We all know the drill since we have been here in years past. If there is a tie between two or more teams in the league standings the Patriot League tie breakers kick in. However, there are separate field hockey tie breaker specific rules. At the present the Leopards have a 3-1 record in the league tied for second place. American has qualified already for the playoffs but has not locked up that second place. Although Lafayette is in a good position the playoff spot is not locked up. It may depend on tomorrows games to clarify things.
A win by Lafayette against American this week or a win next week against Bucknell would get the Leopards in with a 4-2 record. On the other hand a loss by Holy Cross would knock them out on the head to head tie breaker with Lafayette. Should Holy Cross win the next two game against Bucknell and Boston University, and Lafayette loses to American and Bucknell, Bucknell is in Lafayette is out. If Holy Cross wins against Bucknell and loses to BU and Lafayette loses to Bucknell, it’s 3 way tie and tie breakers are activated. In that case who knows??
The four tiebreakers are:
- Comparison of records versus out of league common opponents.
- Goal differential between tied teams (capped at +- 4)
- Goal differential between tied teams in all league games (capped at +- 4)
- Comparison of NCAA RPI rating.
The answer is simple the Leopard fate is in their hands…just win!!
Go Pards
Lafayette College Field Hockey 