Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Office
P.O. Box 425, 205 S. Madison Ave., Greenwood, IN 46142; Phone: (317) 882-8090; Fax: (317) 882-8086

Christopher Ragsdale Commissioner commissioner@heartlandconf.org

Ryan Davis Sports Information Director hcac@heartlandconf.org

-- October 31, 2011- Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference

Earlham & Hanover Share HCAC Women's Soccer Title

GREENWOOD, IN – The Earlham College women's soccer program earned a share of the HCAC Championship for the second consecutive season and secured the top seed for the conference tournament. The Quakers tied with Hanover College at the top of the
standings with 8-1 records. The top-seed

Quakers are playing great soccer heading into tournament play, winning nine of their last 10 matches. Earlham will battle No. 4 seeded Bluffton in one semifinal, while second seeded Hanover will host No. 3 Transylvania in the second semifinal.

Earlham finished the regular season with an 8-1 mark in conference play and an 11-5-1 overall record. The Quakers secured the top seed in the conference tournament with a 5-0 win over Franklin Saturday afternoon. Junior midfielder Ikumi Doucette (Berwyn Heights, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) netted the game-winner in the 46th minute to lead EC over the Grizzlies and earn the top seed.

Earlham and Bluffton (10-4-2, 5-3-1 HCAC) met back on October 4 at Earlham as the Quakers defeated the Beavers 2-1. Ikumi and Joy Doucette (Berwyn Heights, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) each scored goals for EC in the win. Bluffton will be making the school's first ever appearance in the HCAC women's soccer tournament Wednesday. The winner of the 2:00 PM match-up will advance on to Saturday's championship match.

Hanover (14-2-1, 8-1 HCAC) and Transylvania (14-3, 7-2 HCAC) will meet in the second semifinal. The Panthers defeated the Pioneers 2-0 on October 18. Erin Hancock (Amelia, Ohio/H.S.) and Emily Williams (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) beat the Transy defense early in the first half to put the match out of reach. The conference championship was the fourth for the Panthers and their first since the 2009 season. Action will get underway from Hanover at 2:00 PM Tuesday.

The winner of the conference tournament will earn the conference's automatic qualifier into the NCAA Division III tournament that is slated to begin on November 11. The highest remaining seed after the two semi-finals will host the conference tournament final at 1:00 PM Saturday.

-HCAC-