In the first round games, all of the top five womens teams cruised to victory. Round two got more interesting, especially in the battle between NYU and Cornell.  This was an upwind downwind game where both teams were playing for field position. NYU got two breaks early in the game off of physical marking and a Callahan goal by former Stanford player Jen Lau (#7). Cornell cut NYU's 7-2 lead to 8-5 at halftime with a break of its own. Both teams had multiple chances to score upwind early in the second half, but the teams held serve to 11-9. The game is capped at 12 and Cornell scores a critical upwinder after another long point. NYU has a chance to score upwind and win the game in the next point, but a forehand floats over its intended receiver in the endzone and Cornell marches down the field to tie the game and send it to universe point.  The next point had ten turnovers total as NYU tries to play field position and Cornell is unable to work the disc against NYU's defense. Cornell has two chances within 20 yards of the upwind goal line, but can't convert. NYU's Linh Hoang (#00) eventually hit Beth Kacich (#3) for the winning score.

Such an exhausting game so early in the tournament all but spelled the demise of Cornell and NYU for later in the tournament. Cornell's small roster was spent for its next game in the backdoor bracket against Rutgers, giving up a small lead early in the game to and being unable to mount a big enough comeback when the score is 11-7. Amanda Davis (#18) was able to make plays despite a box-and-1 and Rutgers won 13-10. Meanwhile, in the semifinals NYU had to face Ottawa--a team that has talent up and down its line-up and had dispatched with Pennslyvannia 15-3 in the previous game. Otttawa's captains praised Penn's grittiness and a number of the points were long, hard-fought affairs, suggesting the match was slightly closer than the score indicated. Nonetheless, Ottawa was well-rested for the semis and NYU decided to rest its starters for the backdoor after Ottawa quickly went up 2-0. NYU's rookies were unable to score against Ottawa's talented line-up and Ottawa won 15-0.

The game of the day was being played in the other semifinal between Maryland and Pittsburgh. On the line was a first round bye on Sunday and the right to play Ottawa in the finals. The first half of the game saw numerous calls, many of which resulted in the dreaded "do-over," despite observers on the field. Maryland chanelled its annoyance with the outcome of some of these calls into increased pressure on defense. Katie Mercer (#81) is Maryland's star and she worked the disc well with Molly Rose (#42). The Maryland cutters were fast with good timing out of the vertical stack, and Clara Morris (#6) and Heather "Citation" Smith (#17) were especially relied upon. Pitt was also deep with a number of athletic players. Sophomores Christie Lawry (#35) and Kayla Kleynen (#14) handled the disc consistently while Molly Moore (#22) and Lucy Gillespie (#8) made huge impacts downfield. Two breaks early in the second half allowed Maryland to earn a 15-9 win.

In the backdoor bracket, Penn State and Pennslyvannia advanced until they met the losers of semifinals. NYU took down Penn State in a close 13-11 game, while Pittsburgh rose above Penn 15-11. Pittsburgh and NYU played in the game-to-go to the game-to-go, a re-match of a windy 11-10 game in March where NYU squeaked out the win. This time around, the weather was not a factor and Pitt was able to showcase its depth and athleticism. NYU's coach, Zac Roy, explained that "in the calm conditions, skill, experience and fresher legs prevailed.  We put up a good fight, trading goals throughout most of the first half, and trailed just 8-7 at the break.  But Pitt pulled away late, ultimately winning 15-9." Pittsburgh and Maryland played for the second time during the weekend, this time with everything on the line in the backdoor finals. Although spectators might have expected the game to be closer than the earlier semifinals match-up, Maryland was able to pull away to a 15-7 victory.

Ottawa and Maryland will thus be testing themselves against the best in North America in just a few short weeks in Boulder. Maryland's top line can probably run with most other team's starters at the championships, and its performance will likely depend on how well the rest of the roster plays. Ottawa has not lost a game all season and is a bit of an X factor after only playing in one pre-Series tournament. Alex Benedict (#42) and Anne Mercier (#5) will be leading the way for the Candian squad that could be the first Canadian team in history to win the UPA College Championships.

Contributions from Julie Sussman, Zac Roy, Anne Mercier, and Krisztina Jozsef. Thank you for your insights and support!