NEWBERRY, S.C.—The Bellarmine Knights field hockey team ended its 2016 season with bang, blasting the Mercy Mavericks 8-1 in the third place game of the Eastern College Athletic Conference Championship Tournament at Setzler Field on the campus of Newberry College.
 
Senior Kathryn Schneidtmiller ended her Bellarmine career with a solid game including two goals and an assist.  The scores moved her into the top 10 on Bellarmine's all-time lists for points (10th), goals (9th) and assists (10th).
 
Six different Knights scored goals, and the six different players handed out assists.
 
Bellarmine's performance on the field was dominating, outshooting the Mavericks 23-5 with 19 of those shots on frame. The Knights also owned a 16-6 advantage in penalty corners.
 
Mercy goalkeeper Cheradyn Pettit picked up 11 saves on the day to keep the score from getting out of hand.
 
"We came in ready to play today," said Bellarmine Coach Mark Blankenbaker. "Our goal was to play as a team and finish in the circle.
 
"While we didn't accomplish our team goal of winning the conference tournament," Blankenbaker added. "I'm really happy with the way this team came together. They worked hard and supported each other on and off the field. The stats from today show how balanced this team is—goals and assists form multiple players and rotating six different defensive players in."
 
The Knights close the 2016 season with a final record of 13-7 while the Mavericks finish 7-13.
 
Today's game also closes the careers of six different seniors, including Kelsey O'Bryan, who like Schneidtmiller, ranks in BU's top 10 in all-time points (8th), goals (10th) and assists (4th).
 
All six seniors made a contribution today: Schneidtmiller (2 goals, 1 assist), Anna O'Toole (1 goal, 1 assist), Alex Ginter (1 goal), O'Bryan (1 assist), Aimee Ilgenfritz (2 shots on goal), and Sara Nicolas (logged final 4:19 in goal).
 
"I am really proud of our seniors," Blankenbaker said. "They gave four great years to this program, and it is far ahead of where it was when they arrived. We will need to work hard to replace them. We have the talent on the roster and players coming in to continue moving toward winning the conference and getting into the NCAA Tournament."
 
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BOX SCORE (HTM)