat to 11th-ranked York College of Pennsylvania for their second game of the year on Aug. 31. 

Ashley Derrick presided in goal the entire contest, posting four saves as her win streak moved up to seven with an 11-4 mark on the year. Quigley's two-goal day sent her up to second on the team in scoring with 21 points, while Schmidt's assist bumped her team-leading numbers up to 26 points with nine goals and eight assists. These two, along with upperclassmen Sophia Prata, make up the triumverate of River Hawks who have at least 20 points this season, with Prata holding 20 points on nine goals and two assists. 

Another equivalent to 2023, and 2022 for that matter, is Susquehanna reaching 15 season wins with a 15-5 record. The Allison Fordyce era of Susquehanna Field Hockey has won 91 games dating back to her appointment as head coach in 2017, earning double-digit wins in all but one of the last eight seasons. Their 16 wins in 2021 was one off from the school record of 17 set by the 2002 team.

Susquehanna will await its fate for the NCAA Division III Tournament with Sunday night's selection show, scheduled for 9:30 p.m. ET. The first round of the tournament will take place this Wednesday, opponents and times to be determined.