Cape hockey defeats Mt. Pleasant 3-1, set to face Tower Hill in semifinals

Cape hockey prevailed over Mt. Pleasant on the home Champions Stadium pitch Nov. 14 in the quarterfinals of the DIAA field hockey tournament, beating the Green Knights 3-1. The Vikings broke open a game that was tied 1-1 after one half of action.

The survive-and-advance round win sends Cape to the semifinals where they will face Tower Hill, who got in front and stayed there to outlast Polytech 3-2.

The semifinal round Wednesday, Nov. 18, at University of Delaware's Rullo Stadium features Cape versus the Hillers at 6 p.m., with Delmar and Wilmington Christian facing off at 8 p.m.

Delmar defeated Padua 1-0 to advance, while Wilmington Christian outlasted upstart Dover 3-2.

Cape scored early in the game at 28:51 when Sydney Ostroski tipped home a shot by Erin Coverdale.

Mt. Pleasant answered by converting their only corner of the game on a shot by Kate Walker on an assist from Casey Wakhi.

“We were relaxed and not worried at halftime because we were playing well and the game is 60 minutes long and we play every minute,” said Coverdale, who is all about the dirty work in the middle of the field.

Cape pushed the action the entire game, cranking 33 shots to 1 for Mt. Pleasant, with a 28-2 advantage in corners.

Lizzie Frederick from her knees sent home the go-ahead goal at 19:47 of the second half, slapping a rebounded shot by Tess Bernheimer. Bernheimer herself was in the back of the net at 13:03 off an assist from Coverdale.

A big factor in the game - and every game - was the play of defensive middie Annie Judge, a relentless defender with sprinter’s speed who had the job of picking up University of Michigan-bound Kate Walker when she crossed into Cape’s end of the field.

The Vikings are 17-0 on the season and will face 15-2 Tower Hill. Mt. Pleasant closed the season with a record of 13-4.