Madison, NJ (November 1) – The FDU-Florham women's soccer team has earned the fourth seed in the Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) Tournament and will host a first round game against fifth seed Wilkes University tomorrow, Tuesday, November 2 at 7:00 pm on Robert T. Shields Field.

You can follow tomorrow's action here!

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Admission to the game is $5 for adults, $4 for senior citizens, $2 for students and children, and free for children under six with an adult. FDU students, faculty and staff will be admitted free with their FDU ID's. Full information on the 2021 MAC Freedom Women's Soccer Championship can be found on the CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL PAGE including how to purchase MAC Freedom Tournament gear.
 
FDU enters the MAC Freedom Women's Soccer Tournament as the fourth seed following a thrilling, 2-1, Senior Day win over Bryn Mawr College on Saturday. FDU scored twice in four minutes to earn their 12th win of the year. This season, the Devils put together an overall record of 12-6-2 and a mark of 3-3-2 in conference games. FDU won the tiebreaker with Wilkes and earned the right to host the Play-In game thanks to its 1-1 double OT draw with Stevens last week.
 
The Devils are making their 14th appearance in the MAC Freedom Tournament and seventh under the direction of head coach Kristin Giotta. The last time FDU won and hosted a MAC Freedom postseason game was in 2010, which came as a 2-1 victory over Misericordia University in the semifinal round. FDU is very comfortable at home as the Devils went a combined 10-3-1 on Robert T. Shields Field and Elizabeth Ruth Hennessy Field.
 
The Devils are offensively led by graduate student Amanda Croce (Wayne, NJ), who has eight goals and four assists for 20 points and classmate Tatiana Nieto (Clark, NJ), who has four goals and ten assists for 18 points this fall. In goal, Erica Blackburn (Marlboro, NJ) and Ashley Paulino (Linden, NJ) have split time in net. Blackburn (6-3-2) has played in 16 games and has made 69 saves to go along with a goals against average of 0.96 and a save percentage of .852 in 1127 minutes of action. Paulino, who broke the all-time wins record at FDU earlier this season, has played in 12 games and has made 32 saves to go along with a goals against average of 1.00 and a save percentage of .800 in 721 minutes in net.
 
Wilkes enters the MAC Freedom Women's Soccer Tournament as the fifth seed following a 7-8-2 (3-3-2 MAC Freedom) regular season. The Colonels are making their 18th appearance in the MAC Freedom Tournament and have posted a record of 5-15-3 in those matchups. FDU and Wilkes have only met once in the MAC Freedom Tournament, which came in the semifinal round of the 2005 tournament and ended in a 2-1 win for the Colonels. 
 
The Colonels are offensively led by Emily Bidelspach, who has scored 12 of Wilkes' 33 goals this fall. In addition to her 12 goals, the senior has posted five assists for 29 points. In goal, Hannah Landis has made 76 saves to go along with a save percentage of .752 and a goals against average of 1.74.
 
FDU and Wilkes matched up against each other earlier this season in the MAC Freedom opener for both squads back on October 2. The Devils and Colonels played to a 2-2 double overtime draw at Bruggeworth Field in Wilkes-Barre. Emily Bidelspach scored both goals for Wilkes, while FDU received its goals from Ashleigh Frankel (Branchburg, NJ) and Jenna Conanan (Hazlet, NJ).

Since the 2009 season, FDU women's soccer is 3-5-4 against Wilkes. In the last three meetings the teams are 1-1-1 against each other. Wilkes won the 2019 matchup 3-1, while FDU won the 2018 match, 2-1. 

The winner of the MAC Freedom Play-In Game will move on to face top seed Misericordia University (16-1, 8-0) on Thursday, November 5 at 7:00 pm in the semifinal round. No. 3 seed Stevens Institute of Technology will also play at No. 2 seed DeSales University in the semifinal round at 2:00 pm on Thursday, November 5. The winners of the two semifinal matchups will play in the MAC Freedom Women's Soccer Championship game on Saturday, November 6. Time and location will be announced following the semifinal round.

For the latest on FDU-Florham Athletics, follow the Devils via social media (@FDUDevils) on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Youtube.