Recap courtesy of UMass Athletic Communications

No. 1 UMass 5, No. 5 Kent State 0
Box Score
OXFORD, Ohio – The top-seeded and No. 5 nationally-ranked UMass field hockey team jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first quarter and wouldn't look back, on the way to defeating fifth-seeded Kent State, 5-1 in the MAC Semifinals on Friday. Amber Fairon scored two goals for her fifth multi-goal game of the season to lead the offense. Niamh McKenzie scored her team-leading 20th goal of the season in the win while Emily Barrett dished two assists.

"We talked first and foremost about going into this game, every team is trying to win the same championship," said head coach Barb Weinberg. "People talk about it being a new season once postseason starts and we knew Kent State was going to bring the energy. Our team connects really well and it's a big part of our training to make those next-line connections and to find the next pass. That's where we found success in our goal scoring. I thought in periods of play today, our team did that very well."

UMass improves to 18-1 on the season, owning the nation's most wins and the program's most victories since the 2013 season. With the win, the Minutewomen advance to Saturday's MAC Championship game against second-seeded Miami. Gametime is set for 1 p.m. with the winner receiving an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

The Minutewomen had a flurry of chances early on. Off a penalty corner, Kent State's Eva Usoz made a defensive save, but moments later, Neva Eisenga fired home her 10th goal of the season at the 4:24 mark, becoming the fourth UMass player in double figures – most in the nation.

"It definitely gives us the momentum when we score early on in the game and it gives us a lot of confidence to keep building," said Eisenga. "Honestly, in games when we haven't, we always have the confidence to score later on because we have very talented girls on the team."

UMass added two more goals later in the first quarter. McKenzie made an impressive diving deflection past Kent State goalkeeper Michaela Skinner at the 10:26 mark. That goal moved her into a tie for eighth place in program history for goals in a season, becoming the Minutewomen's first 20-goal scorer since 2018 and only third since the turn of the century. McKenzie's 47 points are tied for seventh in school history.

Just 2:19 later, Fairon took a pass from Barrett and carried into the circle, firing a hard reverse for a 3-0 UMass lead at the 12:45 mark.

The Minutewomen added insurance at 21:57, as Isla Campbell put home a rebound for a 4-0 lead.

Kent State scored the only goal of the third quarter, coming 4:14 into the stanza. Off a corner, the Golden Flashes' initial shot was blocked, but Ryli Zee eventually converted to pull within 4-1.

The Minutewomen defense held strong, and they added one final goal with 35 seconds remaining as Amber Fairon roofed a shot for the 5-1 final.

"It's impossible in any sport for players to play their 100 percent best every single game and I think that's where our team has been really good," said Weinberg. "Maybe when one attacker's having a down day, the other one is bringing it up. The power is in numbers with our goal scoring for sure.

Final shots were 18-7 in favor of UMass, with the Minutewomen holding a 10-3 edge in penalty corners. Rozárie Mrázová had one save while Skinner finished with two.

UMass returns to the field on Saturday in Oxford, Ohio for their second straight MAC Championship Game appearance. Gametime is set for 1 p.m.