BRUNSWICK, Maine (November 15, 2008) – Defending national champion Bowdoin College used an early goal from sophomore midfielder/forward Ingrid Oelschlager (Roanoke, Va.) and added two more second-half tallies en route to a 3-0 win over 16th-ranked Stevens Institute of Technology during an NCAA Division III Championship second-round game on Saturday morning in Brunswick, Maine. With the loss, the Ducks closed out the year with an overall record of 19-4. The 19 victories are a new school record for the field hockey program, which is in just its fifth year of existence.

Saturday's win sends Bowdoin (16-2) to Sunday's regional final at 1 p.m. The Polar Bears will face the winner of Lebanon Valley College and Middlebury College.

Bowdoin got on the board 14:47 into the game when Oelschlager converted off a feed from senior forward Madeleine McQueeney (Buffalo, N.Y.). Stevens was unable to generate much offense in the first half as the Polar Bears out-shot the Ducks 12-0.

Nearly 20 minutes into the second half, Bowdoin opened a two-goal advantage when senior forward Lindsay McNamara (Milton, Mass.) found the back of the net. Just over seven minutes later, the Polar Bears went on top 3-0 when freshman forward Katie Herter (Topsfield, Mass.) scored.

For the game, Bowdoin out-shot Stevens 20-2. The Polar Bears also owned a 9-3 edge in penalty corners. Ducks' senior goalkeeper Stephanie Smith kept the team in the game with 11 big saves. Senior goalkeeper Emileigh Mercer (Newton, Mass.) made one stop for Bowdoin. Junior defender Kara Kelley (Dedham, Mass.) also came up with a key defensive save off a shot from Stevens junior forward Kara Borzillo around the 55-minute mark. The Polar Bears led 2-0 at the time. That save proved crucial because Borzillo's near goal could have trimmed the Ducks' deficit to 2-1 with 15 minutes to play.

The 2008 season proved to be as year of firsts for the Stevens field hockey program. Building off last year's 13-7 record and ECAC Tournament bid, the Ducks put together 19 wins (school record). Furthermore, Stevens qualified for the Empire 8 postseason tournament for the first time, won its first-ever conference title, reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time, and picked up its first NCAA win with 2-1 victory over the College of Wooster on Wednesday. Along the way, Stevens produced six all-conference selections, including the player of the year in senior midfielder Allison Shields.