UConn captures seventh straight Big East field hockey title
Groton’s LeClair is state’s top female finisher in the New York City Marathon
Lynchburg, Va. — Top-seeded UConn won its seventh straight Big East Conference field hockey tournament championship with a 5-3 victory over No. 2 Liberty on Sunday.
It was also the 500th career win at UConn by coach Nancy Stevens, who is already the NCAA's all-time Division I leader in overall coaching victories with 680.
The Huskies (18-3) are the reigning national champion and earned an automatic bid into the 2018 NCAA Division I tournament, which was expected to unveil its 18 team field on Sunday night.
Liberty, playing at home, trailed 3-2 at halftime, but tied the game nine minutes into the second half. That's when UConn took charge. Svea Boker, assisted by Jessica Dembroski, gave the Huskies the lead for good just 1:15 later, and Vivienne Tucker added an insurance goal 55 seconds after Boker's goal.
Amanda Collins, Amelia Iacobucci and Antonia Tiedtke scored goals in the first half for UConn, Collins' coming just 47 seconds into the game.
Iacobucci, Boker, Collins, Cecile Pieper and goalie Cheyenne Sprecher were named to the all-tournament team for UConn.
NYC Marathon
• Groton's Brandy LeClair, a Fitch High School graduate, was the top Connecticut women's finisher in the New York City Marathon. LeClair finished in two hours, 57.09 seconds, placing 62 overall among American women finishers.
Men's soccer
• Albert Baraka's goal in the 98th minute gave top-seeded Newbury College a 1-0 overtime victory over No. 2 Mitchell College in the New England College Conference tournament championship game.
Warren Exceus assisted on the game-winner for the Nighthawks (114-4), who earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III tournament. Goalie Seth Strader, a Norwich Free Academy graduate, made 10 saves for the Mariners, who finish 9-9. Mitchell was outshot 19-12.
CIAC tournament
• The CIAC tournament begins Monday with 12 local teams playing first-round games, six in girls' soccer and six in volleyball.
In girls' soccer, No. 17 NFA visits No. 16 E.O. Smith in a Class LL game at 2 p.m. while Class M games feature No. 8 Montville at home to No. 25 Griswold at 3 p.m., No. 28 Waterford at No. 5 Morgan at 4 p.m. and No. 11 Stonington at home against No. 22 Innovation at 1 p.m., and Class S games feature No. 14 Old Lyme, the defending champion, at home against No. 19 Windsor Locks at 2 p.m. and No. 16 St. Bernard at home against No. 17 Coginchaug, also at 2.
In volleyball, No. 26 NFA visits No. 7 Shelton at 5 p.m. in a Class LL game while No. 19 Fitch is at No. 14 Newington in a Class L game at 5:30 p.m. In Class M, No. 17 Ledyard visits No. 16 Rockville at 6 p.m. while No. 13 Montville hosts No. 20 Amistad at 5, while in Class S, No. 20 Wheeler visits No. 13 Goodwin Tech at 5 and No. 23 Norwich Tech is at No. 10 Vinal Tech at 6.