DOYLESTOWN (PA) – The Delaware Valley College field hockey team begins Freedom Conference playoff action on Wednesday, November 4 when the fourth-seeded Aggies travel to top-seeded and nationally-ranked Eastern University. Game time is slated for 2:30 p.m.

Head coach Carol Di Girolamo and her Aggies were picked to finish sixth out of seven teams in the preseason conference coaches' poll, but will instead head to the postseason for the first timer since 2006. They finished the 2009 regular season with a 10-9 overall record and 4-3 mark in the Freedom. They were tied with King's College for third place in the standings, but King's took the higher seed thanks to a 2-1 win over Delaware Valley during the campaign.

King's will travel across town to meet second-seeded Wilkes University in the other semifinal match-up The winners from each game will meet in the Freedom Conference Championship at the highest remaining seed on Saturday, November 7 (game time TBA) with the champion earning an automatic berth to the NCAA Division III playoffs.

Delaware Valley is led by the senior tandem of midfielder Bethany Pavlik (Lewes, DE/Sussex Technical) and forward Danielle Heyne (Mt. Bethel, PA/Bangor) as both are in the top five on the school's all-time scoring list.

Pavlik is the Aggies' career leader in assists with 28 while her 48 goals and 124 points have her ranked second in both categories. This year, she has scored 13 goals and assisted on four others for 30 points. Heyne trails only Pavlik in career assists with 23 and she is also fifth all-time in scoring with 67 points. Her 2009 totals are five goals and a team-best eight assists for 18 points (third on the team). 

Juniors Holly Rich (Wharton, NJ/Roxbury), Mindy Miniconzi (Blackwood, NJ/Highland) and Marissa Di Miero (Delran, NJ/Delran) have notched double digits in scoring this season. Rich is second on the team in both goals (8) and points (20) while her five game-winning tallies lead the squad. Miniconzi has four goals and five assists for 13 points while Di Miero's totals include four goals and three helpers for 11 points. 

Miniconzi is also part of an Aggie defense that has allowed average of 1.8 goals and 13.2 shots per contest. Fellow juniors Kate Highberger (Haddon Heights, NJ/Camden Catholic) and Katy Provenzale (Andover, NJ/Newton) also play prominent roles on the defense with Highberger being credited with five defensive saves. 

Sophomore Hollis Hancock (Philadelphia, PA/St. Basil Academy) has played every minute in goal for Delaware Valley this season. She has recorded five shutouts and 147 saves, en route to a 1.78 goals against average. 

Eastern enters the playoffs on an eight-game winning streak, including a 4-1 home triumph over Delaware Valley last Tuesday. The Eagles are 15-4 overall (7-0 Freedom) and ranked 12th in the latest womensfieldhockey.com Division III poll. 

Eastern has scored 52 goals in its first 19 games (3.3 avg) with the trio of Yvonne Herbster, Lindsay Moyer and Kimberly Campbell combining for 27 of those tallies. Herbster, a sophomore, leads the way with 11 goals and nine assists for 31 points. She had a goal and an assist in the regular-season win over Delaware Valley. Moyer, a senior, has eight goals and seven helps for 23 points while Campbell, also a senior has scored eight times (four game-winners) and assisted on five others for 21 points. 

Two other players to watch are senior forwards Olivia Derr and Elya Troup. Derr has found the goal six times and also has two assists for 14 points. Troup's season totals are five goals and three assists for 13 points. 

Meanwhile, the Eagle defense has allowed just 25 goals on the season. Junior Laura Ressler has played all but 10 minutes protecting the cage and has all 15 wins, 92 saves and a 1.69 goals against average to her credit. 

Admission for the playoff contest is $5 for adults, $4 for senior citizens and $2 for students. Children under the age of six will be admitted for free.