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GAMBIER, Ohio – Wednesday afternoon's North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) field hockey tournament semifinal pits, for the third time this season, the Kenyon College Ladies against the Ohio Wesleyan University Battling Bishops. The elimination game will take place at Selby Stadium with a start time of 3 p.m.

The visiting Ladies enter the four-team tournament as the No. 3-seed after posting a 14-3 overall record and a 7-1 mark within NCAC action. Host Ohio Wesleyan, which is 13-3 overall and 7-1 in the NCAC, enters play as the tournament's No. 2 seed. The other NCAC semifinal contest has No. 1-seed Denison University hosting No. 4-seed DePauw University, also at 3 p.m.

The winners of the two semifinal games will meet Saturday at the highest remaining seed to determine who takes the tournament title, along with the conference's automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Kenyon, Ohio Wesleyan and Denison all shared the 2019 NCAC regular-season title. The conference's tiebreaker system was used to set the seeds for tournament play.            

Earlier this season, Kenyon defeated Ohio Wesleyan, 1-0, in a non-conference home game. The lone goal scored came from freshman Bella Kern, who converted a third-quarter penalty stroke. The teams combined for just six shots in that the game.

About a month after that result, Kenyon went to Ohio Wesleyan and suffered a 1-0 setback in game that counted toward conference records. There were 12 combined shots in that contest. The one that counted came from sophomore Astrid Koek, who scored off a third-quarter penalty corner play.

The teams sport similar stats. Both average 2.4 goals per game. Ohio Wesleyan ranks first in the conference with a 0.44 goals against average, while Kenyon ranks second with a 0.47 average. The Battling Bishops, however, do have a distinct edge in shots taken (334-268) and penalty corners (175-121). Kenyon's advantage looks to be freshman goalkeeper Payton Doan, who leads all NCAA Division III players with an individual 0.34 goals against average and ranks seventh in the nation with a .853 save percentage.

The Ladies also hold the edge in postseason experience. Wednesday's game will mark Kenyon's seventh straight appearance in the NCAC Tournament. Over the last six seasons, the Ladies have earned at least a share of four NCAC regular-season crowns and won NCAC Tournaments in 2014 and 2017. Ohio Wesleyan's share of the 2019 regular-season title was its first since 1995 and the Battling Bishops have never won an NCAC Tournament. Their last conference postseason appearance was in 2012.

Although defense is the name of the game for both these teams, someone is going to have to score. For Kenyon, sophomore Sarah Metzmaier is a good bet. She ranks second in the conference in both points (32) and goals (15). For Ohio Wesleyan, it might be senior Ashley Barno or freshman Madisyn Bunke, who lead their squad with 10 and 9 goals, respectively.

As mandated by the NCAC, ticket prices for the semifinal games will be $7 for adults and $3 for children (18-and under). NCAC students presenting their institution ID will be admitted free of charge.  

If you are unable to make it to the game, Ohio Wesleyan is providing live stats and video stream.