NCAA Tournament Hurts EAIAW Field Hockey Tilt

The EAIAW field hockey championships are not what they used to be. This year only three teams competed, and top-seeded Providence College was just one game over .500. Last year eight squads participated and top-ranked UNH hadn't lost all year.

Last year there was only one field hockey championship, the AIAW's. This year there are two. Starting with this season, the NCAA is also sponsoring field hockey playoffs. The top four finishers in the '80 EAIAW championships--UNH-UMass, UConn, and Springfield College-all decided to participate in the NCAA tournament.

Money was the reason for the switch, according to UMass athletic director Frank McInerney. The NCAA pays the expenses of its championship participants, while the AIAW does not. "Our school simply cannot afford to send large teams long distances," said McInerney.

Money-or lack of it--has always been a problem with AIAW championships. In 1979 the Eastern champion Springfield field hockey team could not attend the AIAW national tournament simply because the college could not pay for the trip. But despite the financial benefits of joining the NCAA bandwagon, the Ivy League has decided to stay with the AIAW. "We thought that we should stick with the AIAW until we can see what path the NCAA is following," said Pat Miller, Harvard's assistant athletic director, earlier this year.

Yale, however, withdrew from this year's EAIAW field hockey championships in spite of receiving a qualifying bid. The Elis made this decision not for monetary reasons, but because Yale's athletic director did not feel that the Elis 6-7 record merited a place in the tournament.

Hey Big Spenders

"The policy here at Yale is that post-season competition depends on our success in the Ivies. Teams that have superb seasons go on to tournaments. Clearly, the field hockey team did not have that kind of season," Yale assistant athletic director Kit Morris said.

Dartmouth was one of the three teams that did attend, and beat Harvard and Providence College to earn a berth in the AIAW national tournament to be held in Berkeley, California later this month. Dartmouth athletic director Seaver Peters estimates that it will cost the school about $12,000 to send the team to California. "It's too bad that there are two tournaments, but the institution had a commitment to the AIAW and a commitment to compete. We feel that Dartmouth was one of the best teams in the region and we're glad to send them to the nationals," Peters said.