Oct. 30, 2000

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Maryland field hockey team (15-3, 2-2 ACC) hosts the 2000 ACC Field Hockey Championship this week, Nov. 2-5. As the No. 3 seed, the Terps face No. 2 Wake Forest in the second round on Friday, Nov. 3 at 4 p.m. Maryland and the Demon Deacons have met already once this season in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Wake emerging the 5-3 victor. Admission to all of the ACC Championship games is free.

The Terrapins are coming off a convincing 7-0 victory over the Richmond Spiders on Oct. 29. Five different Terps scored in the match, with Rachel Hiskins' (Victoria, Australia) two goals and two assists leading the way. Junior Dina Rizzo (Walpole, Mass.) also netted a pair of goals, while goalie Ashley Hohnstine (Oak Hill, Va.) combined with junior Jackie Reilly (Suffern, N.Y.), freshman Erica Bicksler (Palmyra, Pa.) and kicking back Carli Harris (Westminster, Md.) to collect the Terps' eighth shutout of the season.

ACC Championship Facts and Coverage
Date, Time: Thursday-Sunday, Nov. 2-5
Location: Artificial Turf Facility, College Park, Md.

Television: The championship game on Sunday, Nov. 5 at 3:30 p.m. will be aired live on Home Team Sports.
Play-by-Play: John Castleberry
Color: Leah Secondo

Seedings And Schedule
First Round
Thursday, Nov. 2
2:30 p.m. - No. 4 Virginia vs. No. 5 Duke

Second Round
Friday, Nov. 3
4:00 p.m. - No. 2 Wake Forest vs. No. 3 Maryland
7:00 p.m. - No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 4/5 Winner

Championship Game
Sunday, Nov. 5
3:30 p.m. - Second Round Winners
Live on Home Team Sports

Terps At A Glance
The Terrapins put their powerful offense together with stifling defense and stellar goalkeeping to bury Richmond with seven unanswered scores. The Terp attack, led by All-Americans Carla Tagliente (Cortland, N.Y.), Rachel Hiskins, Caroline Walter (Reilingen, Germany) and Keli Smith (Selinsgrove, Pa.), has overwhelmed opponents all season long with 95 scores (5.21 gpg) on 443 shot attempts (24.3 spg), while Maryland's backfield anchored by seniors Molly Kauffman (West Lawn, Pa.), Lindsay Gorewitz (Rockville, Md.) and juniors Autumn Welsh (Macungie, Pa.) and Kristy Palchinsky (Leonardtown, Md.) has limited the opposition to 21 goals (1.15 gpg) on 122 shots (6.7 spg).

In the cage, Maryland's junior keeper Ashley Hohnstine has been solid, posting eight shutouts on the season including four against ranked teams. The Terp keeper boasts a 1.06 goals against average and a .773 save percentage. She made a career-high nine saves vs. No. 2 Old Dominion on Oct. 15.

A Team Of Many Weapons
With ten Terrapins totalling two or more goals in 2000, seven Terps with at least five scores and four with over 10, opposing defenses have had their hands full to say the least. The balanced Terrapin attack is led by senior Rachel Hiskins, who picked up right where she left off in 1999 when she scored a school-record 67 points. The center midfielder currently paces Maryland with 20 goals and 14 assists for 54 total points. Three-time All-American Carla Tagliente (18 goals), junior All-American Caroline Walter (16 goals) and sophomore Carissa Messimer (Mountaintop, Pa.) (11 goals) round out the top four in scoring, while senior All-American Keli Smith has chipped in 13 season assists.

Seeing Red
The Terrapins' balanced scoring attack that ranked second in the nation during the regular season has caused opponents to "see red" in frustration all year long. That may become literal for the Demon Deacons today, as the Terps plan on donning their alternate road jerseys for today's match-up --- the "reds." It will be the first time all season that the Terps have worn their red uniforms.

Terps In The ACC Tournament
The Terrapins enter the 2000 ACC Championship as the two-time defending champion, earning the conference title in both 1999 and 1998. The Terps have a four-game ACC Tournament win streak over the past two seasons and are looking to extend a six-game postseason win streak established in 1999. Taking their first tournament crown in 1993, Maryland has captured three ACC championships in program history, all under the tenure of head coach Missy Meharg. Meharg owns a 13-9 record in ACC Tournament play.

A season ago, Maryland's road to the title began with a semifinal 2-0 shutout of Virginia, a match in which the suffocating Terp defense allowed the Cavaliers zero shots. The Terrapins went on to capture the title with a 2-1 double-overtime defeat of today's opponent, Wake Forest. Midfielder Carla Tagliente netted the "golden goal" in the second extra-session and earned tournament MVP honors.

Since the ACC Field Hockey Championship's inception in 1983, the Terrapins own a 16-14 record in tournament play. Last year's victory in the championship game was the first time the Terps and Deacs have clashed in the conference championship tournament. In the ACC Field Hockey Championship's 16 year history, the Terrapins have advanced to the finals 13 times.

Scouting The Demon Deacons: The Word On Wake
Third-seeded Maryland takes on No. 2 Wake Forest for the second time this season, this time in the semifinal round of the 2000 ACC Field Hockey Championship. The NFHCA No. 4 Demon Deacons own a 16-2 record entering today's match-up.

The Deacons have continued in 2000 what they began in 1999, posting an 18-4 record and competing in the NCAA Tournament for the first time Wake's program history. The Demons were ranked as high as third in the nation a season ago and finished fifth in the final poll. They also reached the ACC final game for the first time ever where their run was halted by Maryland's 2-1 double-overtime victory.

1999 ACC coach of the year Jennifer Averill is in her ninth season at the helm of the Demon Deacons. Wake's mentor has a 98-76-3 career record through the Deacons' last victory, a 2-0 road win over James Madison on Oct. 29.

Today's match-up pits Maryland's nationally second-rated scoring offense against Wake's fourth-ranked offense and defense. A first-team All-American in 1999 and All-ACC honoree in 2000, Jenny Everett leads the Deacons with 19 goals and 18 assists for 36 points. The senior is ranked third in the nation in points per game and eighth in goals per game. Sophomore Heather Aughinbaugh and junior Jemima Cameron have 29 points each, on 11 goals, seven assist and 12 goals, five assists respectively. Senior goalie Jamie Tressler, who played behind second-team All-America goalie Meaghan Nitka last season, boasts a .857 goals against average and was the sixth-rated keeper in the regular season.

The Terrapins possess an 11-2 record against Wake Forest in the all-time series. The last meeting was on Sept. 23, 2000 when the Terps fell, 3-5 in regulation.

ACC Championship Website
For the complete 2000 ACC Field Hockey Championship bracket, directions to the University of Maryland's Artificial Turf Facility, and news, notes and other information, check out the ACC website at www.theacc.fansonly.com. The site features links to all five of the ACC field hockey schools' news and statistics pages, as well as to the NFHCA and National Statistics page.

Match recaps and stats will be available on-line only moments after the completion of each game.

Be a part of the action as NFHCA Top 20 Teams square off in the strongest conference tournament in the nation. Be sure to make plans to attend, and keep checking the ACC Website and www.umterps.com for updates.

                    2000 ACC Standings
	             Overall	               ACC
Team	        W	L	T	W	L	T
No. 1 UNC	17	2	0	4	0	0
No. 2 WFU 	16	2	0	3	1	0
No. 3 UMd	15	3	0	2	2	0
No. 4 UVa	12	6	0	1	3	0
No. 5 Duke	7	11	0	0	4	0

Contact: Mark Fratto
301-314-7064 (Phone)
301-314-9094 (FAX)
301-314-TERP (Fan Phone)
fratto@wam.umd.edu