GETTYSBURG, Pa. – For the 11th time in 19 seasons, Gettysburg College will host the Centennial Conference Championship finale as the eighth-ranked Bullets meet No. 14 Ursinus College at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium this Saturday at 1 p.m.
Gettysburg (14-3, 7-1 CC) knocked off No. 15 Dickinson College 15-13 in the semifinals Wednesday and waited for the outcome of the second semifinal between No. 14 Ursinus (12-3, 5-3 CC) and No. 13 Franklin & Marshall College later that night. The Bears upset the top-seeded Diplomats 12-11, setting the stage for the championship game to return to Gettysburg for the fourth time in five seasons.
The Bullets seek their league-best 16th conference crown and first since downing the Bears 9-2 in the 2016 final. Gettysburg and Ursinus also squared off for the trophy in 2015 with the host Bullets pulling out an 11-10 decision.
For Gettysburg's 10 seniors in particular, this weekend's game could bring them full circle in their collegiate careers and check off their first goal of the postseason.
"It's awesome to be back in that game and this will be the fourth year," said senior attackman
Tommy Heller (Livingston, N.J./Livingston). "In all four of my years, we've only won one so far so that's a huge motivation for us. We need to win this game. Everyone is going to come out Saturday with that extra fire."
Heller made a triumphant return to the field in Wednesday's victory over Dickinson, throwing in a team-high five goals. The senior captain missed most of the first three months of the season recovering from an injury.
Junior
Michael McCormick (Lorton, VA./Paul VI Catholic) poured in four goals and junior defenseman
Mitch Wykoff (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Ludlowe) posted a goal and six ground balls in a well-balanced semifinal win for the Bullets.
Ursinus is hunting for its first Centennial title in its fourth trip to the postseason. The Bears opened their search with a surprising victory over F&M. The team trailed 6-2 in the second quarter, but managed to chip away at the lead and eventually pulled in front early in the fourth quarter. The Diplomats regained the upper-hand and held an 11-9 lead with 8:28 to play.
The Bears rattled off the game's final three scores, including two in the final minute capped by the game-winner by Ben Minardi with 21 seconds remaining. Hakan Attilasoy and Bobby McClure each finished with four goals and two assists, while goalie Nick Kirk racked up a game-high 17 saves.
Gettysburg and Ursinus met at Shirk Field back on March 23 with the Bullets handing the Bears their first setback of the season 13-9. The game was never in doubt as the Orange and Blue took an 8-2 lead into halftime and led 13-4 entering the fourth quarter. Senior
Blake Gray (Reisterstown, Md./McDonogh School) posted five goals and an assist, while freshman goalie
Scott MacMillan (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) logged nine saves for Gettysburg. McClure tallied three goals for the Bears.
Gettysburg is 20-0 all-time against Ursinus. Eight of the last 13 meetings between the Bullets and Bears have been decided by three goals or less.
The winner of Saturday's championship will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championship, while the loser will have to wait to see if its resume is good enough for an at-large berth to the national playoffs.
Follow live stats and video of Saturday's game at
https://portal.stretchinternet.com/gettysburg/.
