LANCASTER, Pa.- For the fifth-straight season, the No. 12 Franklin & Marshall field hockey team (13-4, 7-3 Centennial Conference) will compete for the Centennial Conference Tournament. Head Coach Kaitlyn Eager will lead Diplomats into the postseason for the eighth time, as they'll enter as the tournament's fourth seed. They'll open play by hosting fifth-seeded Haverford in the first round on Tuesday, November 3, at 7 p.m.

Ticket Information

Hudl returns as the ticketing provider for Centennial Conference postseason action in the 2026-27 academic year. Hudl will give event attendees the ability to purchase tickets online for each round of the Centennial postseason. Centennial fans will be able to find all scheduled postseason events on the Centennial ticketing homepage and quickly purchase tickets to receive via email. Fans will then use their smartphone to gain access at championship events through a simple and secure ticket validation process.  Below are the ticket prices for each round of the postseason. Prices listed include a $1 service fee:

• Adults - $11
• Students (Age 6 through High School) - $6
• Senior Citizens - $6
• College Students, Faculty & Staff of Centennial Schools - FREE
• Children 5 and Under – FREE

The Field

FIRST ROUND: Tuesday, Nov. 3 | at #3 & #4 seeds
#6 Dickinson at #3 Ursinus, 6 p.m. 
#5 Haverford at #4 Franklin & Marshall, 7 p.m. 

SEMIFINALS: Thursday, Nov. 5 | at #1 & #2 seeds
Higher seeded first round winner at #2 Swarthmore, 7 p.m.
Lower seeded first round winner at #1 Johns Hopkins, 6 p.m. 

CHAMPIONSHIP: Saturday, Nov. 7 | at highest remaining seed
Semifinal winners, location & time TBD

Entering the Centennial Tournament

The Diplomat have recorded a 13-4, 7-3 Centennial Conference record entering the Centennial Conference tournament, entering with five wins from their last six games. F&M went 6-1 in the non-conference schedule, including a five-game winning streak to start the season where they outscored opponents, 21-1. The Diplomats picked up two ranked wins in non-conference play, defeating No. 9 Messiah, 3-1, and No. 15 Cortland, 3-0. The lone loss came to No. 20 Shenandoah in a 1-0 double-overtime defeat on Senior Day. 

F&M opened the conference schedule with a 2-1 double-overtime victory secured by two goals from Caitlin Hoover. They followed that with a 4-0 win over McDaniel where Hoover surpassed Erin McCormick '20 for the program goals record, while the defense conceded zero shots. Those two wins were followed by a 1-0 loss in the last minute at Gettysburg, while No. 8 Johns Hopkins claimed a 2-1 win in the second overtime period in Baltimore. F&M returned to winning form with wins over Muhlenberg and Washington College during a homestand where they outscored opponents 7-2. No. 15 Ursinus delivered another double-overtime defeat in a 1-0 loss, while F&M closed out the regular season with a 3-2 comeback win at Dickinson, a 2-0 win against Bryn Mawr where Hoover passed McCormick for the program points record, and a 3-1 come-from-behind win hosting No. 14 Swarthmore where Hannah Fitzgerald tallied five points. 

Among Division III sides, the Diplomats rank fifth in goals against average (0.70). 16th in winning percentage (0.789), 19th in scoring margin (2.07), and 21st in scoring average (3.28).

F&M has held a spot in the NFHCA Division III Coaches Poll every week so far in 2026, peaking at No. 7 on September 15 for the program's highest rank since the 2021 season. 

The Diplomats look to build on a run of four consecutive Centennial Conference Tournament Semifinals appearances, as they seek a first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2019's runner-up result. The 2025 postseason came to an abrupt end in the semifinal round, as fourth-seeded No. 12 Dickinson scored the lone goal from a penalty corner to upset second-seeded No. 13 F&M at Tylus Field. 

Players to Watch

Senior forward Caitlin Hoover is primed to repeat as an All-American, as the senior forward is tied for ninth in goals per game (1.19, 19 total) and tied for 24th in points per game (2.38, 38 total). She's recorded two hat-tricks with six multi-goal games and three game-winning goals. Entering Tuesday, she holds the program records in goals (62) and points (140). 

Senior forward/midfielder Hannah Fitzgerald leads the conference with eight assists, which is trailed directly by junior midfielder Megan Dadio. Dadio, the team's primary penalty corner injector, has had her strongest season to date, ranking second in the conference in assists (7), tied for seventh in goals (8), and eighth in points (23). 

Ava Lofgren and Molly Donadoni are level with Hoover with three game-winning goals, while both juniors have totaled five goals overall in 2026. Junior midfielder Maya Rorick has been pivotal both in defense and transition for the Diplomats while contributing two goals and four assists. Junior midfielder Bella Konchar executed both of her penalty corner chances this season, as she remains a perfect 6-for-6 in her career.

Senior goalkeeper Meghan Dole has had her statistically strongest season, ranking among the nation's best keepers in DIII. She ranks fourth in goals against average (0.556), tenth in save percentage (.839), leading the conference in both categories plus shutouts (7). Ahead of her, she's had the help of a back three made up of senior Sarah Weitzman, junior Melissa Sessler, and sophomore Brynn Harrison that's been key to maintaining a top-five defense in DIII. Weitzman has also been useful from penalty corners, chipping in two goals and four assists.

Postseason Performers

Caitlin Hoover and Hannah Fitzgerald have each recorded two postseason goals in their career, while Megan Dadio has one assist. Meghan Dole has made 28 saves across five starts with a .757 save percentage. 

Scouting the Fords

Haverford (10-8, 6-4 Centennial Conference) locked in a fifth Centennial Conference tournament appearance in a six-season span, securing a playoff berth with a 2-0 upset at No. 14 Swarthmore to conclude the 2026 regular season. The Fords began the year by going 4-4 in their non-conference contests, opening with a 2-1 home win against Lebanon Valley before dropping three-straight games to SUNY Cortland (1-0, OT), Ithaca (2-0), and No. 22 TCNJ (3-0). The Fords got back to .500 with a 5-1 win against Alvernia and a 3-0 win at Susquehanna before concluding non-conference play with a 4-0 loss at Rowan and a 2-1 win hosting Stockton.

The Fords took No. 8 F&M to double overtime before Caitlin Hoover handed Haverford a 2-1 defeat. They went on to win five of the next six games, earning 4-1 wins over McDaniel, Gettysburg, and Dickinson, besting Washington College, 3-0, and defeating Muhlenberg, 1-0. The lone loss during that run came against No. 14 Ursinus in a 2-1 overtime decision. A 1-0 loss to Bryn Mawr and a 3-1 defeat at No. 9 Johns Hopkins left the team's postseason fate up to the regular season finale at No. 14 Swarthmore where they won the Hood Trophy over the Garnet. 

Haverford are averaging 1.83 goals per game and conceding 1.33 goals per contest for a 0.50 scoring margin. They are creating the fourth-most shots per game (14.11) and sixth-most penalty corners per game (7.17) in the Centennial Conference. 

Senior midfielder/attacker Erica Pardón ranks third in the conference in goals (14) and tied for fourth in points (29) with three game-winning goals following a season where she was named an NFHCA All-Region V Second Team player. Sophomore attacker Morgan Reis trails Pardón with six goals. Sophomore attacker Alice Stein has led chance creation with five assists, tying her for eighth in the conference. Seven different Fords have contributed one game-winning goal apiece. Junior Steph Ionescu has started the last six games in the cage for Haverford. Among qualifying goalkeepers, she is fifth in save percentage (.767), fifth in goals against average (1.26), and fifth in saves per game (3.83) with two shutouts.

Series History vs. Fords

The Diplomats enter Tuesday night with a 36-9-1 record against the Fords, while Kaitlyn Eager maintains an 8-2 record against Haverford during her time as the program's head coach. During that spell, F&M is averaging 2.6 goals per game while conceding 0.7. The Fords' most recent win came in the 2025 regular season matchup when they won 3-2 at Tylus Field. It took until the second overtime period to find a game winner in the 2026 regular season contest, as Caitlin Hoover broke a 1-1 deadlock with her second goal of the game just 30 seconds into the second overtime period. The last playoff game between the teams saw F&M put two goals unanswered past the Fords in the first round of the 2024 Centennial Conference Field Hockey Tournament.

Caitlin Hoover has recorded five goals in her five games against Haverford, while Meghan Dole has a .762 save percentage with 16 saves and two shutouts in five starts.